27 Best universities for Development Studies in Saudi Arabia

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in Saudi Arabia ranked based on their research performance in Development Studies. A graph of 540K citations received by 28.1K academic papers made by 27 universities in Saudi Arabia was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. King Saud University

Saudi Arabia | Riyadh

For Development Studies

#24 in Asia

#267 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Enrollment: 61,412
Founded: 1957

2. King AbdulAziz University

Saudi Arabia | Jeddah

For Development Studies

#27 in Asia

#286 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 25%
Founded: 1967

3. King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences

Saudi Arabia | Riyadh

For Development Studies

#146 in Asia

#724 in the World

Founded: 2005

4. King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

Saudi Arabia | Dhahran

For Development Studies

#149 in Asia

#744 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 17%
Founded: 1963

5. Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University

Saudi Arabia | Dammam

For Development Studies

#188 in Asia

#854 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 54%
Enrollment: 20,000
Founded: 1975

6. Qassim University

Saudi Arabia | Qassim

For Development Studies

#274 in Asia

#1122 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 58%
Enrollment: 50,054
Male:Female: 35:65
Founded: 2004

7. Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University

Saudi Arabia | Al-Kharj

For Development Studies

#284 in Asia

#1140 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 100%
Founded: 2009

8. King Faisal University

Saudi Arabia | Al-Ahsa

For Development Studies

#296 in Asia

#1170 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 81%
Founded: 1975

9. King Khalid University

Saudi Arabia | Abha

For Development Studies

#323 in Asia

#1232 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Founded: 1998

10. Umm Al-Qura University

Saudi Arabia | Mecca

For Development Studies

#357 in Asia

#1328 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 30%
Founded: 1981

11. Prince Sultan University

Saudi Arabia | Riyadh

For Development Studies

#393 in Asia

#1428 in the World

Enrollment: 6,269
Male:Female: 46:54
Founded: 1999

12. Jazan University

Saudi Arabia | Jazan

For Development Studies

#420 in Asia

#1487 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Enrollment: 54,999
Founded: 2005

13. Taibah University

Saudi Arabia | Medina

For Development Studies

#475 in Asia

#1634 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Enrollment: 74,877
Founded: 2003

14. Taif University

Saudi Arabia | Taif

For Development Studies

#476 in Asia

#1635 in the World

Founded: 2003

15. Princess Nora bint Abdulrahman University

Saudi Arabia | Riyadh

For Development Studies

#521 in Asia

#1740 in the World

Founded: 2008

16. King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

Saudi Arabia | Thuwal

For Development Studies

#542 in Asia

#1787 in the World

Enrollment: 940
Founded: 2009

17. Al-Imam Muhammad Ibn Saud Islamic University

Saudi Arabia | Riyadh

For Development Studies

#550 in Asia

#1816 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Enrollment: 85,367
Founded: 1974

18. Najran University

Saudi Arabia | Najran

For Development Studies

#568 in Asia

#1856 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 9%
Enrollment: 46,000
Founded: 2006

19. Alfaisal University

Saudi Arabia | Riyadh

For Development Studies

#611 in Asia

#1943 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 30%
Enrollment: 3,000
Founded: 2007

20. Al Jouf University

Saudi Arabia | Sakakah

For Development Studies

#657 in Asia

#2042 in the World

Founded: 2005

21. Majmaah University

Saudi Arabia | Al Majma'ah

For Development Studies

#794 in Asia

#2344 in the World

Enrollment: 19,956
Founded: 2009

22. University of Tabuk

Saudi Arabia | Tabuk

For Development Studies

#898 in Asia

#2556 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Founded: 2006

23. Shaqra University

Saudi Arabia | Shaqra

For Development Studies

#936 in Asia

#2649 in the World

Founded: 2008

24. Northern Borders University

Saudi Arabia | Arar

For Development Studies

#1032 in Asia

#2853 in the World

Enrollment: 15,300
Founded: 2007

25. Effat University

Saudi Arabia | Jeddah

For Development Studies

#1085 in Asia

#2961 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Enrollment: 2,093
Founded: 1999

26. Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University

Saudi Arabia | Khobar

For Development Studies

#1224 in Asia

#3250 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 54%
Enrollment: 5,820
Founded: 2006

27. Al Baha University

Saudi Arabia | Al Baha

For Development Studies

#1275 in Asia

#3345 in the World

Enrollment: 22,914
Founded: 2006

The best cities to study Development Studies in Saudi Arabia based on the number of universities and their ranks are Riyadh, Jeddah, Dhahran, and Dammam.

Economics subfields in Saudi Arabia

Actuarial Science6

Agricultural Economics4

Econometrics and Mathematical Economics27

Environmental Economics17

Finance27

International Economics4

International Trade6

Investment Banking and Stock trading17