The Association Between National Economic and Educational Indicators and the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings for Medicine.
QS World University Rankings for Schools of Medicine
Supporting Agencies
- No funding was received
Abstract
Background: University and medical school rankings have long been published by media outlets and various organizations, particularly in the United States. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the association between the number and proportion of medical schools from 55 countries included in the top 500 of the QS World University Rankings for Medicine and each country’s economic and educational indicators, using a ranking system with publicly available criteria and independently evaluated methodology. Methods: The average number of medical schools listed in the QS World University Rankings for Medicine in 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023, and 2024 was calculated for each of the 55 countries and statistically analyzed. Correlations between national economic and educational indicators and QS ranking performance were assessed using correlation and regression analyses. No significant correlation was found between the total number of medical schools in a country and the number of those schools included in the QS top 500 list (r=0.112; p=0.510). The strongest predictor of the ratio of top-ranked medical schools to the total number of medical schools was per capita national income (β=2.522; p=0.03). Conclusion: These findings suggest that better economic conditions are associated with greater representation in the QS Medicine rankings; however, this relationship should not be interpreted as causal or independent of other factors. The findings suggest that simply increasing the number of medical schools or the proportion of students enrolled in secondary or tertiary education may not, by itself, improve national representation in QS Medicine rankings. The results of this study may contribute to the literature on international medical school rankings and national educational performance.
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