ELTE on the podium in the QS sustainability ranking

13.12.2024.

Eötvös Loránd University ranked third in Hungary and achieved 351st place among over 1,700 institutions worldwide.

In response to the growing importance of environmental protection, after Times Higher Education, Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) also launched its own university sustainability world ranking (Sustainability Rankings) in 2022, based on sustainability criteria. This year, QS evaluated universities using 52 indicators, grouped into three main categories: measuring environmental impact (education, research, aspects of sustainability), measuring social impact (employability, equality, health and well-being, impact of education, aspects of knowledge transfer), and the category examining university leadership. A detailed summary of the survey methodology is available in English on this page.

After 700, then 1,400, this year the ranking features the world’s 1,743 top higher education institutions, including 556 from Europe and 12 from Hungary. Eötvös Loránd University secured 351st place in the overall ranking, nearly 100 places behind its result from last year, thus ranking third among Hungarian institutions for sustainability after the University of Debrecen (313th) and the University of Szeged (325th).

Of the three evaluated criteria, ELTE achieved its best result in university leadership, ranking 110th, while it placed 417th for environmental impact and 408th for social impact. Among Hungarian universities, ELTE ranks first in leadership and social impact, and third in environmental impact.

ELTE believes that global challenges like climate change require global solutions, but it is also important for countries and smaller organizations, including universities, to focus their efforts in this area. An important aspect of the university’s Institutional Development Plan is climate protection, and education for sustainability is part of the faculties’ training portfolio. ELTE places strong emphasis on research connected to environmental protection and sustainability, and is a founding member of CHARM-EU, a European university alliance whose first master's program is called "Global Challenges in Sustainability.” Eötvös Loránd University also takes part in the UNI-ECO international cooperation project, alongside the University of Montpellier, the University of Barcelona, Trinity College Dublin, Utrecht University, the UNIMED university network and the CESIE non-profit organization, all working to make campuses more sustainable (reducing water consumption, energy management, sustainable procurement processes, improving waste management).

The 2025 QS Sustainability Rankings are led by the University of Toronto, ETH Zurich, and Sweden's Lund University. Detailed results by geographical region and university can be explored on this site, and you can find a comprehensive summary of ELTE’s national and international rankings in this overview.