Savitribai Phule Pune University
Pune: Strong international engagement helped Symbiosis International (Deemed University) top Pune’s universities in the QS Asia University Rankings 2027, climbing 25 places to 175 from 200 last year. Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU), despite strong research scores, slipped 67 places to 274 from 207, while Dr D Y Patil Vidyapeeth (DPU), Pimpri, fell from 569 to 584. It scored 97.9 in inbound student exchange, 96.4 in outbound exchange and 74.1 in international students. Its international faculty score of 68.2 was significantly higher than SPPU’s 1 and DPU’s 24.8. Its employer reputation score of 82.1 also put it ahead of the two other Pune universities. IIT Delhi led Indian institutions with an overall score of 77.9 and ranked 66th in Asia.
Internationalisation, she said, had been central to the institution since its inception. DPU vice-chancellor NJ Pawar said the university had improved in around nine parameters over the previous year but was at a disadvantage as a primarily medical institution — medical students were more inclined towards professional degrees than research-oriented PhDs, affecting the university’s research-related scores. Symbiosis’ performance was driven by its internationalisation scores, which surpassed those of several leading Indian institutions on individual parameters. However, the gap between Pune’s institutions and the country’s top performers remains considerable. Symbiosis chancellor Vidya Yeravdekar, chancellor of Symbiosis International, attributed the improvement to sustained efforts and accurate data submission. She credited vice-chancellor Ramakrishnan Raman and the university’s Quality Management and Benchmarking department for strengthening its performance. Meanwhile, DPU scored higher than both Symbiosis and SPPU in parameters such as faculty-student ratio and the proportion of staff with PhDs.