Secretaria de Relações Internacionais | Office of International Relations

The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) has been ranked 5th among the most sustainable universities in Brazil in the QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2025. The ranking evaluates higher education institutions worldwide based on three key categories: environmental impact, social impact, and governance.

UFSC excelled particularly in the Environmental Education and Environmental Research lenses, highlighting its dedication to sustainability and the preparation of professionals committed to environmental preservation. Additionally, the University performed notably in the Equality and Health and Wellbeing lenses, underscoring its commitment to fostering social values ​​through academic and institutional practices.

The 2025 rankings evaluated 1,744 universities, marking a 25% increase from the previous year’s 1,397 universities. Among Brazilian universities, participation grew by 23.5%, rising from 34 institutions in the previous year to 42 in 2025.

While the methodology underwent minor adjustments in specific indicators, the performance lenses, indicators, and weightings remained consistent with the previous year.

The QS Sustainability Rankings are globally recognized for highlighting institutions that integrate sustainable practices into their activities and curricula. UFSC’s achievement reinforces its international relevance in higher education and its leadership in promoting a sustainable future.

To view the full ranking, visit the official QS page.

The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) achieved the 4th position among the best universities in Brazil in the Times Higher Education (THE) Interdisciplinary Science Rankings 2025. The ranking, which is in its first edition, measures the contribution and commitment of global universities to interdisciplinary science.

The Interdisciplinary Science Rankings 2025 evaluated 749 universities from 92 countries and is currently led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In the overall ranking, UFSC is in the 136^th position. As for Brazil, the leading institution is the Universidade de São Paulo (USP).

The ranking is based on 11 indicators evaluating institutions in three main areas, each representing a stage in the life cycle of research projects: Inputs (funding); Process (measures of success, facilities, administrative support and promotion); and Outputs (publications, research quality and reputation). UFSC stood out in Inputs, with a grade 57.5 (out of 100), following Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp), ranked 2^nd among Brazilian institutions in this area.

The interdisciplinary approach evaluated by the ranking is a growing trend, seen as a solution to complex problems that require the integration of different academic perspectives.

Visit the THE website to find out more about the ranking and the position of the participating univeristies.

Access here the methodology of the THE Interdisciplinary Science Rankings 2025.

The Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) occupies the 10th position in the Times Higher Education (THE) Latin America University Rankings 2024, moving up two positions from last year, when it was in the 12th position. With this new ranking, the institution is now one of the  top 10 universities in Latin America.

The achievement is registered as a milestone in UFSC´s ranking in higher education in Latin America.

The Latin America University Rankings evaluates the universities according to performance indicators that covers five areas:

• teaching  (learning environment); 

• research environment  (volume, income and reputation);  

• research quality  (research strength, research excellence and research influence);  

• international outlook  (staff, students and research); and

• industry  (income and patents).

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USC is among the 5 best Brazilian federal universities in the THE World University Rankings 2024

The Times Higher Education (THE) published on Wednesday, 27 September, the results of the World University Rankings 2024, listing the best universities in the world.

In this edition, the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) was ranked among the 801-1000 best in the world, and among the 5 best federal institutions in the country.

Universities are evaluated based on 13 performance indicators which are grouped into five pillars: Teaching, Research Environment, Research Quality, Industry and International Outlook. UFSC stood out in the Industry (64.2) pilar.

The Times Higher Education (THE) is a British magazine that publishes news and articles on higher education and prepares, annually, a set of rankings considered one of the most comprehensive, balanced, and reliable in the world. The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024 includes more than 1.904 universities from 108 countries/regions.

Access the full rankings results here.

The results of the QS World University Rankings: Latin America  & The Caribbean 2024 were published on Wednesday, 13 September, and ranked the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) among the 23 best universities in Latin America. UFSC occupies the 8th position among the Brazilian universities and the 4th among the federal education institutions in Brazil.

The ranking is produced annually by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a British company specialized in education. The ranking analyzed 430 institutions in 25 Latin American and Caribbean countries and at the top of the list is the Universidade de São Paulo (USP). The overall score of each institution is calculated using eight metrics, each with a different weight: Academic Reputation (30%); Employer Reputation (20%); Faculty Student Ratio (10%); Faculty Staff with PhD (10%); International Research Network (10%); Citations per Paper (10%); Papers per Faculty (5%) and Web Impact (5%). The strongest indicators for UFSC in this edition were Faculty Staff with PhD (99.7 score), International Research Network (98.1 score) and Web Impact (97.4 score).

In terms of UFSC articles and external citations between 2017 and 2022, the main theme for UFSC was studies in the Life Sciences & Medicine areas.

Check out the complete ranking results here.

Times Higher Education (THE) has published the results of the Impact Rankings 2023, which assesses universities against the United Nations’  17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In this edition, 1,591 universities from 112 countries/regions were included in the ranking. In the overall ranking, UFSC is in the 601-800 range, with a score between 59.7 and 66.7.

Among Brazilian institutions, UFSC is in the fifth ranking range. Among the federal universities, it is in the third range. Our university stood out for its actions towards the following SDGs:

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production;
• SDG 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure;
• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy.

The best overall performance was from Western Sydney University, in Australia, followed by the University of Manchester, in the UK, and Queen’s University, in Canada. Among the Brazilian universities, the Universidade de São Paulo (USP) is the one which performed best, placed in the 101-200 range worldwide. The Impact Rankings 2023 indicators provide comparisons across four broad areas: research, stewardship, outreach and teaching.

The Times Higher Education (THE) is a British magazine that publishes news and articles on higher education and prepares, annually, a set of rankings considered one of the most comprehensive, balanced, and reliable in the world. In addition to the institutional actions regarding the SDGs, the THE Impact Rankings also assesses the institutions based on the research carried out for each goal.

Check out the THE Impact Rankings 2023 here.

Read the methodology of the Impact Rankings 2023 here.

The Times Higher Education (THE) has just published the Latin America University Rankings, listing the best universities in the Latin America and Caribbean region.

In this 2022 edition, the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) is ranked 6th.

Among the best universities in Latin America, UFSC is the second-best Brazilian federal institution, standing out in the knowledge transfer, research and teaching performance indicators.

The Times Higher Education (THE) is a British magazine that publishes news and articles related to higher education, affiliated to The Times newspaper.

Universities are evaluated based on 13 performance indicators, including teaching, research, knowledge transfer, and international outlook.

Click here to check out the THE Latin America University Rankings.

Read the methodology of the Latin America University Rankings 2022.