FOR yet unknown reasons, the top-ranking Philippine educational institution Ateneo de Manila University made a steep dive in the 2024 edition of Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings.

From its previous perch of 351-500 in the 2023 edition, Ateneo slid into the 1001-1200 bracket, according to THE’s recent report.

The steep decline also puzzles even Commission on Higher Education Chairman Prospero De Vera III who said on Friday that their agency would look into the factors as to why the Philippine universities’ rankings suffered a sudden setback instead of climbing up in the rankings.

“We should also look at criteria/areas where they are not going up fast (or worse may have gone down) like research and compare that with higher ranked universities. Then we know what we have to improve on,” De Vera said.

De Vera added that there is a possibility that international higher education institutions have “faster score improvement” now.

“Because these HEIs are increasing investments in research, faculty development, facilities, etc. compared to Philippine HEIs, they end up ranking higher than Philippine HEIs,” he said.

Meanwhile, the University of the Philippines, which is supported by the government, also dropped from 801–100th place to 1,201–1500th this year.

The overall score decreased from 29.8 to 33.9 last year to 22.8 to 28.2, despite improvements in the teaching and global outlook categories.

De La Salle University, which had previously been included in the 1,200 to 1,500, slid into the 1,501+ category and is ranked third among HEIs with Philippine locations.

However, De Vera said that a lower ranking does not necessarily indicate a lesser score in THE’s world ranking.