Seoul, South Korea — Sejong University has strengthened its position among South Korea’s leading universities after placing 8th nationally and 281st worldwide in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2027.
The university recorded an overall score of 55.8, tying with Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) for eighth place among South Korean institutions. Globally, THE evaluated 2,297 universities across 118 countries and territories in this year’s edition.
Sejong’s Research Performance Stands Out
The strongest part of Sejong University’s performance was its Research Quality score.
Sejong received 90.5 points, making it the only South Korean university to score above 90 in the category and placing it first nationally for research quality.
THE’s research-quality assessment considers factors including research influence, citation impact, research strength and the performance of highly cited research.
The result highlights the university’s growing research profile at a time when global university rankings are placing increasing emphasis on the quality and influence of academic research.
Why Sejong’s Ranking Now Appears as No. 281
There is an important change behind this year’s headline number.
In the previous edition, Sejong University was placed within the 251–300 range, rather than receiving an individual ranking.
For the 2027 rankings, THE expanded its publicly disclosed individual rankings from the top 200 to the top 300 universities, allowing Sejong to receive an exact position of 281st worldwide.
That means the new No. 281 position should not be interpreted simply as a dramatic jump from a specific 2026 rank. Instead, it provides a more precise measurement of where Sejong stands within the global ranking table.
Industry Partnerships and Internationalization Also Improve
Sejong also recorded gains in areas outside research.
Its Industry score increased from 83.7 to 91.9, while its International Outlook score rose from 65.8 to 68.6.
The university also reported that its proportion of international students increased from 15.7% to 19.4%, while the share of foreign faculty members rose from 7.3% to 8.1%.
THE evaluates universities across five major areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry and international outlook. For the 2027 edition, research quality carries the largest weighting at 30%, followed by teaching at 29.5% and research environment at 29%.
Where Sejong Stands Among Korean Universities
Sejong’s No. 281 global position places it alongside UNIST, which also ranked 281st.
South Korea’s highest-ranked institution was Seoul National University at No. 56, followed by KAIST at No. 64, Sungkyunkwan University at No. 68, Yonsei University at No. 80, Korea University at No. 128, POSTECH at No. 143 and Kyung Hee University at No. 237.
THE said its 2027 rankings cover more than 2,200 research-intensive institutions worldwide, reflecting a broader shift in the global higher-education landscape as Asian universities continue to strengthen their positions.
A Bigger Test Comes Next
For Sejong University, the latest ranking is more than a new number on a global table. Its particularly strong research-quality score, rising industry collaboration and improving international profile point to the areas that could determine whether it can move even higher in future editions.
The challenge now is whether Sejong can turn its research strength into sustained gains across teaching, global engagement and research performance — and push beyond the global top 300 in the next ranking cycle.
WWC ONE MEDIA G,A
