KAIST: Rankings
KAIST ranked 3 in South Korea, 382 in the global 2026 rating, and scored in the TOP 1-3 across multiple research topics. The ranking is based on 3 factors: research output (EliteDegrees's index has 103,878 academic publications and 2,810,310 citations attributed to the university), non-academic reputation, and the impact of notable alumni.
| Position | Category |
|---|---|
| # 382 of 14,131 | In the World |
| # 45 of 5,830 | In Asia |
| # 3 of 193 | In South Korea |
| # 78 of 5,910 | For Engineering |
| # 98 of 5,966 | For Physics |
| # 126 of 6,057 | For Computer Science |
| Top 1-3 | For 12 other topics |
Jump to topical rankings below
Engineering rankings
KAIST ranked 2 for Engineering in South Korea and 78 in the World with 82,294 publications made and 2,185,639 citations received.
KAIST
Engineering Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robotics | #1 | #7 | #18 |
| Computer Engineering | #2 | #4 | #25 |
| Nanotechnology | #2 | #18 | #33 |
| Telecommunications | #1 | #14 | #40 |
| Automation and Control | #1 | #24 | #53 |
| Biochemical Engineering | #1 | #9 | #54 |
| Metallurgy | #2 | #34 | #80 |
| Optics | #2 | #26 | #81 |
| Systems | #1 | #21 | #113 |
| Aviation | #2 | #22 | #114 |
| Reliability and Quality | #1 | #38 | #116 |
| Applied Physics | #3 | #46 | #121 |
| Operations Research | #1 | #40 | #135 |
| Architecture | #2 | #28 | #138 |
| Environmental Engineering | #3 | #64 | #162 |
| Renewable Energy | #2 | #56 | #168 |
| Remote Sensing | #2 | #46 | #178 |
| Construction Management | #4 | #75 | #256 |
| Biotechnology | #9 | #99 | #425 |
| Engineering Management | #3 | #149 | #702 |
| Nuclear Engineering | #1 | #9 | #21 |
| Product and Industrial Design | #1 | #18 | #92 |
| Technical Drawing | #2 | #20 | #55 |
| Structural Engineering | #2 | #29 | #79 |
| Mechanical Engineering | #2 | #21 | #81 |
| Acoustical Engineering | #1 | #23 | #90 |
| Electrical Engineering | #2 | #15 | #40 |
| Automotive Engineering | #3 | #28 | #57 |
| Electronic Engineering | #1 | #9 | #26 |
Physics rankings
KAIST ranked 2 for Physics in South Korea and 98 in the World with 74,112 publications made and 2,016,316 citations received.
KAIST
Physics Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nanotechnology | #2 | #18 | #33 |
| Optics | #2 | #26 | #81 |
| Condensed Matter | #3 | #38 | #119 |
| Applied Physics | #3 | #46 | #121 |
| Molecular | #2 | #38 | #228 |
| Biophysics | #2 | #38 | #248 |
| Theoretical | #2 | #44 | #280 |
| Astrobiology | #3 | #48 | #282 |
| Quantum and Particle physics | #2 | #26 | #88 |
Chemistry rankings
KAIST ranked 2 for Chemistry in South Korea and 156 in the World with 66,098 publications made and 2,051,667 citations received.
KAIST
Chemistry Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nanotechnology | #2 | #18 | #33 |
| Physical | #2 | #26 | #43 |
| Biochemical Engineering | #1 | #9 | #54 |
| Organic chemistry | #2 | #35 | #111 |
| Pharmacy | #1 | #35 | #135 |
| Radiochemistry | #2 | #78 | #136 |
| Computational | #2 | #40 | #197 |
| Biochemistry | #3 | #60 | #274 |
| Materials Science | #2 | #26 | #59 |
| Inorganic Chemistry | #2 | #37 | #72 |
| Chemical Engineering | #2 | #23 | #37 |
Computer Science rankings
KAIST ranked 2 for Computer Science in South Korea and 126 in the World with 53,844 publications made and 1,209,870 citations received.
KAIST
Computer Science Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Robotics | #1 | #7 | #18 |
| Animation | #1 | #6 | #23 |
| Computer Engineering | #2 | #4 | #25 |
| Telecommunications | #1 | #14 | #40 |
| Computer Vision | #2 | #21 | #61 |
| Multimedia | #1 | #10 | #68 |
| Cryptography and Distributed computing | #2 | #27 | #87 |
| Machine Learning | #2 | #31 | #107 |
| Computational Linguistics | #1 | #24 | #114 |
| Cognitive Science | #1 | #23 | #131 |
| Software Engineering | #1 | #17 | #142 |
| Information Technology | #2 | #24 | #165 |
| Management Information Systems (MIS) | #1 | #20 | #192 |
| Data Science | #2 | #37 | #269 |
| Bioinformatics / Computational biology | #3 | #49 | #309 |
| Neuroscience | #7 | #68 | #417 |
| Web Design and Development | #1 | #11 | #52 |
| Human-Computer Interaction | #1 | #7 | #32 |
| Computer Networking | #1 | #11 | #46 |
| Artificial Intelligence (AI) | #1 | #22 | #79 |
Biology rankings
KAIST ranked 4 for Biology in South Korea and 279 in the World with 51,595 publications made and 1,786,851 citations received.
KAIST
Biology Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nanotechnology | #2 | #18 | #33 |
| Biophysics | #2 | #38 | #248 |
| Biochemistry | #3 | #60 | #274 |
| Astrobiology | #3 | #48 | #282 |
| Paleontology | #3 | #54 | #305 |
| Bioinformatics / Computational biology | #3 | #49 | #309 |
| Molecular | #4 | #80 | #342 |
| Genetics | #7 | #81 | #372 |
| Evolutionary | #3 | #60 | #382 |
| Neuroscience | #7 | #68 | #417 |
| Biotechnology | #9 | #99 | #425 |
| Microbiology | #11 | #111 | #448 |
| Oncology | #16 | #158 | #500 |
| Immunology | #15 | #157 | #529 |
| Botany | #11 | #135 | #547 |
| Virology | #11 | #155 | #596 |
| Pharmacology | #29 | #272 | #756 |
| Zoology | #13 | #157 | #777 |
| Forestry | #11 | #231 | #844 |
| Entomology | #13 | #232 | #893 |
| Horticulture | #19 | #363 | #983 |
| Wildlife and Fisheries Management | #22 | #282 | #1001 |
| Animal Science | #32 | #520 | #1555 |
Environmental Science rankings
KAIST ranked 3 for Environmental Science in South Korea and 255 in the World with 36,791 publications made and 1,061,816 citations received.
KAIST
Environmental Science Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Environmental Engineering | #3 | #64 | #162 |
| Oceanography | #2 | #46 | #183 |
| Environmental Management | #2 | #58 | #184 |
| Geology | #3 | #47 | #240 |
| Earth science and Geoscience | #2 | #61 | #255 |
| Paleontology | #3 | #54 | #305 |
| Ecology | #2 | #67 | #328 |
| Forestry | #11 | #231 | #844 |
| Wildlife and Fisheries Management | #22 | #282 | #1001 |
Liberal Arts & Social Sciences rankings
KAIST ranked 3 for Liberal Arts & Social Sciences in South Korea and 442 in the World with 26,218 publications made and 638,531 citations received.
KAIST
Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linguistics | #2 | #29 | #194 |
| Aesthetics | #3 | #35 | #277 |
| Archaeology | #3 | #73 | #383 |
| Broadcast Journalism | #6 | #52 | #388 |
| Law | #3 | #50 | #390 |
| Philosophy | #2 | #48 | #405 |
| Publishing | #2 | #42 | #434 |
| History | #3 | #73 | #440 |
| Political Science | #3 | #50 | #482 |
| Education | #2 | #76 | #484 |
| Sociology | #5 | #86 | #635 |
| Anthropology | #4 | #83 | #687 |
| Media Studies | #5 | #95 | #926 |
| Demography | #18 | #272 | #1095 |
| Gender Studies | #12 | #300 | #1755 |
| Journalism and Digital Media | #1 | #7 | #69 |
Mathematics rankings
KAIST ranked 3 for Mathematics in South Korea and 198 in the World with 21,066 publications made and 446,291 citations received.
KAIST
Mathematics Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cryptography and Distributed computing | #2 | #27 | #87 |
| Operations Research | #1 | #40 | #135 |
| Statistics | #3 | #37 | #189 |
| Applied Mathematics | #2 | #73 | #283 |
| Econometrics | #3 | #59 | #351 |
| Actuarial Science | #4 | #58 | #431 |
| Mathematics Education | #7 | #155 | #747 |
Medicine rankings
KAIST ranked 11 for Medicine in South Korea and 543 in the World with 20,577 publications made and 689,197 citations received.
KAIST
Medicine Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacy | #1 | #35 | #135 |
| Physical Therapy | #8 | #67 | #448 |
| Oncology | #16 | #158 | #500 |
| Radiology | #14 | #146 | #505 |
| Sports | #8 | #74 | #506 |
| Immunology | #15 | #157 | #529 |
| Pathology | #13 | #138 | #536 |
| Ophthalmology | #18 | #168 | #576 |
| Occupational Therapy | #15 | #114 | #592 |
| Virology | #11 | #155 | #596 |
| Radiation Therapy | #19 | #203 | #601 |
| Psychiatry | #10 | #144 | #625 |
| Audiology | #15 | #134 | #647 |
| Pharmacology | #29 | #272 | #756 |
| Cosmetology | #35 | #307 | #804 |
| Orthodontics | #20 | #244 | #860 |
| Paramedicine and Emergency | #18 | #174 | #872 |
| Surgery | #35 | #309 | #895 |
| Dentistry | #26 | #298 | #949 |
| Dermatology | #36 | #338 | #952 |
| Cardiology | #31 | #331 | #984 |
| Gerontology | #28 | #193 | #1037 |
| Veterinary | #22 | #466 | #1192 |
| Anesthesiology | #40 | #447 | #1280 |
| Urology | #38 | #487 | #1292 |
| Nursing | #27 | #302 | #1297 |
| Health Science | #21 | #326 | #1301 |
| Healthcare Administration | #24 | #319 | #1305 |
| Clinical Psychology | #32 | #337 | #1365 |
| Obstetrics and Gynecology | #38 | #633 | #2082 |
Business rankings
KAIST ranked 2 for Business in South Korea and 170 in the World with 16,018 publications made and 377,754 citations received.
KAIST
Business Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Management | #2 | #25 | #114 |
| Operations Research | #1 | #40 | #135 |
| Marketing | #2 | #19 | #146 |
| Management Information Systems (MIS) | #1 | #20 | #192 |
| Advertising | #3 | #26 | #225 |
| Construction Management | #4 | #75 | #256 |
| Finance | #2 | #37 | #261 |
| Project Management | #2 | #36 | #294 |
| Accounting | #4 | #53 | #355 |
| Actuarial Science | #4 | #58 | #431 |
| Entrepreneurship | #1 | #40 | #431 |
| Real Estate | #12 | #102 | #454 |
| Risk Management | #7 | #89 | #503 |
| Engineering Management | #3 | #149 | #702 |
| International Trade | #6 | #116 | #781 |
Psychology rankings
KAIST ranked 6 for Psychology in South Korea and 383 in the World with 14,127 publications made and 442,696 citations received.
KAIST
Psychology Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cognitive Science | #1 | #23 | #131 |
| Neuroscience | #7 | #68 | #417 |
| Education | #2 | #76 | #484 |
| Occupational Therapy | #15 | #114 | #592 |
| Psychiatry | #10 | #144 | #625 |
| Clinical Psychology | #32 | #337 | #1365 |
Art & Design rankings
KAIST ranked 2 for Art & Design in South Korea and 188 in the World with 8,406 publications made and 165,472 citations received.
KAIST
Art & Design Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Animation | #1 | #6 | #23 |
| Multimedia | #1 | #10 | #68 |
| Graphic Design | #2 | #19 | #136 |
| Architecture | #2 | #28 | #138 |
| Sculpture | #2 | #46 | #272 |
| Aesthetics | #3 | #35 | #277 |
| Music | #2 | #27 | #277 |
| Photography | #3 | #38 | #331 |
| Literature | #2 | #34 | #352 |
| Cinematography | #2 | #19 | #377 |
| Acting and Drama | #2 | #46 | #429 |
| Creative Writing | #3 | #105 | #811 |
| Computer Graphics | #1 | #8 | #48 |
| UX/UI Desgin | #1 | #9 | #69 |
| Game Design and Development | #1 | #9 | #71 |
Economics rankings
KAIST ranked 4 for Economics in South Korea and 421 in the World with 6,420 publications made and 151,041 citations received.
KAIST
Economics Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finance | #2 | #37 | #261 |
| Econometrics | #3 | #59 | #351 |
| Actuarial Science | #4 | #58 | #431 |
| International Trade | #6 | #116 | #781 |
