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Latin America’s Top Universities for STEM Studies

Adriana Alcántara

Global May 2025 PREMIUM

Latin American universities are expanding STEM opportunities through research, global rankings, and international collaboration, providing students with access to high-quality programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics across the region.

Latin America is home to some of the world’s oldest and largest universities, that have served as pillars of national development and social mobility in the post-independence era. Over recent decades, the region’s dynamic, young population has driven growth of the higher education sector, at the same time as global trends have pushed universities and colleges to become more competitive, engaging in cutting-edge research and strengthening regional and international cooperation.

As mentioned in previous H.O. articles, Latin America is the second most-visited host region among U.S. study abroad students, and it is of particular interest to Hispanic/Latino students, who may feel greater familiarity with the region due to their cultural roots, may be interested in exploring these roots further, or may simply share the same overall interest that other students have in the U.S.’ neighbouring region, due to its economic and strategic importance. In order to better understand the universities and colleges that host U.S. students, within the region’s higher education landscape as a whole, Hispanic Outlook will offer its readers a monthly spotlight on Latin American higher education institutions. Given this month’s theme, we begin with two of the region’s top universities, which are also recognized in global rankings for their excellence in STEM studies.

Global University Rankings for STEM Studies

The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Top Universities Rankings and the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings are two of the most widely recognized global rankings of universities across the world, due to their detailed methodology and extensive surveys across higher education institutions. They also include regional and subject rankings, allowing users to obtain indicators on research, publications, teaching, employability, and international networks in specific areas. Naturally, neither of these rankings can capture the entire scope of each university’s achievements and their ranking formulas can be debated, given that they may not include indicators that could be deemed important in certain contexts, and more generally, many aspects of the higher education experience cannot be quantified. Nonetheless, they give us a sense of the scope of each university’s work and the recognition that the institution has gained as a result.

QS STEM Subject Rankings

For Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), QS has Subject Rankings in three areas:

-Natural Sciences (which includes Chemistry, Earth and Marine Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Geography, Geology, Geophysics, Materials Sciences, Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy)

-Engineering and Technology (including six engineering disciplines as well as Computer Science and Information Systems, and Data Science and Artificial Intelligence)

-Life Sciences and Medicine (encompassing Agriculture and Forestry, Anatomy and Physiology, Biological Sciences, Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy and Pharmacology, Psychology, and Veterinary Science).

For each of these areas, universities are ranked according to three general indicators: Employability, Research and Discovery, and Global Engagement.

Times Higher Education STEM Subject Rankings

The Times Higher Education Rankings include six areas related to STEM:

-Engineering (includes five core disciplines - General Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Civil Engineering and Chemical Engineering

-Physical Sciences (includes Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Statistics, Astronomy, Geology, and Environmental, Earth and Marine Sciences)

-Life Sciences (includes Veterinary Science, Biological Sciences -which encompasses biology and biochemistry -, Agriculture and Forestry, and Sport Science)

-Medical and Health (includes fields across medicine, dentistry, nursing and other healthcare disciplines)

-Computer Sciences (includes computing and digital technologies)

Interdisciplinary Science (A new ranking, unique to THE, which measures commitment and success of interdisciplinary research projects by assessing inputs, processes and outputs)

For each of these areas, THE ranks universities by using five indicators: research quality, income from industry, international outlook, research environment and teaching.

Latin American Universities with the Highest STEM Rankings

The top-ranked Latin American universities for STEM subjects were found by selecting regional filters for each of the subject areas ranked by both QS and THE. The Latin American institutions that obtained first, second or third place in each of these 2025 subject rankings are summarized in the following table:

Most of these institutions are ranked among the Times Higher Education and QS top twenty Latin American universities overall. According to these specific subject rankings, six of the top Latin American universities in STEM fields are in Brazil, two are in Mexico and one is in Chile. Of these, six are public and three are private.

The two universities that obtained the highest rankings from both QS and THE, across various STEM areas, are undoubtedly the Universidade de São Paulo (USP) in Brazil and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), profiled here.

Universidade de São Paulo (USP)

The University of São Paulo was founded in 1934, consolidating several pre-existing schools. Since its inception, it welcomed the collaboration of foreign scholars, including renowned intellectuals from Europe, the United States and other Latin American countries. Today, it is widely recognized as a premier institution regionally and globally, and is Brazil’s largest university. USP is a public institution, serving the state of São Paulo through campuses in eight cities: Bauru, Lorena, Piracicaba, Pirassununga, Ribeirão Preto, Santos, São Carlos and São Paulo (the capital). According to USP’s latest statistics (2024), it has 59,216 enrolled undergraduate students and 29,441 graduate students, as well as 5,182 faculty members and 12,514 technical/administrative staff. USP houses 49 schools and specialized institutes, as well as 48 physical libraries, 4 museums and a large number of other statewide services and outreach programs to the community. In Latin American university rankings, USP is currently ranked #1 by QS (which ranks it #92 globally), and #1 by THE (ranked #199 globally).

STEM Studies at USP

USP is particularly known for its excellence in science, technology and health, and its support for STEM studies begins even before students enter the university - The Dean’s Office for Research and Innovation runs programs for secondary school students to conduct scientific research under the supervision of USP professors. At USP, students can study STEM fields at five Faculties (of Pharmacy, Medicine, Dentistry, Public Health and Veterinary Medicine and Animal Husbandry), and three Schools (of Physical Education and Sports, Nursing, and a large Polytechnic School) located in the central São Paulo campus, as well as at seven Medicine and Health related Faculties in Bauru and Ribeirão Preto, two Engineering Schools and Departments at Lorena and Santos, the Higher School of Agriculture at Piracicaba, and the Faculty of Animal Husbandry and Food Engineering at Pirassununga. In addition, USP has ten Institutes at the São Paulo campus, specializing in areas ranging from Astronomy and Oceanography to Energy, Geoscience and Tropical Medicine.

USP’s preeminent scientific research capacity is evidenced by the fact that it accounts for 22% of all scientific research production in Brazil. According to USP data for 2018-2023, USP researchers were awarded 6,774 distinctions during this period, and 153 patents were granted. In addition to the ten main Institutes mentioned above, USP is home to more than 80 research centers, “Research Support Nodes” and interdisciplinary institutes dedicated to scientific specializations, many of which have been established over the past two decades and engage with cutting-edge topics. USP also supports 17 National Institutes of Science and Technology, which include Immunology, Cancer Research, Future Internet trends, Agricultural Technology and many others, contributing to the country’s development.

USP is top-ranked in Medicine and Health (with both QS and THE putting it in first place among Latin American universities); this recognition is based on the strong emphasis USP places on this area of studies, through a large number of schools, faculties and institutes dedicated to Medicine, and hands-on applications at its four hospitals. While two of these are general hospitals, the Hospital das Clinicas is recognized for treating highly complex diseases and the Hospital de Reabilitacão de Anomalias Craniofaciais specializes in facial reconstruction surgeries. Altogether, between 2018 and 2023, USP hospitals served around 22 million patients, providing an important public service; it’s two Veterinary Hospitals also treated 184,000 animals.

USP has emphasized environmental sustainability, both for the university’s functioning and through the creation of various centers for environmental studies that are actively engaged in local community projects and international collaborations. It has been ranked as the 8^th most sustainable university in the world by UI GreenMetrics, as it has recovered hundred of hectares of land for reserves and forests at two of its campuses, and its campus at Pirassununga houses the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest Biomes. It has also created five new research centers, for Greenhouse Gas Innovation, Sustainable Tropical Agriculture, Tropical Agriculture Carbon Studies, Sustainable Amazon Studies, and most recently, for Climate and Sustainability (USPproClima).

USP prioritizes practical applications of its’ research outputs, and has strong links with the business sector. USP’s Innovation Agency encourages outreach and entrepreneurship through numerous business incubators, technological parks and training fairs. The Inova Center for Research and Innovation includes four cutting-edge areas: the Interdisciplinary Research for Innovative Solutions program, the Games and Digital Solutions Lab (for solving technological issues in creative ways), the Synthetic and Systems Biology Lab, and the USP branch of the Pasteur Institute (dedicated to biodiversity and discovering new pathogens).

Opportunities for International Students and Scholars at USP

USP is known for its international links, and has signed 1,588 partnerships and agreements with institutions in other countries; in 2024, there were 2,770 international students at USP, and 1,851 USP students abroad. In the period between 2018 and 2023, a notable 42% of all USP scientific research was produced through international collaboration, and this collaboration has been further strengthened through an agreement with the prestigious French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) to establish an International Research Center at USP, as well as USP missions to China to strengthen technological/scientific networks with its’ universities and government agencies. USP’s International Office can be found at https://internationaloffice.usp.br/en/index.php/institutional/about-the-international-office/.

USP welcomes international students and scholars (see the main portal, which includes many useful brochures in English, at https://internationaloffice.usp.br/en/index.php/multimedia/downloads/). Its admissions guidelines are available at: https://internationaloffice.usp.br/wp-content/uploads/docs/usp-fact-sheet.pdf For international students, however, Portuguese language fluency is required, as the majority of courses are taught in Portuguese.

International researchers are welcomed through exchange programs (see https://prpi.usp.br/international-student-and-researcher/), and many higher-level research centers in specific areas that have international collaborations work with several languages and have English-language web pages (see, for example, https://ccarbon.usp.br/ and https://c2po.usp.br/). For more detailed information on USP’s work, see English-language news about the university at https://jornal.usp.br/usp-news/.

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)

The National Autonomous University of Mexico, founded in 1551, is the country’s oldest and most prestigious higher education institution. With 269,000 students, it is the largest university in Latin America, and one of the largest in the world. When its network of 14 high schools is included, then UNAM provides a public education to a total of 372,755 students. The latest UNAM data shows that UNAM has 43,156 academics and staff, and offers a plethora of technical careers, B.A. degrees, and graduate programs, at 16 faculties, 5 national schools, and 10 multidisciplinary units. Four Mexican Nobel Laureates are among UNAM’s alumni. In Latin American university rankings, the institution is currently ranked #9 by QS (which ranks it #94 globally), and #15 by THE (which puts it in the 801-1000 range globally).

STEM Studies at UNAM

In STEM areas, UNAM’s high-quality research, teaching and international networking are well recognized and have a long history. The Faculty of Medicine can trace its origins back to the Royal School of Surgery of 1778, and Schools of Engineering and Agriculture existed since the late 1800s. Upon achieving the status of an autonomous university in 1929, the first modern institutes of Biology and Geology were established (building on previously existing departments attached to government ministries of agriculture and industry). Over the past century, UNAM has become Mexico’s preeminent scientific institution. It’s faculties, national and international institutes, centers and outreach branches have grown to encompass broad areas of scientific inquiry, and it is responsible for the development of cadres of Mexican and Latin American scientists over many generations.

Today, UNAM offers thousands of students undergraduate and graduate degrees through its Faculty of Science (which includes careers in various areas of Biology, Physics and Mathematics), Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zoology, Faculty of Chemistry, School of Earth Sciences and School of Nursing and Obstetrics.

UNAM’s Subsystem for Scientific Research (in charge of all scientific endeavors) includes a total of 30 academic institutes and centers that fall under three main scientific areas: Physical and Mathematical Sciences (10 institutes and 3 centers), Chemical, Biological and Health Sciences (9 institutes and 1 center), and Earth Sciences and Engineering (5 institutes and 2 centers). Academics from these institutes and centers participate in teaching students across science-related faculties and schools.

UNAM also houses five University-wide Programs with a mission to collaborate internally and externally in order to find solutions for various social and environmental issues: the Research Program on Emerging and Epidemiological Threats (charged with analyzing the rollout and efficacy of the COVID 19 vaccine, for example), the Research Program on Climate Change, the University Space Program, the Program for Interdisciplinary Soil Studies and the Program for Sustainable Food.

In addition, UNAM has five Special Programs to Support Teaching and Research: the Network of Research Support (which primarily works with national hospitals to conduct high-level health research), the International Laboratory for Research on the Human Genome (which collaborates with Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in the U.S.), the Center for Complex Sciences (which includes transdisciplinary research), the Center for Advanced Computer Studies, and the Research Center for Global Change (addressing globalization and sustainability).

There are numerous other science-related UNAM services, such as a fleet of oceanography research vessels and dissemination of scientific research to the public (which includes 5 museums and numerous journals). Notably, UNAM has custody over various essential national services, such as the National Seismological Service, the National Astronomical Observatory, the Air Pollution Monitoring System, the Botanical Garden and two ecological reserves, among others. UNAM’s science endeavors are de-centralized through a network of 16 regional research units across Mexico (that include space observatories, biological labs, and marine studies centers, among others), as well as branch campuses in six states.

Overall, between 2000 and 2022, UNAM researchers obtained 1,122 international awards and distinctions, as well as 103 international patents. Currently, inter-disciplinary, cutting-edge research projects include monitoring the YR4 asteroid as part of the International Network for Asteroid Alerts, various projects as part of the UN-affiliated international Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), and participation in the international ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) project, which brings together 1,869 scientists from around the world, among many others.

Opportunities for International Students and Scholars at UNAM

UNAM has substantial international outreach, with full Extension Centers in Canada and in San Antonio and Chicago, as well as Centers for Mexican Studies in collaboration with nine universities in Spain, Germany, France, the U.K., Cuba, China and the U.S. (in L.A. with CSU-Northridge, in Boston with the University of Massachusetts, and in Tucson with the University of Arizona). For information on these centers, see https://sedesenelextranjero.unam.mx/index.php/en/offices/.

In 2024, UNAM had 4,717 international students and 2,013 international scholars at UNAM campuses. There is a Center for Teaching of Foreigners which offers Spanish courses as well as courses on Mexican culture (see https://www.cepe.unam.mx/); however, fluency in Spanish is one of the basic requirements for foreign students to apply for degree programs at UNAM’s faculties (see https://www.unaminternacional.unam.mx/es/movilidad/entrante for all international student admissions). Very few courses are taught in English; with regard to sciences, there are a few courses in Genomics, and some Engineering courses as part of a pilot program (see http://internacional.ingenieria.unam.mx/inter_asignaturas.php).

The Scientific Research Subsystem posts its own international exchange opportunities at https://intercambio.cic.unam.mx/ Some general resources about science at UNAM for English-speaking students include the guide A Journey Through the UNAM Scientific Research Subsystem(https://issuu.com/recorridoinvestigacionunam/docs/sic_4_2017) and the University Newsletter Global UNAM, at https://newsletter.unam.mx/.

Sources

Global Rankings

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2024/latin-america-university-rankings#

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/interdisciplinary-science-rankings

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2025/subject-ranking/computer-science#!/length/25/locations/ARG+BRA+CHL+COL+ECU+MEX+PER/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/scores

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2025/subject-ranking/clinical-pre-clinical-health#!/length/25/locations/ARG+BRA+CHL+COL+CRI+ECU+MEX+PRY+PER/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/stats

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2025/subject-ranking/life-sciences#!/length/25/locations/ARG+BRA+CHL+COL+CRI+CUB+ECU+MEX+PER/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/stats

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2025/subject-ranking/physical-sciences#!/length/25/locations/ARG+BRA+CHL+COL+CRI+CUB+ECU+MEX+PER+VEN/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/stats

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/2025/subject-ranking/engineering#!/length/25/locations/ARG+BRA+CHL+COL+CRI+CUB+ECU+MEX+PER/sort_by/scores_overall/sort_order/asc/cols/stats

https://www.topuniversities.com/latin-america-caribbean-overall

https://www.topuniversities.com/university-subject-rankings/engineering-technology

https://www.topuniversities.com/university-subject-rankings/life-sciences-medicine