NEWS Two respected international ranking systems have placed Umeå University among the world’s best under the age of 50 years, at #29 and #34. Umeå University is also the highest ranked institution in Sweden and the Nordic countries. These lists focus on young universities with great potential for the future.
"It is fantastic that not just one, but two ranking systems placed us first Sweden and the Nordic region among young universities," says Lena Gustafsson, Vice-Chancellor of Umeå University. "Furthermore, we are well placed in the total world university rankings."
The British weekly magazine Times Higher Education (THE) ranked Umeå University 29th in the world. The highly respected publication has annually published a world rankling list of universities since 2004. Since last year, they have introduced a new list of the world’s best 100 universities under the age of 50 years: Times Higher Education 100 Under 50.
“The traditional elite cannot afford to coast on centuries of history and tradition, or rely too heavily on reputation – there is a new breed of dynamic universities emerging quickly and visibly to challenge for their crowns,” says Phil Baty, editor of Times Higher Education rankings.
There are two other Swedish universities that were included in THE 100 under 50 list: The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) was ranked 33rd and Linköping University was ranked 51st. Umeå University has a close collaboration with SLU, and an alliance with Linköping University and the University of Tromso in Norway, which was ranked 56th. A total of eight universities in the Nordic countries (Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Iceland) made the top 100 list.
The list uses the same 13 performance indicators as the THE World University Rankings, but with a reduced weighting for subjective indicators of academic reputation. This year’s ranking only includes institutions founded in 1963 or later.
“These new figures are really exciting,” explains Phil Baty. “They disrupt the settled hierarchies and show that new powers in global higher education and research are emerging.”
The other global university ranking index – QS Top 50 under 50 – placed Umeå University at #34, making it the top-ranked institution of higher education in Sweden and the Nordic countries that qualified among the 50 that were established since 1963.
Last year, Umeå University was listed at #23 by Times Higher Education 100 Under 50 and #30 by QS Top 50 under 50. The competition was more intense this year. Umeå University dropped six places in THE’s ranking list, although its overall score was higher than in 2012.
Times Higher Education 100 under 50QS Top 50 under 50
Editor: David Meyers