The University of Cambridge has maintained its lead over other UK universities in the Times Higher Education (THE) league table of the most prestigious higher education institutions in the world, clinging onto fourth place for the second year in a row.

However, this year the University shared its position in the rankings with traditional rival Oxford, which climbed up one spot to move into joint fourth place. The pair were the only universities outside the United States to appear in the top 10. University College London and Imperial College London were the next highest placed UK institutions, occupying the 16th and 18th positions respectively. The London School of Economics, meanwhile, surged four places this year to enter the top 20 for the first time, appearing at 20th place.

The results of the rankings were also noteworthy for the strong performance of universities in Asia, with a handful of leading institutions in Japan, China, and Hong Kong overtaking their counterparts in the West. Tsinghua University in Beijing made its debut in the top 15 after jumping four spots this year to finish in 14th place, while the University of Hong Kong re-entered the top 40 in 39th place after tumbling from 36th to 43rd place in 2014.

But Professor Simon Marginson of the Centre for Global Higher Education, an international research centre based at the UCL Institute of Education, advised treating the results of the rankings with caution, since they compile the opinions of senior academics to list universities entirely according to their reputation. This differentiates it from the league tables of other publications, which typically measure research performance and student feedback. Many of the universities in Asia which scored highly in terms of prestige and reputation performed poorly in these metrics.

Emma Leech, the Director of Marketing and Advancement at Loughborough University, emphasised that another factor to consider was the importance of effective communication between universities and the wider public. “In terms of communication strategies, [the] post-truth [era] has made us really think about how we share and disseminate news, and we just don’t use traditional channels any more,” said Leech, who also cited Loughborough’s collaboration with bloggers and opinion influencers as an example of this trend.

A University spokesperson told Varsity that the ranking “reflects the fact that the University of Cambridge is among a small group of the most respected and influential higher education institutions in the world.”