RUG rises in Shanghai Ranking

The University of Groningen has moved up seven places in the 2015 Academic Ranking of World Universities – also known as the Shanghai Ranking – from 82nd place to 75th.

The RUG is one among several Dutch universities included in the Academic Ranking of World Universities: Utrecht University, University of Leiden and VU University Amsterdam were also included.

Utrecht rose one position from 57 to 56, remaining the highest-ranked among Dutch institutions on the list. Leiden actually sank five positions from 77 to 82, and Amsterdam grabbed a more secure ranking of 98th – last year, they rounded out the top 100.

‘On the right track’

RUG president Sibrand Poppema is pleased with the news. In a university press release, Poppema stated, ‘The fact that we have significantly improved our top 100 position again is an indication that we are on the right track to strengthen our position as a world-renowned international research university.’

According to their website, the Shanghai Ranking uses ‘several indicators of research performance’, specifically quality of education, quality of faculty, research output and per capita performance.

Quality of faculty and research output are each weighted for 40 per cent of the total score. Educational quality, which is quantified by the number of alumni who are Nobel laureates and Fields Medalists, and per capita performance count for 10 per cent each in the ARWU methodology.

Performing well

The University of Groningen has performed particularly well in recent years in the Shanghai Ranking as well as several other reputable lists. Each of the rankings assesses different aspects of the universities, ranging from reputation to student satisfaction to the number of scientific publications attributed to the university.

The RUG is in 90th place on the QS World University Ranking, 117th place in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, 81st place in the NTU ranking, and 86th place in the Global Employability Survey.

The Shanghai Ranking is dominated by American and British universities: the highest ranking continental European university is the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (20th). Harvard was once again the top ranked university, a position the American university has maintained since the Shanghai Ranking began in 2003.

18-08-2015