According to the Islamic World Science Citation Database (ISC), Ferdowsi University of Mashhad with a score of 89.12 was in second place in the internationalization of universities across the country. Compared to the previous ranking of this university, which was 5, and the small difference of FUM with the top university which scored 100, indicates that it has a well-written and workable plan to improve its quality. Undoubtedly, this honor is the result of the efforts of all family members of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad.
The most important international indicators studied in this ranking are:
International professors and researchers, international students, international exchange of student and faculty members, international publications, university membership in international conventions, joint international academic programs, joint international projects and grants, and participation in reputable international ranking systems.
The Islamic World Science Citation Database (ISC) started the evaluation and ranking of the Iranian universities and research institutes at the end of 2019 with the official announcement of the Minister of Science, Research and Technology. Although during the last 10 years, this ranking is done by the mentioned database, but as of 2020, the ranking and evaluation of public universities has been carried out under the supervision of the Ministry with new criteria and indicators, as well as a completely different methodology with full coordination and supervision of specialized working group at the Ministry. According to the results published by ISC, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in the evaluation of 2019-2020, is among the top 10 comprehensive universities of the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology.
In the new ranking, due to the closeness of the universities' scores, the selection of ranking ranges instead of absolute rank has been considered in announcing the results. Also, ranking criteria has changed from five to six criteria including academic (weighing 30%), research (weighing 25%), technology and innovation (weighing 20%), internationalization (weighing 10%), economic impact (weighing 10%) and social services, infrastructure and facilities (weighing 5 percent). Based on this, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad has succeeded in obtaining the rank of 4 in the criterion of academic, 3 in the criterion of research, 2 in the criteria of technology & innovation and internationalization, 1 in the criterion of economic impact, and 5 in the criterion of social services, infrastructure and facilities.