THE Impact Ratings: the university’s positioning and the methodology

Results of the 2026 ranking at a glance

• between 101st and 200th in the world rankings
• 1st in Italy

The ranking considers universities with regard to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• the University of Bologna's best performance is in ‘SDG 9 – ‘Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure’ it ranks 19th out of 826;
• in ‘SDG16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions ' where it ranks 44th out of 914;
• in ‘SDG 8 – ‘Decent Work and Economic Growth’ it ranks 95th out of 1003;
• in 'SDG 17 - Partnerships for the goals' it ranks between 401st and 600th out of 1610.

Methodology

Indicators and number of universities analysed

This year, 1603 universities were ranked. The ranking considers universities with regard to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

• SDG 1 - No poverty;
• SDG 2 - Zero hunger;
• SDG 3 - Good health and well-being;
• SDG 4 - Quality education;
• SDG 5 - Gender equality;
• SDG 6 - Clean water and sanitation;
• SDG 7 - Affordable and clean energy;
• SDG 8 - Decent work and economic growth;
• SDG 9 - Industry, innovation, and infrastructure;
• SDG 10 - Reduced inequalities;
• SDG 11 - Sustainable cities and communities;
• SDG 12 - Responsible consumption and production;
• SDG 13 - Climate action;
• SDG 14 - Life below water;
• SDG 15 - Life on land;
• SDG 16 - Peace, justice and strong institutions;
• SDG 17 - Partnerships for the goals.

They consider the results in the top 3 SDGs, in addition to SDG 17: SDG 17 is given a weight of 22%, while the other 3 UN objectives are given a weight of 26%.