Times Higher Education (THE) published its 20th edition World University Rankings this year in partnership with Elsevier, including 1,904 universities across 108 countries and regions.

Six Australian universities ranked in the top 100 worldwide; however, Australia's top 10 institutions experienced slippages across the board.

University of Melbourne (UniMelb) topped the list for Australia, sitting three spots lower than last year at 37.

Monash fell 10 places to 54 followed by University of Sydney (USYD) at 60 and the Australian National University (ANU) at 67.

University of Queensland dropped 17 places to 70 followed by University of NSW (UNSW) at 84 and University of Adelaide at =111.

University of Western Australia (UWA)'s ranking descended 12 places to =143, University of Technology Sydney (UTS) to 148 and Macquarie to 180.

Education Minister Jason Clare spoke about the ranking systems, emphasising that they are not all created equal and that declines or fluctuations should not be cause for concern.

“We punch above our weight when it comes to universities,” Mr Clare said.

“I just don’t want us to get hung up on the rankings per se because it’s all dependent upon the methodology.”

THE World University Rankings is one of the more respected ranking systems, measuring each institution’s performance against 18 indicators across five areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry, and international outlook.

THE World Rankings focus heavily on teaching and research, which could be why some are concerned about rank slippage by Australia’s largest and most well-established research universities.

THE World Rankings is limited in that it does not directly measure the impact of employability, which is difficult to compare across countries.

Times Higher Education is one of a handful of well-known worldwide university ranking systems, each using a different methodology to produce a unique outcome.

The rankings can’t be compared against one another because they each use different performance measurement methodologies and are purpose-built for different audiences.

Australian universities fared better when Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) 2024 published their world university rankings earlier this year, placing UniMelb 14th, followed by UNSW and USYD at equal 19th.

QS has published its world university rankings for the last 20 years (the 2024 edition featured 1,500 institutions across 104 locations) and is the only ranking to emphasise employability and sustainability.

The QS ranking methodology surveys employers to determine which universities have the best reputation for producing skilled graduates.

The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) - also known as Shanghai Rankings - doesn’t measure teaching quality or employability; instead, it focuses primarily on research excellence indicators.

ARWU's 2023 results ranked UniMelb 35th, followed by University of Queensland (UQ) 51st and UNSW 72nd.

Mixed results from THE, QS and ARWU rankings can be confusing; not all rankings are created equal, and some are better than others.

Mr Clare told the media he wasn’t surprised by the lower results, given international student numbers are a “barometer of rankings”.

Australian universities experienced a more significant dip in international student numbers resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic border closures.

“When you look at this report out today and these rankings, you can see the direct correlation between the rankings and international student numbers,” Mr Clare said. 

International student numbers are steadily increasing to pre-pandemic levels, which Mr Clare said would likely impact next year’s rankings.

“If there is a direct correlation between rankings and student numbers, then you’d expect that you would see a difference next year. It really all depends on the different ranking companies and the methodology they use,” he said. 

When using rankings to compare institutions, it’s important to understand the methodologies used and the intended audience.

It’s also more important to compare results year-on-year rather than across THE, QS and ARWU ranking systems.

In this year’s list, the same seven Australian universities – Melbourne, Queensland, Sydney, UNSW, Monash, ANU and the University of WA – remain in the top 100 but all have dropped in rank except UWA, which, at 99th, is in the same position as last year.

Melbourne dropped from 32nd to 35th, Queensland went from 47th to 50th, UNSW from 64th to 71st, Sydney from 60th to 72nd, Monash from 75th to 76th, and ANU from 79th to 83rd.

Australia’s next best institution, the University of Adelaide, also suffered, falling from the 101-150 bracket into the 151-200 range even as plans progress for it to merge with the low-ranked University of South Australia (in the 501-600 bracket), which will drag its ranking down further.

The slide in rankings follows the spending cuts universities imposed on themselves when the pandemic hit in 2020, which reduced research staff levels, and the Covid lockdowns, which slowed many research programs.

The ARWU rankings contrast sharply with the QS World University Rankings released in June which, after changing their methodology in a way that favoured Australia, placed an unprecedented three Australian institutions into the world’s top 20 and nine into the top 100.

This year’s ARWU results halt a long improving trend for top Australian universities, which rode on the 2014-19 Chinese student boom and poured the fee revenues they earned into research programs.

The extra spending on research had a major impact on the research-based ARWU ranking, which judges universities solely on the quality and volume of research outputs. Its measures include a university’s number of Nobel prizewinners, highly cited researchers and papers published in top journals.

Four universities in particular – Melbourne, Queensland, Sydney, and UNSW – all with strength in the Chinese market, made improvements in their ARWU ranking, which then attracted more Chinese students.

Globally, the ARWU lists the world’s top 10 universities as Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Cambridge, Berkeley, Princeton, Oxford, Columbia, Caltech and Chicago, in that order.

The top 10 list is unchanged from last year.

WSU has topped over 1,500 universities from 112 countries and scored first place in the latest round of The Times Higher Education (THE) impact rankings.

The ranking measures universities' efforts to reach the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs), which include gender equality, sustainable cities and communities, no poverty, zero hunger and climate action.

Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Barney Glover AO said scoring the world top position for the second time showed the "dedication and passion" of staff, students and community partners.

"Western Sydney University is proud to be an institution working with its students, staff and communities to make the world a better place," Professor Glover said.

"We are a young and modern university, and tackling the most pressing social and environmental challenges has always been important to our core mission."

According to Professor Glover, the University has worked to ensure its teaching, research and international partnerships are fully aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals since it was adopted by all 193 United Nations member states in 2015.

"For example, our world-leading researchers are finding practical solutions locally and globally on important issues like food and water security in the face of climate change, and addressing housing affordability and creating more sustainable, resilient urban communities," said Professor Glover.

Western Sydney University also reached its carbon-neutral target and hopes to become 'climate positive' by 2029.

The ranking included 24 Australian universities, of which three were in the top 10.

The University of Tasmania ranked fifth worldwide - a jump from its 25th position in 2022 and 76th overall position in 2021.

Utas Vice-Chancellor, Professor Rufus Black, said the results showed Tasmania's response to climate change could be a "model" for the rest of the world.

"We need a bold shift in our global trajectory if we are to be more a sustainable, more just, and more equal world," Professor Black said.

"This achievement recognises the excellence and dedication of so many of our staff and students who are deeply committed to embedding sustainability in all that we do.

"Their efforts are making the University of Tasmania a recognised global leader in how universities can contribute to tackling our planet's greatest challenges."

In Victoria, RMIT scored seventh worldwide for its environmental, social and economic impact.

Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Alec Cameron said the ranking showed staff and students' determination and hard work.

"I'm incredibly proud that RMIT has been ranked seventh globally in the 2023 THE Impact Rankings," Professor Cameron said.

"This is a significant rise and a direct reflection of our impact on society through stewardship initiatives, leading education offerings and impactful research," Cameron said.

Worldwide, the UK was the most-represented nation in the top 100 with 26 institutions, followed by Australia with 16 and Canada with 15.

The University of Manchester scored second worldwide, while Canada-based Queen's University took third place.

US-based CEO Magazine published its annual Global MBA Rankings, drawing data from schools 121 schools across the US, Europe, Asia, Latin America, New Zealand and Australia.

The Australian Institute of Business' MBA program, Central Queensland University, Griffith University, La Trobe, Macquarie Business School and RMIT ranked in the top-tier.

Ranking factors were determined by the quality of faculty, international diversity, accreditation, faculty-to-student ratio, price, work experience, professional development and delivery methods.

The University of Wollongong Sydney Business School ranked Australia first for its Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) and took 11th place globally, followed by RMIT in the 34th position.

This year, only two Australian universities took a spot in the global EMBA rankings.

UOW Executive Dean of the Faculty of Business and Law Professor Colin Picker said he was thrilled to see the EMBA program being recognised as the best in Australia.

"Our EMBA program has climbed to 11th place globally, making us the highest ranked EMBA program within Australia, and one of only two EMBA programs from Australia ranked within the 63 globally ranked programs," Professor Picker said.

"It's wonderful to see Sydney Business School, UOW, go from strength to strength every year. It's a testament to the quality of our teaching and programs."

In the top online MBA global rankings, Griffith University's online MBA course was awarded thirteen places worldwide and first place in Australia, climbing more than ten spots from last year.

Macquarie Business School (17th), Torrens University (18th), Victoria University Business School (27th), and La Trobe University (28th) were also recognised for their top-grade online MBA programs. 

Griffith MBA Director, Professor Stephanie Schleimer, said this was an "outstanding achievement".

"Over the last decade, we have put a lot of effort into creating an online learning journey for our students that is of extraordinary quality, so this ranking success is a true testament to the learning experience we created," Professor Schleimer said.

"A key focus for us is to offer an authentic online learning journey where students feel closely connected to their cohort and instructors, where they can flourish professionally and personally."

Released last week, this year's ranking covered 54 disciplines and analysed over 5,700 academic programs across 1,594 universities in  93 countries.

Australia's Monash University, Curtin University and the University of Queensland had the most subjects ranked in the country.

Monash, who ranked first globally for pharmacy and pharmacology studies last year, dropped to second place in 2023 behind Harvard University.

The Victorian-based university had 15 subjects included in the global top 50, including medicine, chemistry, philosophy and education.

Monash Vice-Chancellor Professor Margaret Gardner AC said the win demonstrates the university's strengths in education and research.

"Our commitment to delivering excellence and innovation enables us to create real, purpose-driven change for future generations," Professor Gardner said.

For the seventh year in a row, Perth's Curtin University secured second place for mineral and mining engineering worldwide.

Curtin University Vice-Chancellor Professor Harlene Hayne said she was "delighted."

"The University's results also skyrocketed in the national rankings across four subjects with geophysics moving into the second position in Australia, earth and marine sciences into third position, our pharmacy and pharmacology subjects were ranked sixth nationally, and nursing climbed to 11th position," Professor Hayne said.

The University of Queensland ranked second globally in sports-related subjects, behind the UK's Loughborough University and ahead of Sydney University, which ranked fourth in that area.

Overall, the University of Queensland had the highest total listings nationwide, appearing 50 times in the global ranking.

UQ was followed by Melbourne and Sydney University, who scored 48 listings each.

The University of Sydney saw 48 disciplines ranked in the world's top 100, including 30 subjects in the top 50.

University of Sydney Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Emma Johnston said the rankings show the university's "well-established performance in both teaching and research."

"This shows our students that, no matter what line of study they pursue at the University, they will be assured of receiving an education that holds them in good stead in Australia and internationally," Professor Johnston said.

"The results also highlight our far-reaching research prowess, making the University an attractive partner for governments and businesses wishing to address pressing issues." 

US-based universities scored the highest globally, with 256 subjects in the top 10, followed by the United Kingdom with 145.

Harvard University took the lion's share, scoring first in four of the five broad subject areas: Arts and Humanities, Life Sciences and Medicine, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and Management.

The next QS World University Rankings list will be released in June.

Six Australian universities have ranked among the top 50 of the world's most international universities, but all saw a drop in their position compared to 2022.  

The ranking, released in late January, comes as Australia's universities prepare for the return of over 40,000 Chinese students after the country placed a snap ban on online learning.

It assessed factors including the proportion of international staff and students, the number of journal publications with at least one international co-author and the university's international reputation. 

The Australian National University ranked as the nation’s most international institution at place 27 but dropped 11 places compared to 2022. 

An ANU spokesperson told Campus Review the university is proud to be part of the ranking and will continue to build global connections. 

“By any measure, ANU is one of the world’s best universities and we’re proud to be the only university with a national mission to advance Australia and its place in the world, which we do through excellence in research, education and service," a spokesperson said.

The University of Melbourne ranked 38th, dropping 14 places, followed by the University of Sydney 40th, which lost 7 places. 

UNSW and Monash university dropped 19 and 18 places, respectively, from 2022 to 2023.

The University of Queensland ranked 44, losing 16 places from 2022. 

A UQ spokesperson told Campus Review the university values diversity on campus.  

“UQ has a strong global focus on both education and research and works with an increasing number of partners on world-class collaborations addressing some of our greatest challenges,” a spokesperson said. 

“The University also values the connectivity and diversity that our international colleagues, partners and students provide, representing more than 130 countries.”

The University of Adelaide also entered the ranking for the first time this year, ranking at 51. 

In total, more than 200 universities in 30 countries have been ranked, with the United States grabbing over 60 slots.

Worldwide, the University of Hong Kong took the top spot for the third year in a row, followed closely by Swiss universities l’École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and ETH Zurich, which ranked second and third. 

A Monash researcher was in first place in 31 of the research fields and the university as a whole was the top research institution in 51 fields – over one-fifth of the total.

Major strengths for Monash were the health and medical sciences discipline, where the university led in 24 fields of research, and the business, economics and management discipline where it led in nine fields.

The second most successful university for individual achievement was UNSW whose researchers led in 24 fields of research. UNSW, as an institution, led in 23 fields.

However the University of Queensland beat UNSW in institutional achievement, leading in 32 fields. Its individual researchers were just behind their fellows at UNSW, leading in 23 fields.

The results are in The Australian’s Research 2023 magazine published yesterday. It is the fifth consecutive year that The Australian has listed the top 250 researchers and research institutions, using a data driven approach which is based on the number of citations researchers have received for their publications over the past five years in top academic journals.

The Australian’s partner, talent discovery and research analytics firm League of Scholars, utilised a database of over 77,000 Australian researchers, using big data techniques to examine individual researcher’s performance and thus construct the list.

One of the strengths of the list is its granular examination of research achievement which highlights the work of scholars who would otherwise be likely to be overlooked. In particular, we found researchers outside the big research universities who make major contributions.

One unsung hero is the University of the Sunshine Coast’s Paul Salmon, who is again Australia’s top researcher in the field of quality and reliability, part of the discipline of engineering and computer science.

The Research 2023 magazine also lists the universities and businesses which are best at collaborating with each other on research.

Australia had 36 per cent of its universities appear in the top 100 of the 2022 QS World University Sustainability Rankings, outnumbering the United States and the UK.

The new index made its debut on October 26 and ranks institutions' progress in tackling some of the world's greatest environmental and social challenges.

UNSW, which became the first Australian university to be fully powered by renewable electricity in 2020, scored the highest for its environmental impact.

Vice-chancellor professor Attila Brungs said the rankings win "reflects the university’s mission of driving towards a just, sustainable world."

"These rankings reinforce our commitment to issues that are important to the UNSW community and strengthen our resolve towards advancing a just society," Brungs said.

The University of Sydney was Australia's best performer in the social impact category, taking a near perfect score of 99.8 out of 100 in the equality indicator.

USYD made headlines earlier this year after vice-chancellor professor Mark Scott appointed five women into senior executive leadership positions.

The university has also been selected to host THE World Academic Summit in 2023, which will explore strategies to improve gender equity and diversity in tertiary education.

"We welcomed the opportunity to participate in these inaugural rankings to demonstrate accountability and transparency in our broad and global commitment to sustainability," Scott said.

"This commitment includes enriching lives through research and education, and creating resilient places and a responsible environmental footprint.” 

Other Australian institutions ranked globally for sustainability include the University of Adelaide at 36, Melbourne University at 51, RMIT at 53, Griffith University at 66, and UTS at 69.

The Australian National University and Queensland University of Technology came behind at 72 and 79.

The University of California Berkeley secured the top spot as the world's most sustainable university.

Canada's University of Toronto and University of British Columbia followed in second and third place, respectively.

Leigh Kamolins, director of analytics and evaluation at QS, said the new rankings give hundreds of thousands of students a benchmark "to see and compare where meaningful [social and environmental] progress is being made”.

“We understand that universities have multiple roles to play and we want to provide a way of evaluating progress across teaching, research and engagement," she said.

"Progress will look different for different institutions in different regions, but this will allow all universities to track and plan what role they can play.”

The University of Melbourne remains Australia’s most highly ranked institution, slipping to 34th this year from 33rd last year.

Monash University is next at 44th place, after rising from 57th last year.

The University of Queensland (53rd), the University of Sydney (54th), the Australian National University (62nd) and UNSW (71st) also make the top 100, along with the University of Adelaide at 88th, up from 111th last year.

Times Higher Education chief knowledge officer Phil Baty said Melbourne now had bragging rights.

“It now boasts Australia’s number one and number two universities, with Monash University leapfrogging ahead of Brisbane’s University of Queensland and pushing it into third place,” he said.

Monash University vice-chancellor Margaret Gardner said the results were a landmark for her university.

“This achievement will inspire exciting opportunities to access new research funding, build new partnerships and attract additional students,” she said.

University of Melbourne vice-chancellor Duncan Maskell said the rankings reflected the global standing of Australian universities highlighting their contribution during the pandemic and their value to society.

While more Australian universities were now in the world’s top 100, there were two fewer in the top 200 after Brisbane’s Queensland University of Technology and the University of Canberra dropped below the threshold.

Other universities which remained in the top 200 were the University of WA at 131st, University of Technology Sydney at 133rd and Macquarie University at 175th.

Mr Baty warned that the position of Australian universities could worsen when the full impact of the pandemic and Australia’s closed borders filtered through.

“But to be clear, the bigger picture remains remarkably healthy for Australia, thanks in large part to very healthy levels of research funding over the past 15 years or so, strong research productivity and very strong international collaboration and long-term success in the lucrative overseas student market,” he said.

Globally, Oxford retained its No.1 position in the world, followed by Harvard with Cambridge and Stanford equal third.

Mr Baty said that universities in the Oceania region, which includes Australia, New Zealand and Pacific nation, had the highest overall average score of all world regions, this year overtaking North America for the first time. He said that this year more Australian universities moved up the rankings than moved down.

There are signs that US universities are trending downwards in the Times Higher Education ranking. The number of US universities in the top 100 continues to fall, from a peak of 43 in 2018 to 34 this year.

Bond University ranked first in all six categories of educational experiences which includes learning resources, skills development, learner engagement, teaching quality, and overall educational experience.

More than 80 per cent of Bond's postgraduate and undergraduate students said they were were satisfied with the overall quality of their experience. 

The university also earned five stars and ranked number one in teaching quality which looks at student satisfaction about the teaching they received, including the time spent with lecturers and tutors, clarity of assessment and feedback, with 90.8 per cent of undergraduates and 86.7 per cent of postgraduates saying they were satisfied with their learning experience.

Vice President Future Students Cheryl Jolliffe said taking the number one spot in the Good Universities Guide is an incredible achievement which Bond is proud to have held for 17 consecutive years.

“Personalised teaching and learning are at the heart of everything we do, underpinning our exceptional student experience and graduate outcomes.

“Throughout the challenges of the past few years, we’ve maintained that personal learning model through face-to-face teaching. After the peak of the pandemic, our students returned quickly to campus, which we were able to support and maintain in part due to our small class sizes,” Jolliffe said

Following Bond University on the overall experience podium, undergraduate students favoured The University of Notre Dame Australia, Edith Cowan University and the University of New England.

Postgraduate students ranked the University of New England second in terms of overall experience, followed by The University of Notre Dame Australia and the University of Southern Queensland. 

The Good Universities Guide also looks at employment ranking and crowned Charles Sturt University number one in undergraduate full-time employment and median salaries. 

A substantial 85 per cent of CSU undergraduate students found a full-time position within four months of graduating, for an average salary of $64,100 in their first year of work.

This ranking means CSU maintains its position as Australia’s leading university for full-time graduate employment rates, the sixth time the university has done so. 

“Charles Sturt University has a proven record of providing its students with sought-after skills and knowledge so they can thrive in their chosen careers from the moment they graduate,” Vice-Chancellor Professor Renée Leon said.

“Our graduate employment record is one we are extremely proud of. Prospective students know that enrolling with Charles Sturt University is a great launching pad for their own impactful and successful careers.”

The Good Universities Guide 2023 ranks 39 Australian universities and ratings are based on national surveys. The full rankings are available here.