On October 7 local time, Stanford University and the Elsevier Data Repository jointly released the 2026 World’s Top 2% Scientists list, which consists of the Career-Long Impact Ranking and the Single-Year Impact Ranking. A total of 17 faculty members of the School of Engineering were selected, including six for the Career-Long Impact Ranking and eleven for the Single-Year Impact Ranking, setting a new record for the school.

Professors Wang Quan, Alberto Carpinteri, Shen Shuilong, Zhu Zhiwen, Zou Anmin and Yang Nan were selected for the Career-Long Impact Ranking. Professors Wang Quan, Alberto Carpinteri, Shen Shuilong, Zhu Zhiwen, Zou Anmin, Yang Nan, Ye Weilin, Associate Professors Dai Houfu and Shi Yi, Dr. Zou Yanbin and Dr. Aman Garg made it to the Single-Year Impact Ranking.

These researchers cover civil engineering, mechanical engineering, artificial intelligence and other fields. Inclusion in this list proves their research has reached an internationally advanced level with substantial global academic influence. It recognizes their academic achievements and marks a milestone in building a high-caliber faculty team at the university and the school. This will further boost high-quality research development and raise the international profile of related disciplines.

Derived from Scopus citation data, the list picks the top 2% researchers across 20 disciplines and 176 subfields from nearly 7 million active scholars worldwide. The Career-Long Impact Ranking evaluates cumulative academic performance, while the Single-Year Impact Ranking reflects research activity and influence of the previous year. Assessment relies on the composite c-score, incorporating total citations (self-citations excluded), H-index, co-authorship-adjusted HM-index, and citations to single-authored or first-author papers. Published via the Elsevier Data Repository, it is a globally accepted benchmark for evaluating researchers’ long-term academic standing and annual research vitality.

Text by Zheng Chaobing