The University of Santo Tomas (UST) has been named the fifth-best research institution in the Philippines in the 2024 SCImago Institutions Rankings, marking its highest placement to date.

SCImago Institutions Rankings evaluate academic and research performance across various institutions worldwide. UST secured rankings in nine subject areas out of the 19 assessed.

UST made a significant leap in the 2024 rankings, climbing seven spots to fifth in the Philippines (4,987th globally) from its previous 12th-place standing (8,132nd globally) in 2023.

In the innovation output category, which measures research growth and patent applications, UST rose to third in the country from 12th, improving its global position to 4,875th from 8,083rd. 

In research performance, which assesses research volume, impact, and quality, UST moved up to eighth in the Philippines from 11th (7,100th globally from 7,209th).

Moreso, the Catholic university also made significant progress in societal impact, which evaluates web presence through pages, backlinks, and social media mentions, rising to fourth locally from eighth (2,015th globally from 5,118th).

It upheld its reputation as the leading higher education institution in the Philippines by topping the country’s rankings in the inaugural Times Higher Education (THE) Interdisciplinary Science Rankings (ISR) 2025. The university led all Philippine institutions in biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology; chemistry; and pharmacology, toxicology, and pharmaceutics. It secured second place in agricultural and biological sciences and environmental science while also earning recognition in arts and humanities. Additionally, it ranked fourth in psychology, fifth in medicine, and seventh in social sciences.

SCImago Lab is a Spanish consulting firm originating from the SCImago Research Group, which specializes in scientometrics, scientific publication analysis, and web visibility evaluation.

UST first entered the SCImago rankings in 2020, placing 6,432nd globally out of 7,026 institutions and ranking eighth in the Philippines.

To be ranked in a subject area, an institution must exceed the minimum output threshold from the previous year, which is set at twice the percentage that the field represents globally.

In the 2024 rankings, the International Rice Research Institute maintained its position as the top research institution in the Philippines, despite dropping from 1,431st to 2,971st globally — a rank it has held since 2009.

It was followed by the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman at 3,151st globally, and the Department of Science and Technology at 3,344th. De La Salle University ranked as the country’s top private research institution, placing 4,459th worldwide. UP Los Baños followed UST at sixth locally and 5,866th globally, while Ateneo de Manila University ranked seventh in the Philippines and 6,645th worldwide.

A total of 9,054 research institutions participated in the 2024 SCImago Institutions Rankings, including 15 from the Philippines. Institutions were assessed based on three criteria: research performance (50 percent), innovation output (30 percent), and societal impact (20 percent).