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Sri Lanka's Top 2% Scientists 2025
Sri Lanka has 53 scientists on the 2025 single-year Top 2% list, up 23.3% from 43 in 2024. That places Sri Lanka 78th in the world by number of listed scientists. University of Kelaniya has the most listed scientists (7), followed by University of Sri Jayewardenepura (7).
Data Type
Year
Single Year
53
+10 (+23.3%) vs 2024
Career Data
33
+8 (+32.0%) vs 2024
World rank by count
#78
No change vs 2024
Institutes
18
+2 (+12.5%) vs 2024
Scientists in Sri Lanka on the list, by year
The single-year count has more than tripled since 2020.
Single-year list, change on the previous year
2021+60.0%
2022+33.3%
2023+31.2%
2024+2.4%
2025+23.3%
Show the numbers
| Year | Single Year | Change | Career Data | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 15 | 15 | ||
| 2021 | 24 | +60.0% | 18 | +20.0% |
| 2022 | 32 | +33.3% | 21 | +16.7% |
| 2023 | 42 | +31.2% | 24 | +14.3% |
| 2024 | 43 | +2.4% | 25 | +4.2% |
| 2025 | 53 | +23.3% | 33 | +32.0% |
Top 10 institutes in Sri Lanka
By number of listed scientists
Single-year list2025
Show the list
- 1University of Kelaniya7
- 2University of Sri Jayewardenepura7
- 3University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine6
- 4International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Colombo4
- 5Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology4
- 6University of Colombo4
- 7University of Jaffna4
- 8National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka3
- 9University of Peradeniya3
- 10Rajarata University of Sri Lanka2
All 53 scientists
Single-year list2025
| Rank in Sri Lanka | World rank | Scientist | Institute | Sub-field | Rank in sub-field |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8,301 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Environmental Sciences | Rank 171 | |
| 2 | 8,748 | International Food Policy Research Institute | Agricultural Economics & Policy | Rank 11 | |
| 3 | 39,352 | University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine | Endocrinology & Metabolism | Rank 586 | |
| 4 | 42,177 | University of Colombo | Endocrinology & Metabolism | Rank 621 | |
| 5 | 47,085 | University of Jaffna | Optoelectronics & Photonics | Rank 103 | |
| 6 | 51,907 | University of Jaffna | Building & Construction | Rank 421 | |
| 7 | 58,079 | Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology | Materials | Rank 1,210 | |
| 8 | 58,366 | Wayamba University of Sri Lanka | Food Science | Rank 657 | |
| 9 | 58,635 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Environmental Sciences | Rank 1,308 | |
| 10 | 59,888 | University of Colombo | Tropical Medicine | Rank 49 | |
| 11 | 68,799 |
VD
|
International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Colombo | Environmental Engineering | Rank 369 |
| 12 | 75,917 | International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Colombo | Environmental Engineering | Rank 415 | |
| 13 | 84,340 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Business & Management | Rank 1,895 | |
| 14 | 106,869 | University of Colombo | Medicinal & Biomolecular Chemistry | Rank 381 | |
| 15 | 133,369 | University of Peradeniya | Energy | Rank 4,184 | |
| 16 | 134,822 | Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 1,664 | |
| 17 | 136,219 | University of Peradeniya | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 1,682 | |
| 18 | 144,689 | Rajarata University of Sri Lanka | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 1,790 | |
| 19 | 146,035 | Munasinghe Institute for Development (MIND) | Energy | Rank 4,592 | |
| 20 | 146,945 | Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology | Mechanical Engineering & Transports | Rank 1,405 | |
| 21 | 152,480 | Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology | Networking & Telecommunications | Rank 1,850 | |
| 22 | 156,412 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Medicinal & Biomolecular Chemistry | Rank 630 | |
| 23 | 174,984 | University of Moratuwa | Artificial Intelligence & Image Processing | Rank 7,275 | |
| 24 | 185,120 | International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Colombo | Agronomy & Agriculture | Rank 1,402 | |
| 25 | 186,406 | University of Jaffna | Tropical Medicine | Rank 239 | |
| 26 | 209,448 | National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka | Energy | Rank 6,736 | |
| 27 | 210,471 | University of Kelaniya | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 2,543 | |
| 28 | 220,444 | University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 2,630 | |
| 29 | 224,414 | International Water Management Institute (IWMI) Colombo | Agronomy & Agriculture | Rank 1,717 | |
| 30 | 225,725 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Mycology & Parasitology | Rank 305 | |
| 31 | 228,361 | Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology | Mycology & Parasitology | Rank 306 | |
| 32 | 229,858 | University of Kelaniya | Pediatrics | Rank 740 | |
| 33 | 230,191 | National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka | Applied Physics | Rank 4,476 | |
| 34 | 272,563 | University of Kelaniya | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 3,156 | |
| 35 | 278,535 | Uva Wellassa University | Dairy & Animal Science | Rank 847 | |
| 36 | 297,352 | University of Colombo | Surgery | Rank 1,667 | |
| 37 | 307,139 | Rajarata University of Sri Lanka | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 3,521 | |
| 38 | 325,804 | Uva Wellassa University | Dairy & Animal Science | Rank 1,013 | |
| 39 | 348,787 | University of Kelaniya | Tropical Medicine | Rank 508 | |
| 40 | 399,421 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Mycology & Parasitology | Rank 572 | |
| 41 | 423,945 | University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine | Tropical Medicine | Rank 646 | |
| 42 | 449,946 | University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine | Tropical Medicine | Rank 686 | |
| 43 | 457,802 | University of Sri Jayewardenepura | Mycology & Parasitology | Rank 666 | |
| 44 | 459,403 | University of Kelaniya | Tropical Medicine | Rank 697 | |
| 45 | 468,346 | University of Jaffna | Tropical Medicine | Rank 705 | |
| 46 | 475,981 | University of Kelaniya | Tropical Medicine | Rank 729 | |
| 47 | 498,994 | University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine | Tropical Medicine | Rank 771 | |
| 48 | 499,563 | University of Peradeniya | General Chemistry | Rank 1,009 | |
| 49 | 513,716 | University of Colombo Faculty of Medicine | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 5,661 | |
| 50 | 556,478 | University of Kelaniya | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 6,091 | |
| 51 | 595,675 | National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Sri Lanka | Zoology | Rank 327 | |
| 52 | 700,423 | Arthur C Clark Institution for Modern Technologies | Electrical & Electronic Engineering | Rank 3,726 | |
| 53 | 865,262 | Institute for Health Policy | General & Internal Medicine | Rank 9,107 | |
| No scientists match this filter. | |||||
Showing 1 to 53 of 53
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Single-year list2025
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Single-year list2025
Frequently asked questions
How many scientists from Sri Lanka are in the 2025 Stanford Top 2% list?
53 scientists affiliated with Sri Lanka are on the 2025 single-year list, and 33 are on the career-long list.
Which institute in Sri Lanka has the most Top 2% scientists?
On the 2025 single-year list, University of Kelaniya has the most listed scientists from Sri Lanka, with 7. It is followed by University of Sri Jayewardenepura with 7.
How has the number of Top 2% scientists in Sri Lanka changed since 2020?
On the single-year list, Sri Lanka went from 15 scientists in 2020 to 53 in 2025, a change of +253.3%.
What is the difference between the single-year and career-long lists?
The single-year list ranks scientists on the citations their work received in one year. The career-long list ranks them on citations across their whole career. Both lists are published every year, and a scientist can be on one, both or neither.
What is the official source of this data?
The rankings come from the science-wide author databases of standardized citation indicators published by Ioannidis et al. in the Elsevier Data Repository, updated every year. TOPSCINET, an independent platform, organises that data by country, year, institute and field, so you can compare and explore it.