Indian universities have secured two spots in the top 20 places in Times Higher Education's (THE) 'World's Best Small Universities Ranking 2016', which was published today.

Indian Institute of Technology-Guwahati ranked 14th globally, followed by Savitribai Phule Pune University in 16th place make their mark in the debut list released here.

The best small university in the overall rankings is the California Institute of Technology.

"India's institutions are well represented in the World's Best Small Universities Ranking 2016. Alongside Caltech, they demonstrate the world-class offering available at smaller institutions, no matter their location," said Phil Baty, 'THE' rankings editor.

Small universities are defined by 'THE' as having fewer than 5,000 students and that teach and research across more than four disciplines. Only 20 small universities in the world are considered world-class.

"When it comes to universities, size matters. For some students big is best, but for others, a small university is the right option.

"Small universities can potentially offer students a more intimate environment, with more support and attention from lecturers, and more of a chance for students to spend time with the star professors who in bigger universities may simply be too busy. The smaller university can also offer a greater sense of collegiality and community, where students are less likely to get lost in the crowd," Baty said.

Although the US has the highest number of universities in the list (five), Europe has eight and Asia has seven.

Of the eight European countries represented in the ranking, the UK does not feature despite being second only to the US for overall world-class universities, with 78 in the top 800 and 34 institutions in the top 200.

'THE' ranking draws upon 20 universities in the central 'THE' World University Rankings with fewer than 5,000 students and teaching and researching across four or more disciplines across 13 performance indicators.