Top Engineering Schools in mainland China

The recently released QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023 for 53 different subjects including 533 of the top engineering and technology schools around the world – 35 of which can be found in mainland China. 

The ranking covers six different branches subjects within the engineering and technology category – chemical engineering, civil and structural engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, petroleum engineering, mechanical engineering, and mineral and mining engineering. 

The rankings are compiled using five indicators: academic reputation, employer reputation, citations per paper, H-index citations (a way of measuring the productivity and published work of an institution or scholar) and international research network. Find out more about the methodology used on our website. 

Read on as we discover the top engineering and technology schools in mainland China.

Of the 35 engineering and technology universities in mainland China, Tsinghua University is the highest-ranked for another consecutive year and has risen five places in the global rankings. It earns an almost perfect score in the H-index indicator as well as scoring highly for academic reputation. 

Notable movements in the engineering and technology top 10 this year in mainland China is Zhejiang University which moved up two places in the mainland China ranking and 32 places from 61st in the global rankings. Harbin Institute of Technology also rises three places from eighth in the mainland China rankings and 65 places from 137th in the global rankings. 

See the full engineering and technology subject rankings here. 

Top universities for chemical engineering 

There are currently 420 chemical engineering schools in the subject rankings, with 33 of these located in mainland China. Six Chinese universities can be found in the global top 100. 

China’s top university for chemical engineering this year is Tsinghua University, in 12th place globally after rising one place from the 2022 rankings. New entries to this year’s top 10 are Xi’an Jiaotong University and Huazhong University of Science and Technology. 

See the full chemical engineering rankings here. 

Top universities for civil and structural engineering 

The 230 civil and structural engineering schools featured in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023 include 14 top Chinese universities. 

The highest ranking of these is Tsinghua University which once again offers the best course in mainland China: placing 11th worldwide after rising one place this year. The school earns a perfect score in the H-index indicator and an almost perfect score for citations per paper. 

Five Chinese universities feature in the global top 100. 

See the full civil and structural engineering rankings here. 

Top universities for electrical and electronic engineering

Mainland China is home to 37 of the 521 electrical and electronic engineering universities in the world, with Tsinghua University bagging the top spot in the country this year. 

There are six Chinese universities in the global top 100 for the subject. Of these, Huazhong University of Science and Technology has experienced the most significant change, rising from 11th place in the 2022 rankings to fifth in the 2023 rankings. 

See the full electrical and electronic engineering rankings here. 

Top universities for petroleum engineering

Three of the 162 universities that offer courses in petroleum engineering are located in mainland China. The top-ranking university for this subject in mainland China this year is China University of Petroleum Beijing which earns its highest score for H-index citations, indicating the university’s contribution towards research within the subject area. 

See the full petroleum engineering rankings here. 

Top universities for mechanical, aeronautical and manufacturing engineering 

There are 34 Chinese schools found within the top 520 mechanical, aeronautical, and manufacturing engineering universities in the world. Nine of these are ranked within the top 100, with Tsinghua University once again claiming the top spot, ranking 17th worldwide. 

Huazhong University of Science and Technology made the biggest jump in the rankings this year, rising four places from 11th to seventh in the region and joint 150th to 83rd in the world, and entering the national top 10. 

See the full mechanical engineering rankings here. 

Top universities for mineral and mining engineering 

Of the 71 top mineral and mining engineering universities worldwide, only four are in mainland China. China University of Mining and Technology is the best of these, ranking 17th in the world. It retains the top rank from last year despite falling three places from 14th in the global rankings. 

Mainland China has three new entries to the top mineral and mining engineering rankings this year: Wuhan University, Nanjing University and University of Science and Technology Beijing. 

See the full mineral and mining engineering rankings here.