International Rankings: A Tool for Comparing Universities Through the Construction of Weighted Indicators

International rankings are an important communication tool that allows the comparison of Universities according to combinations of different parameters, appropriately weighted. The causes of the widespread diffusion of this information tool are to be found in the process of internationalization of the university system and in the massive increase in the demand and supply of diversified university education. The purpose of the rankings is to allow external subjects to have synthetic and comparable information, for immediate reading, on a university institution. However, often the information rate of the ranking is not combined with a careful examination of the performance indicators that distinguish it and its weighting. The aim of this study is to deepen the methodological aspects of the main global rankings, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of these tools, while comparing statistical positions to those of the universities that occupy the top place in the rankings.