The latest ranking of the world's best universities has been released by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a leading global career and education network.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)retains its top place, while Stanford University moved up one place from last year to rank No. 2, replacing Harvard University that dropped to third.

Among the top 10, five are located in the United States, four in the United Kingdom and one in Switzerland. There are 12 Chinese universities among the world's top 100, four of which are located on the mainland.

The ranking is based on six key performance indicators, with academic reputation accounting for 40 percent, employer reputation 10 percent, student-to-faculty ratio 20 percent, citations per faculty member 20 percent, international faculty ratio and international student ratio each occupying five percent.

Published annually since 2004, the ranking is designed to help prospective students make informed comparisons of leading universities on the globe. It is regarded as one of the world's most influential and most widely followed university rankings.

The list of the top 10 is:.

 University of Chicago

University of Chicago [File photo]

Location: United States

Overall score: 93

Rank in 2015: No. 10