KUCHING: Swinburne University of Technology Melbourne has again been recognised for its research excellence, having been recently named as one of the world’s top 500 research universities for the third year in a row in the prestigious Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU).
The ARWU, which assesses the research output of higher education institutions throughout the world, also named Swinburne as one of the top 100 research universities in the world in the field of physics.
According to Vice-Chancellor Professor Linda Kristjanson, Swinburne’s position in the top 500 cements its place as an internationally recognised research-intensive university.
“We have been named as one of the top 500 research universities in the world for three consecutive years now. This proves the success of our ongoing strategy to commit to quality research focused on our core strengths,” she said.
Kristjanson said that adding to the significance of the achievement was the fact that Swinburne has only been conducting research as a university for the past 19 years. The average age of a university in the ARWU is around 160 years.
“We are also the smallest Australian university and the only genuine dual-sector in the world to be ranked. This shows it is possible to provide high quality learning and teaching while striving for, and achieving, research excellence,” she said.
“Having recently invested over A$250 million in research and infrastructure, we are able to support our researchers to find innovative solutions to real-world problems. This ensures that our institution delivers new knowledge that genuinely makes a difference to society.”
Swinburne Sarawak in Kuching, its only international branch campus, offers programmes that are similar to those of its home campus in Melbourne.
The China-based Shanghai Jiao Tong University first published the ARWU in 2003. Since 2009 it has been compiled by an independent organisation, the Shanghai Ranking Consultancy.
Universities are assessed on a range of criteria including the number of: alumni and staff winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals; highly cited researchers selected by Thomson Scientific; articles published in the journals Nature and Science; articles indexed in Science Citation Index – Expanded and Social Sciences Citation Index; and per capita performance with respect to the size of an institution.