UPF has consolidated and enhanced its presence in the 2014QS World University Rankings by subject. Seven thematic areas of study are in leading positions: Sociology, Politics and International Studies, Law, Economics and Econometrics, Accounting and Finance, Communication and Media Studies and Linguistics.

This year, UPF has improved in the fields of Law, Politics and International Studies and Sociology, which have moved up to the 101-150 ranking bloc. Studies in Economics and Econometrics also continue to lead the Spanish ranking, and in 40th position worldwide.

Accounting and Finance and Linguistics remain in the 101-150 bloc, while the area of Communication and Media Studies is in the 151-200 bloc, as it was in the previous listing.

The classification only includes the top 200 universities in each subject, and classifies them according to three basic criteria: academic reputation, reputation among employers, and citations per paper.