U.S. News & World Report, the first U.S. publication to introduce a global university ranking, released its 2026–2027 Best Global Universities Rankings on June 16. Tamkang University ranked first among Taiwan’s private non-medical universities. In the subject rankings, both Chemistry and Engineering were listed, with Chemistry drawing particular attention by ranking No. 1 worldwide in the Percentage of Highly Cited Papers Among the Top 1% Most Cited indicator under academic excellence.

Tamkang’s global ranking in Chemistry rose sharply from No. 406 to No. 350. More significant than the overall rise, however, was the department’s outstanding performance across several research-impact indicators. In addition to ranking No. 1 worldwide in the percentage of highly cited papers among the top 1% most cited, Tamkang Chemistry maintained a global ranking of No. 11 in Normalized Citation Impact and placed No. 80 in International Collaboration Relative to Country. Altogether, three indicators ranked among the world’s top 100.

Chair of the Department of Chemistry Chih-Hsin Chen said that the remarkable figure of “No. 1 in the world” demonstrates that, although the department’s recent research achievements have not been driven by publication volume, they have attained strong visibility and citation impact within the international academic community.

“This achievement reflects the cumulative results of our faculty members’ long-term commitment to research, their focus on internationally significant issues in chemistry, the promotion of interdisciplinary and international collaboration, and the cultivation of graduate students and young researchers,” Chen said.

“The impact of chemistry research often takes time to develop. Highly cited research indicates that the findings continue to be referenced and expanded upon by scholars around the world,” Chen added. He explained that the department’s research spans analytical chemistry, materials chemistry, sensing technologies, biomedical applications, and energy-related fields. Despite this diversity, the work shares a common emphasis on problem-oriented research and international engagement, enabling the department’s research outcomes to address issues of concern to both the global academic community and industry. Chen further noted that the department will continue to strengthen high-quality research, international collaboration, and industry–academia partnerships, ensuring that Tamkang Chemistry maintains a stable and visible presence on the global academic stage.

This year’s rankings included 2,250 universities across 105 countries. Tamkang University ranked No. 1,484 globally, No. 15 among the 33 ranked universities in Taiwan, and No. 6 among private universities, making it the highest-ranked private non-medical university in Taiwan. Engineering, the University’s other ranked subject area, placed No. 1,357 worldwide.

U.S. News & World Report first launched its Best Global Universities Rankings in 2014. The ranking has since become internationally influential and is widely regarded alongside the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, the QS World University Rankings, and the Academic Ranking of World Universities.