The University of Sassari does not rank among the top thousand universities in the world in the 2026 edition of the Academic Ranking of World Universities, the renowned international ranking compiled by ShanghaiRanking Consultancy.
The ranking, published on August 15, considers more than 2,500 universities worldwide, but makes only the top 1,000 public.
The University of Sassari is not among them.
Cagliari in the 801–900 bracket
In Sardinia, the University of Cagliari does make it into the ranking, placed in the bracket between 801st and 900th in the world.
A total of 42 Italian universities are included in the top 1,000, but none manages to enter the top hundred positions.
The top-ranked Italian university is La Sapienza University of Rome, in 153rd place worldwide. The University of Padua follows immediately behind among the Italian universities.
The United States once again dominates the international ranking: Harvard, Stanford and MIT occupy the top three positions, respectively.
How the Shanghai ranking works
The result must, however, be read in light of the methodology used.
The ARWU ranking focuses heavily on scientific research and uses six indicators, including the number of Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals associated with the university, the presence of highly cited researchers, and publications in the journals Nature and Science.
The quantity of scientific articles indexed in major international databases and academic productivity relative to the size of the university are also taken into account.
Aspects such as teaching quality, student services, relationships with faculty or the university experience are therefore not assessed directly.
Sassari beyond the thousandth place in another world ranking
Moreover, failing to enter the Shanghai top 1,000 does not mean that the University of Sassari is not considered by other international rankings.
In the Center for World University Rankings 2026, which uses different criteria, the University of Sassari is in 1,034th place worldwide out of more than 21,000 institutions analyzed, placing it in the top 4.9% globally.
Two different rankings, therefore, each offering a snapshot of different aspects of the university system.
For the 2026 Shanghai ranking, however, the figure remains clear: Cagliari represents Sardinia among the top thousand universities, while Sassari remains outside the published ranking.