"New Directions of STEM Research and Learning in the World Ranking Movement: A Comparative Perspective" illustrates new directions of STEM higher education from the perspective of twenty-first century types of learning outcomes and focuses on need for developing an interdisciplinary approach to STEM higher education reform. It provides comparative analysis that clarifies the commonalities and differences of examined countries: United States, Canada, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, and proposes new directions. Finally, it examines impact on the knowledge economy in a globalized world and the growing expectation and demand for innovation in higher education. Chapters include: (1) Educational Policy Across the World: How STEM Disciplines Deal with Twenty-First Century Learning Outcomes and Challenges (Reiko Yamada); (2) STEM and the History of the University Ranking Movement: Contextualizing Trends in Methodologies and Criteria (William R. Stevenson, III); (3) STEM and Underrepresented Populations: What's at Stake (Tristan Ivory); (4) Exploring the Relationship Between STEM Research and World Higher Education Rankings: The Case of Taiwan (Jason Cheng-Cheng Yang); (5) Finding the Humanities in STEM: Anthropological Reflections from Working at the Intersection (Grant Jun Otsuki); (6) Developing Global Competencies Through Interdisciplinary Studies: Why Collaboration Is Important Between STEM and Non-STEM Students (Aki Yamada); (7) Not Just a Technical Problem: The Intersections of STEM and Social Science in Addressing Global Poverty (Christopher S. Collins); (8) Developing the Humanities Competencies of STEM Undergraduate Students: New Challenges for Korean Higher Education (Byung Shik Rhee); (9) Cultivating Students' Diverse Abilities Through Arts Education: Emergence of the STEAM Perspective (Yi Yang); (10) STEM Education in a Changing Society: Japanese Experience and Urgent Problems to Be Solved (Masaaki Ogasawara); and (11) Concluding Remarks (Aki Yamada).