• Korean Journal of Comparative Education
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.125-152
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• 2016

This study aims to analyze the impacts of the QS Asia University Rankings (QSAUR) indicators and to compare the scores obtained by major countries. Hierarchical multiple regression was performed on the results of the QSAUR 2013-2015 and the average indicator and overall scores of each country were calculated. In the QSAUR, the most influential indicator was academic reputation. Each indicator's influence corresponded to its assigned weights and standard deviations. The results of the comparison revealed that Japan, South Korea, and China had the largest number of institutions among the top 150, while Singapore maintained the highest average scores on the indicators as well as the overall score. Each country had different areas that required improvement. South Korean colleges scored lower than some countries on academic reputation, papers per faculty, and international faculty. To attain higher ranks in the QSAUR, academic reputation, institutions' research capability improvement, and internationalization are needed. The implementation of these strategies is necessary to diminish the gap between South Korean institutions and other Asian institutions.