Why international students are losing faith in university rankings
“Rankings are important to international students.”
This is the usual retort I get when asking an institution why a ranking (rather than a message) is the first thing students see when they land on its homepage.
Well, according to Etio’s Global Student Experience survey (drawing on responses 106,427 international students) even the most prolific users of rankings are losing faith in them.
In 2019, 22% of students said rankings were important when making a study decision.
In 2025, it was just 16%.
No doubt this is because of the boom in peer-to-peer, creator and other niche information sources.
What would you rather place trust in? A signal of reputation, or having a dialogue with someone who’s from your country, studied your subject and experienced your anxieties?
Of course, it isn’t always that clear-cut.
It’s hard to view rankings in isolation because they inform many other categories (listed by Etio), such as institution and country “reputation”.
However, it’s clear that rankings can no longer stand alone.
They can’t carry your message.
At the very least, pair your rankings with a POV.
If you don’t, students will search for someone who does.
