Catholic University of Leuven: Rankings

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The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st in Belgium, 68th in the global 2025 rating, and scored in the TOP 100 across 217 research topics. The Catholic University of Leuven ranking is based on 3 factors: research output (EduRank's index has 264,993 academic publications and 8,839,307 citations attributed to the university), non-academic reputation, and the impact of 175 notable alumni.

Ranking Category
#68 of 14,131 In the World
#10 of 2,785 In Europe
#1 of 63 In Belgium
#1 of 2 In Leuven
#12 of 1,346 For Biochemical Engineering
#12 of 1,036 For Intellectual Property and Patent Law
#14 of 2,702 For Sports Medicine
#399 of 7,918 For Alumni Impact
#92 of 14,131 For Non-academic Prominence
Top100 For 214 other topics

Jump to topical rankings below

Acceptance rate and other statistics

Biology rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Biology in Belgium and 47th in the World with 148,141 publications made and 6,197,224 citations received. Main research topics: Genetics, Biochemistry, Paleontology, Immunology, Neuroscience.

Biology ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#7 of 1,448 In Europe
#47 of 6,833 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Biology Publications & Citations

Year Biology publications Biology citations
1992 994 11227
1993 1076 11875
1994 1200 13528
1995 1289 14719
1996 1508 17835
1997 1638 20867
1998 1873 24687
1999 1848 28794
2000 1896 33889
2001 2158 38559
2002 2405 46223
2003 2718 55132
2004 2759 61472
2005 3023 71726
2006 3378 85079
2007 3475 95016
2008 4158 108263
2009 4257 123489
2010 4598 140696
2011 5051 161551
2012 5314 185623
2013 5746 206818
2014 5978 233113
2015 6136 250684
2016 6075 268085
2017 6432 293572
2018 6860 324347
2019 7111 366101
2020 8080 456221
2021 8366 527983
2022 7998 521393
2023 8010 534376
2024 6105 494379

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Biology.

Biology subfield Belgium ranking Europe ranking World rank
Nutrition and Food Science 2 3 24
Biotechnology 1 7 30
Entomology 1 8 36
Bioethics/Medical Ethics 1 9 40
Agricultural Science 2 4 44
Microbiology 2 9 44
Paleontology 1 8 45
Botany 2 9 48
Biochemistry 1 9 52
Genetics 1 9 53
Horticulture 2 5 53
Immunology 1 12 54
Bioinformatics and Computational biology 1 11 55
Virology 1 11 55
Oncology and Cancer research 1 9 60
Neuroscience 1 13 62
Pharmacology 1 10 62
Toxicology 2 17 65
Evolutionary Biology 1 13 67
Forestry 3 17 71
Wildlife and Fisheries Management & Conservation 2 17 72
Animal Science 3 16 72
Molecular Biology 1 13 72
Astrobiology 2 19 76
Biophysics 1 17 78
Nanotechnology 1 8 79
Zoology 2 32 108

Chemistry rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Chemistry in Belgium and 45th in the World with 119,064 publications made and 4,801,645 citations received. Main research topics: Biochemistry, Organic Chemistry, Materials Science, Nanotechnology, Chemical Engineering.

Chemistry ranking Location
#1 of 16 In Belgium
#6 of 1,417 In Europe
#45 of 6,545 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Chemistry Publications & Citations

Year Chemistry publications Chemistry citations
1992 999 10359
1993 1063 11276
1994 1155 12435
1995 1260 13633
1996 1490 16642
1997 1549 18995
1998 1836 22548
1999 1768 26019
2000 1804 30654
2001 2090 34152
2002 2427 42398
2003 2536 49259
2004 2447 53735
2005 2691 62077
2006 2980 72419
2007 3049 78754
2008 3426 88271
2009 3497 99636
2010 3687 112420
2011 4071 129014
2012 4142 146691
2013 4521 163600
2014 4572 182614
2015 4718 194244
2016 4703 207852
2017 4722 225764
2018 5043 247311
2019 5111 277286
2020 5737 336404
2021 5761 384322
2022 5565 381197
2023 5731 389276
2024 4304 363417

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Chemistry.

Medicine rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Medicine in Belgium and 44th in the World with 118,008 publications made and 4,974,935 citations received. Main research topics: Pathology, Surgery, Psychiatry, Immunology, Radiology and Nuclear medicine.

Medicine ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#7 of 1,433 In Europe
#44 of 6,775 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Medicine Publications & Citations

Year Medicine publications Medicine citations
1992 793 8584
1993 805 9023
1994 919 10138
1995 1004 11318
1996 1099 13609
1997 1139 15660
1998 1299 18732
1999 1273 21493
2000 1357 25931
2001 1494 29693
2002 1496 34160
2003 1887 41769
2004 1866 46548
2005 2099 53884
2006 2304 63953
2007 2504 72904
2008 3183 84385
2009 3114 96583
2010 3380 110892
2011 3863 126793
2012 4116 145353
2013 4616 163732
2014 4742 185881
2015 4965 202473
2016 4907 215420
2017 5444 239145
2018 5750 264393
2019 6071 299686
2020 6926 383138
2021 7261 449214
2022 6905 446832
2023 6902 459629
2024 5828 430511

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Medicine.

Engineering rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Engineering in Belgium and 50th in the World with 113,963 publications made and 3,731,623 citations received. Main research topics: Materials Science, Optical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Metallurgical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering.

Engineering ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#9 of 1,465 In Europe
#50 of 6,782 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Engineering Publications & Citations

Year Engineering publications Engineering citations
1992 745 5801
1993 807 6783
1994 924 7603
1995 988 8454
1996 1166 10470
1997 1196 11628
1998 1414 13819
1999 1474 15645
2000 1464 18505
2001 1729 21341
2002 2462 29940
2003 2351 33120
2004 2317 37201
2005 2623 44875
2006 2989 53984
2007 3019 59819
2008 3418 68444
2009 3560 79004
2010 3976 90968
2011 4073 106290
2012 4332 120894
2013 4395 135539
2014 4671 151041
2015 4782 163763
2016 4692 174001
2017 4713 187765
2018 5127 208188
2019 5325 233947
2020 5665 276548
2021 5779 314983
2022 5477 307812
2023 5819 318691
2024 4267 296182

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Engineering.

Physics rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Physics in Belgium and 53rd in the World with 107,393 publications made and 3,490,604 citations received. Main research topics: Quantum and Particle physics, Materials Science, Optical Engineering, Astrophysics and Astronomy, Nanotechnology.

Physics ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#9 of 1,457 In Europe
#53 of 6,713 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Physics Publications & Citations

Year Physics publications Physics citations
1992 752 6056
1993 817 6642
1994 933 7614
1995 974 8296
1996 1194 10561
1997 1203 11552
1998 1384 13707
1999 1445 15544
2000 1472 18235
2001 1716 21302
2002 2315 28433
2003 2283 31778
2004 2258 35969
2005 2495 42723
2006 2795 50329
2007 2873 55544
2008 3109 63325
2009 3339 73102
2010 3653 83768
2011 3786 97525
2012 3946 110707
2013 4128 123447
2014 4324 137414
2015 4392 149748
2016 4327 159599
2017 4410 171595
2018 4765 190305
2019 4917 213122
2020 5246 249239
2021 5246 280783
2022 5020 273884
2023 5319 285064
2024 3948 268326

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Physics.

Liberal Arts & Social Sciences rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Liberal Arts & Social Sciences in Belgium and 34th in the World with 105,618 publications made and 3,108,660 citations received. Main research topics: Philosophy, Political Science, Law, Sociology, History.

Liberal Arts & Social Sciences ranking Location
#1 of 18 In Belgium
#5 of 1,500 In Europe
#34 of 7,081 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Publications & Citations

Year Liberal Arts & Social Sciences publications Liberal Arts & Social Sciences citations
1992 402 3046
1993 471 3490
1994 554 4101
1995 571 4229
1996 623 5444
1997 698 6071
1998 867 7432
1999 926 8552
2000 884 10685
2001 1145 12614
2002 1544 16860
2003 1630 20088
2004 1747 23228
2005 2029 27968
2006 2345 35117
2007 2454 41279
2008 3034 49485
2009 3335 58398
2010 3592 67281
2011 3929 79272
2012 4268 92746
2013 4481 104759
2014 4812 120498
2015 4995 131684
2016 5040 139022
2017 5225 153240
2018 5858 174500
2019 6359 201932
2020 6196 250952
2021 6111 292565
2022 5763 287344
2023 5820 301002
2024 4099 258714

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences.

Computer Science rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Computer Science in Belgium and 37th in the World with 103,882 publications made and 3,668,679 citations received. Main research topics: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Neuroscience, Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Telecommunications.

Computer Science ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#5 of 1,469 In Europe
#37 of 6,845 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Computer Science Publications & Citations

Year Computer Science publications Computer Science citations
1992 490 4078
1993 568 4666
1994 623 5383
1995 649 5704
1996 749 7170
1997 824 8004
1998 983 9980
1999 1023 11605
2000 992 13585
2001 1206 16225
2002 1945 24271
2003 1785 26321
2004 1866 30278
2005 2120 36216
2006 2443 44530
2007 2556 51071
2008 2998 58885
2009 3287 70414
2010 3570 80619
2011 3746 93900
2012 4095 109070
2013 4231 123204
2014 4514 139956
2015 4645 153072
2016 4578 161726
2017 4747 177390
2018 5272 201512
2019 5499 231451
2020 5852 281971
2021 6095 326277
2022 5650 316866
2023 6062 332175
2024 4293 294300

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Computer Science.

Environmental Science rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Environmental Science in Belgium and 44th in the World with 86,857 publications made and 2,955,821 citations received. Main research topics: Geology, Geography and Cartography, Ecology, Paleontology, Meteorology and Atmospheric Science.

Environmental Science ranking Location
#1 of 18 In Belgium
#6 of 1,464 In Europe
#44 of 6,876 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Environmental Science Publications & Citations

Year Environmental Science publications Environmental Science citations
1992 464 3795
1993 513 4329
1994 560 4727
1995 643 5188
1996 795 6542
1997 840 7873
1998 952 8980
1999 1000 10442
2000 1006 12663
2001 1203 14343
2002 1536 19482
2003 1565 21950
2004 1679 25431
2005 1890 30574
2006 2201 37808
2007 2279 43049
2008 2550 50103
2009 2594 58421
2010 2835 67375
2011 3100 77982
2012 3303 91097
2013 3472 103039
2014 3636 116366
2015 3723 126597
2016 3693 135818
2017 3861 147831
2018 4187 166838
2019 4428 191058
2020 4777 234869
2021 4972 271587
2022 4628 265913
2023 4786 275134
2024 3341 245501

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Environmental Science.

Psychology rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Psychology in Belgium and 44th in the World with 62,107 publications made and 2,472,276 citations received. Main research topics: Psychiatry, Neuroscience, Social Psychology, Cognitive Science, Child Psychology.

Psychology ranking Location
#1 of 16 In Belgium
#7 of 1,423 In Europe
#44 of 6,645 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Psychology Publications & Citations

Year Psychology publications Psychology citations
1992 347 3746
1993 364 3937
1994 398 4337
1995 466 4832
1996 443 5750
1997 506 6244
1998 562 7672
1999 562 8877
2000 591 10533
2001 659 12342
2002 746 14837
2003 858 17431
2004 938 19754
2005 1015 23513
2006 1213 28051
2007 1255 32502
2008 1571 38540
2009 1717 45388
2010 1896 52356
2011 2157 61304
2012 2308 71393
2013 2542 81309
2014 2598 92375
2015 2847 101939
2016 2836 109135
2017 3054 121888
2018 3276 137323
2019 3520 157141
2020 3735 197126
2021 3940 229041
2022 3723 226335
2023 3793 235848
2024 2883 211855

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Psychology.

Psychology subfield Belgium ranking Europe ranking World rank
Special Education 1 7 23
Occupational Therapy 1 4 25
Cognitive Science 1 5 30
Organizational / Business / IO Psychology 1 6 41
Psychiatry 1 9 49
Social Psychology 1 8 53
Child Psychology 1 8 55
Negotiation and Conflict Resolution 1 15 56
Education Majors 1 8 61
Neuroscience 1 13 62
Clinical Psychology 1 13 68
Sexology 1 22 128
Social Work 2 78 236

Mathematics rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Mathematics in Belgium and 37th in the World with 50,081 publications made and 1,850,327 citations received. Main research topics: Statistics, Econometrics and Mathematical Economics, Applied Mathematics, Blockchain and Cryptography, Math Teachers.

Mathematics ranking Location
#1 of 16 In Belgium
#5 of 1,401 In Europe
#37 of 6,418 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Mathematics Publications & Citations

Year Mathematics publications Mathematics citations
1992 201 1350
1993 244 1633
1994 273 1890
1995 268 2102
1996 311 2517
1997 365 2931
1998 388 3624
1999 457 4170
2000 403 4852
2001 553 5879
2002 892 9382
2003 867 10246
2004 942 12288
2005 1072 15370
2006 1247 18392
2007 1342 21635
2008 1405 25861
2009 1555 30758
2010 1701 35420
2011 1847 41081
2012 2060 47955
2013 2078 54955
2014 2206 62964
2015 2263 69739
2016 2194 72100
2017 2439 79576
2018 2454 90936
2019 2655 105625
2020 3009 129084
2021 3043 151177
2022 2865 148452
2023 3001 153963
2024 1878 115129

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Mathematics.

Mathematics subfield Belgium ranking Europe ranking World rank
Applied Mathematics 1 6 21
Operations Research 1 2 22
Blockchain and Cryptography 1 3 26
Actuarial Science 1 4 29
Statistics 1 5 39
Econometrics and Mathematical Economics 1 7 43
Math Teachers 1 7 60

Business rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Business in Belgium and 44th in the World with 35,767 publications made and 1,029,703 citations received. Main research topics: Management, Finance, Marketing, International Business, International Trade.

Business ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#5 of 1,433 In Europe
#44 of 6,339 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Business Publications & Citations

Year Business publications Business citations
1992 133 786
1993 148 961
1994 156 1149
1995 197 1305
1996 205 1682
1997 248 1804
1998 281 2201
1999 316 2684
2000 304 3151
2001 383 3859
2002 629 6114
2003 624 6731
2004 653 8077
2005 773 9605
2006 869 12001
2007 1004 14341
2008 1055 17233
2009 1160 19620
2010 1312 23184
2011 1333 26754
2012 1449 31739
2013 1518 35969
2014 1627 41133
2015 1721 44507
2016 1663 46632
2017 1771 51298
2018 1868 57115
2019 1981 66436
2020 2064 80175
2021 2073 92523
2022 1916 88412
2023 2074 92780
2024 1211 73013

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Business.

Economics rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Economics in Belgium and 48th in the World with 26,565 publications made and 744,794 citations received. Main research topics: Finance, Development Studies, Econometrics and Mathematical Economics, International Trade, International Economics.

Economics ranking Location
#1 of 17 In Belgium
#7 of 1,388 In Europe
#48 of 6,167 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Economics Publications & Citations

Year Economics publications Economics citations
1992 79 510
1993 94 630
1994 100 700
1995 119 812
1996 134 1000
1997 175 1170
1998 179 1404
1999 208 1657
2000 209 2080
2001 284 2472
2002 375 3523
2003 426 4363
2004 461 5604
2005 547 6564
2006 622 8005
2007 728 9288
2008 760 11576
2009 824 13571
2010 907 15672
2011 1014 18066
2012 1100 21895
2013 1123 24645
2014 1256 28637
2015 1256 30677
2016 1256 31960
2017 1380 35056
2018 1445 39674
2019 1506 46997
2020 1598 58749
2021 1556 67677
2022 1533 66161
2023 1533 69650
2024 995 55985

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Economics.

Art & Design rankings

The Catholic University of Leuven ranked 1st for Art & Design in Belgium and 41st in the World with 18,137 publications made and 425,677 citations received. Main research topics: Fashion Design, Literature, Aesthetics, Computer Graphics, Art History.

Please note that our approach to subject rankings is based on scientific outputs and heavily biased on art-related topics towards institutions with computer science research profiles.

Art & Design ranking Location
#1 of 16 In Belgium
#7 of 1,381 In Europe
#41 of 5,966 In the World

Catholic University of Leuven
Art & Design Publications & Citations

Year Art & Design publications Art & Design citations
1992 66 439
1993 83 515
1994 87 645
1995 121 715
1996 134 856
1997 117 985
1998 153 1097
1999 188 1348
2000 156 1639
2001 203 1843
2002 307 2896
2003 305 3325
2004 310 3682
2005 357 4576
2006 438 5766
2007 401 6306
2008 518 7199
2009 565 8840
2010 641 9944
2011 704 11843
2012 810 14038
2013 723 15588
2014 813 17294
2015 882 19413
2016 835 19824
2017 932 21637
2018 974 24498
2019 1043 27866
2020 997 32857
2021 969 37637
2022 985 36448
2023 1042 39269
2024 650 36064

The following table provides academic rankings for The Catholic University of Leuven in various areas of Art & Design.

Art & Design subfield Belgium ranking Europe ranking World rank
Architecture 1 8 19
Fashion Design 1 4 29
Aesthetics 1 7 37
Interior Design 2 18 46
Literature 1 10 47
Graphic Design 1 7 47
Landscape Architecture 2 22 48
Illustration and Concept Art 3 26 50
Computer Graphics 1 12 57
Photography 2 19 62
Performing arts 1 23 65
Painting and Drawing 4 34 65
Sculpture 4 34 65
Multimedia 1 13 66
Creative Writing 1 24 73
Animation 1 14 73
Music 2 22 74
Art History 1 29 83
UX/UI Desgin 2 28 85
Entertainment Industry Business 2 25 103
Game Design and Development 1 36 109
Cinematography 3 48 116
Singing and Vocal Performance 3 59 163