In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are leading what some are calling a new renaissance driven by innovation and knowledge creation, backed by heavy investment. Saudi’s King Abdulaziz University is one of the fastest-rising universities in the world, rocketing to 101st position this year from 190th last year, and the Kingdom is the most improved nation, by national average score, in the world rankings this year. In the UAE, of the six UAE universities included in the overall world rankings for 2023, five are on the rise – led by the United Arab Emirates University and the University of Sharjah, which have both surged this year into the world’s top 300 list.
