Top 50 Universities for Operations Research in the World (2026)
Exploring Operations Research programs worldwide? This page highlights 50 universities. Compare rankings, tuition fees, and admission rates to find the right match. These institutions are recognized for strong performance in Operations Research education and research.
How to use filters?
Select degree → Department → subject → continent → State → country → city. Each step unlocks the next option. Your selections are remembered for easier browsing.
Degree Level
Bachelor, Master, PhD
Subject Area
Science, Business, Arts
Location
Worldwide destinations
1
Cambridge, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
1 World
1 North America
1
United States
1 Cambridge
University Information
Acceptance
3%
Publications
669060
Citations
43305893
2
Ithaca, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
5 World
4 North America
4
United States
1 Ithaca
University Information
Acceptance
8%
Publications
407264
Citations
18350997
3
Berkeley, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
6 World
5 North America
5
United States
2 Berkeley
University Information
Acceptance
12%
Publications
392253
Citations
21489706
4
Cambridge, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
8 World
6 North America
6
United States
2 Cambridge
University Information
Acceptance
5%
Publications
315593
Citations
20571074
5
New York City, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
9 World
7 North America
7
United States
2 New York City
University Information
Acceptance
4%
Publications
352589
Citations
17252102
6
New York City, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
22 World
18 North America
17
United States
3 New York City
University Information
Acceptance
9%
Publications
250036
Citations
10887825
7
Champaign, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
24 World
20 North America
19
United States
2 Champaign
University Information
Acceptance
44%
Publications
303409
Citations
12500654
8
Princeton, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
26 World
22 North America
21
United States
1 Princeton
University Information
Acceptance
4%
Publications
187660
Citations
10659460
9
Los Angeles, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
27 World
23 North America
22
United States
5 Los Angeles
University Information
Acceptance
10%
Publications
250052
Citations
10201550
10
Evanston, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
31 World
27 North America
25
United States
3 Evanston
University Information
Acceptance
7%
Publications
238956
Citations
11593852
11
Pittsburgh, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
50 World
41 North America
38
United States
4 Pittsburgh
University Information
Acceptance
11%
Publications
137967
Citations
7118629
12
Raleigh, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
67 World
50 North America
46
United States
3 Raleigh
University Information
Acceptance
40%
Publications
162533
Citations
4892590
13
Atlanta, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
69 World
51 North America
47
United States
1 Atlanta
University Information
Acceptance
16%
Publications
175703
Citations
6414474
14
Munich, Germany
Europe
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
80 World
15 Europe
3
Germany
2 Munich
University Information
Acceptance
46%
Publications
185707
Citations
5820735
15
Hangzhou, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
100 World
8 Asia
4
China
1 Hangzhou
University Information
Acceptance
20%*
Publications
297142
Citations
6039598
16
Cleveland, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
122 World
74 North America
67
United States
2 Cleveland
University Information
Acceptance
29%
Publications
158725
Citations
6388562
17
Auckland, New Zealand
Oceania
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
168 World
7 Oceania
1
New Zealand
1 Auckland
University Information
Acceptance
73%*
Publications
118202
Citations
4032916
18
Wuhan, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
181 World
18 Asia
8
China
1 Wuhan
University Information
Acceptance
17%*
Publications
182387
Citations
3390624
19
Houston, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
197 World
98 North America
86
United States
4 Houston
University Information
Acceptance
8%
Publications
71750
Citations
3261823
20
Guangzhou, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
215 World
26 Asia
12
China
1 Guangzhou
University Information
Acceptance
30%
Publications
227051
Citations
4553649
21
Boston, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
216 World
107 North America
95
United States
6 Boston
University Information
Acceptance
6%
Publications
67822
Citations
2183413
22
Lisbon, Portugal
Europe
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
222 World
76 Europe
1
Portugal
1 Lisbon
University Information
Acceptance
37%*
Publications
123846
Citations
2733746
23
Chengdu, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
229 World
27 Asia
13
China
1 Chengdu
University Information
Acceptance
27%*
Publications
204457
Citations
3378638
24
Cape Town, South Africa
Africa
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
239 World
1 Africa
1
South Africa
1 Cape Town
University Information
Acceptance
51%*
Publications
95695
Citations
2920600
25
Jinan, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
241 World
29 Asia
14
China
1 Jinan
University Information
Acceptance
30%
Publications
161717
Citations
2863237
26
Hong Kong, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
266 World
30 Asia
15
China
3 Hong Kong
University Information
Acceptance
30%*
Publications
124163
Citations
3426186
27
Manhattan, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
274 World
123 North America
108
United States
2 Manhattan
University Information
Acceptance
79%
Publications
72468
Citations
2092170
28
Haifa, Israel
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
291 World
35 Asia
3
Israel
1 Haifa
University Information
Acceptance
37%*
Publications
104496
Citations
3261892
29
Changsha, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
308 World
39 Asia
20
China
1 Changsha
University Information
Acceptance
77%
Publications
194191
Citations
3233815
30
Atlanta, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
311 World
133 North America
115
United States
4 Atlanta
University Information
Acceptance
62%
Publications
57806
Citations
1689302
31
Fayetteville, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
375 World
148 North America
127
United States
1 Fayetteville
University Information
Acceptance
72%
Publications
47679
Citations
1223889
32
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
387 World
53 Asia
1
Saudi Arabia
1 Riyadh
University Information
Acceptance
71%
Publications
112941
Citations
2247977
33
Hanover, Germany
Europe
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
389 World
158 Europe
34
Germany
2 Hanover
University Information
Acceptance
52%*
Publications
61718
Citations
1234437
34
Stellenbosch, South Africa
Africa
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
422 World
3 Africa
3
South Africa
71 Stellenbosch
University Information
Acceptance
52%*
Publications
69594
Citations
1618799
35
Dallas, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
429 World
158 North America
136
United States
12 Dallas
University Information
Acceptance
61%
Publications
27636
Citations
960549
36
Delhi, India
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
480 World
76 Asia
2
India
1 Delhi
University Information
Acceptance
64%
Publications
66259
Citations
1034781
37
Chicago, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
525 World
188 North America
163
United States
6 Chicago
University Information
Acceptance
55%
Publications
32471
Citations
781888
38
Shanghai, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
546 World
93 Asia
43
China
5 Shanghai
University Information
Acceptance
30%*
Publications
83073
Citations
1262345
39
Durban, South Africa
Africa
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
610 World
6 Africa
5
South Africa
1 Durban
University Information
Acceptance
63%
Publications
66518
Citations
1453103
40
Guangzhou, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
630 World
108 Asia
48
China
3 Guangzhou
University Information
Acceptance
26%*
Publications
60614
Citations
1053811
41
West Point, United States
North America
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
689 World
227 North America
201
United States
16 West Point
University Information
Acceptance
14%
Publications
17024
Citations
702290
42
Guangzhou, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
693 World
128 Asia
57
China
4 Guangzhou
University Information
Acceptance
69%
Publications
40780
Citations
620461
43
Xuzhou, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
696 World
129 Asia
58
China
1 Xuzhou
University Information
Acceptance
30%
Publications
71655
Citations
1001755
44
Qingdao, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
733 World
138 Asia
61
China
1 Qingdao
University Information
Acceptance
40%
Publications
54441
Citations
927809
45
Changchun, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
772 World
154 Asia
71
China
2 Changchun
University Information
Acceptance
30%
Publications
31294
Citations
574793
46
Nanjing, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
792 World
160 Asia
74
China
6 Nanjing
University Information
Acceptance
36%*
Publications
57652
Citations
697400
47
Sofia, Bulgaria
Europe
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
811 World
320 Europe
1
Bulgaria
1 Sofia
University Information
Acceptance
55%*
Publications
22358
Citations
377189
48
Fuzhou, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
819 World
168 Asia
77
China
1 Fuzhou
University Information
Acceptance
32%*
Publications
49027
Citations
984798
49
Xi'an, China
Asia
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
835 World
175 Asia
79
China
4 Xi'an
University Information
Acceptance
40%
Publications
35356
Citations
525987
50
Pretoria, South Africa
Africa
Founded:
Subject: Operations Research
Rankings
875 World
10 Africa
7
South Africa
2 Pretoria
University Information
Acceptance
64%*
Publications
37559
Citations
408632