Edinburgh rises in world rankings

A new survey indicates that Edinburgh is one of the world’s best universities.

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2012/2013, announced 3 October, rate the University of Edinburgh 32nd in the world, 5th in the UK and 6th in Europe.

This year’s rankings indicate a widening gap between a “super-elite” group of UK universities, which includes Edinburgh, and the rest of the country’s institutions, according to the Times Higher.

The survey is based on performance indicators that examine teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook.

In the Times Higher’s 2011/2012 rankings, Edinburgh was ranked 36th in the world, 5th in the UK and 7th in Europe.

Edinburgh's position in the Times Higher rankings highlights the University's standing, both in the UK and the wider world, and recognises our excellence in teaching, research and graduate employability. The rankings indicate that Edinburgh is one of the great Universities in the world, of which our staff, students and alumni should be justly proud.

Encouraging excellence

As one of the world’s leading universities, Edinburgh makes a significant scientific and cultural contribution to the economic, social and cultural well-being of the global community.

It has recently published a new Strategic Plan that outlines the University’s vision for the next four years as it continues to push boundaries, embrace opportunities and compete successfully with the very best institutions in the world.

Goals outlined in the plan include increasing student satisfaction with academic and pastoral support, while also providing support for developing graduate employability.

It will also continue to foster new approaches to cross-disciplinary research, including encouraging outstanding global research collaborations and securing strategic partnerships with funders.

The plan is available to view at:

History and future

Founded in 1583, the University of Edinburgh has, for more than 400 years, been one of the most influential centres of knowledge in the world.

Located in the Scottish capital, among the great figures who have studied at Edinburgh are naturalist Charles Darwin, philosopher David Hume, telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Harry Potter author JK Rowling.

Inventions linked to Edinburgh include the thesaurus, the TB vaccination, the microchips that power iPod music players and Dolly the Sheep, the world’s first cloned animal.