The Times Higher Education (THE) has released the 2025 World universities rankings across nearly 2,000 institutions from 108 countries and territories.
In Africa, seven South African universities, five Egyptian universities and one Moroccan university were ranked as the top 13 universities in 2025.
University of Cape Town (South Africa), Stellenbosch University (South Africa) and the University of Witwatersrand (South Africa) were ranked as number 1,2 and 3 respectively.
These universities have been numerically ranked based on their positions in the overall Best Global Universities rankings.
Each institution was evaluated based on its research performance and its ratings by members of the academic community around the world and in the region.
Covenant University was ranked in the 801-1000 bracket among the participating institutions from 108 countries and regions worldwide.
Although Covenant University leads nationally, its global ranking in the league of world-class universities has dropped.
No Nigerian university ranked within the top 800 globally in the 2025 ranking.
Globally, the University of Oxford tops the ranking for the ninth year in a row but others in the top five have seen shifts in their ranks. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) moved to second place, overtaking Stanford, which drops to sixth.
Here are top 13 universities in Africa
- University of Cape Town (South Africa)
- Stellenbosch University (South Africa)
- University of Witwatersrand (South Africa)
- Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (Morocco)
- University of Johannesburg (South Africa)
- Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (Egypt)
- University of KwaZulu-Natal  (South Africa)
- American University in Cairo (Egypt)
- Future University in Egypt (Egypt)
- Kafrelsheikh University (Egypt)
- Mansoura University (Egypt)
- University of Pretoria (South Africa)
- University of the Western Cape (South Africa)
