Thursday 09 09 2021
University of the West of Scotland has been named amongst the world’s top universities in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2021.
The University has maintained its position in the 501-600 banding, despite an additional 135 universities being ranked this year. UWS has also moved up one place in its UK position, to 60th, up from 61st last year and ranks joint 8th in Scotland.
Times Higher Education uses 13 performance indicators to compile the annual league tables. These are grouped into five pillars – Teaching, Research, Citations, International Outlook and Industry Income.
The University’s scores improved in four of the five pillars compared to last year. UWS’s highest ranked pillar is, like last year, International Outlook, ranking 215th out of 1,662 universities. This measures the University’s ability to attract international students and staff, in addition to its levels of international research collaboration. UWS’s teaching metric has also continued to increase.
Professor Craig Mahoney, UWS Principal and Vice-Chancellor, said: “I am delighted that UWS has improved its position in these prestigious rankings.
“With more universities than ever before included, it’s really significant that UWS is holding strong in the 501-600 banding. I am particularly pleased to see the improvement we have made in the International Outlook and Teaching pillar.
Our position in the THE World University Rankings is absolutely testament to the hard work and dedication of colleagues and students across UWS’s five campuses, and I extend my thanks each and every person who contributes to the success of the University.
Professor Craig Mahoney, UWS Principal and Vice-Chancellor
UWS has climbed the rankings significantly since it was first ranked in 2017.
THE World University Rankings are now in their 18th year, this year ranking 1,662 universities from 99 different countries. Times Higher Education say that the annual rankings are the only global performance tables that judge research-intensive universities across all their core missions: teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook. They are said to be the most comprehensive and balanced comparisons, trusted by students, academics, university leaders, industry and governments.