Citations per Faculty keep UCD in top 1 percent of world’s universities in QS rankings

‌Posted 15 September 2015

The QS World University Rankings were released this morning showing the top three universities in Ireland have fallen from their 2014 positions. University College Dublin (UCD) has dropped from 139 to 154 this year.

The rankings are based on six metrics. Overall, the UCD score decreased by 2.1 points; some of this is due to methodology changes and some to changes in UCD’s data submission based on clarifications QS included in this year’s data request.

There was a decrease in student faculty ratio of 2.3 points. "This fall has been flagged for some time and demonstrates the urgent need for a new funding model that can address the needs of the university and the sector,“ The President of UCD, Professor Andrew Deeks remarked.

The proportion of international students fell by 1.6 points as a result of the exclusion of students from UCD’s overseas campuses. An improvement in the academic reputation of 0.3 points was offset by an equivalent fall in the employer reputation. The measure of international faculty increased very slightly by 0.025 points.

Of significance is the citation per faculty, which increased by 1.8 points and now places UCD number 1 in Ireland in this measure. According to Ben Sowter QS head of research, this is “a proxy for research impact".

"This specific performance is testament to the continued high quality academic output from our Faculty, and I would like to personally thank them for their continued dedication to world leading research and scholarship," Professor Deeks added.

• More information: (opens in a new window)QS World University Rankings