Nottingham has ascended 26 places to 143 in the Times Higher Education rankings for 2015/2016.
Therefore allowing the university to maintain a comfortable position within the World’s top 200 universities.
This accomplishment is more imposing when taking into account the rankings of 2014, which saw eight UK universities lose their places in the top 200 and 400 respectively, compared to only five losing their place this year.
While the elite institutions of the United States, including Ford and M.I.T, dominated the top 10, overall, the UK may boast an impressive 34 Universities within the top 200.
“Nottingham Business School is, in my opinion, one of the best for studying Finance”
This is merely five schools less than the United States, which conquered the league table with 39 Universities in the top 200.
The Times rankings include indicators such as International diversity and Research volume. However, some argue that the rankings do not do Universities justice.
First year Finance & Accounting student Will Field turned down the opportunity to study in the United States because: “Nottingham Business School is, in my opinion, one of the best for studying Finance” while also regarding ranking criteria to be “irrelevant” to the average student.
However, while the likes of Oxford and Cambridge lead the top positions for the UK in the world rankings, publications such as QS are more complimentary than the Times in their assessment of the University of Nottingham.
“I visited the University of Nottingham and decided independently that it was the best institution for me”
The QS World University Rankings for 2015 ranked specific departments, such as Nottingham’s School of Pharmacy 8th in the world indicating strong graduate employability and high quality teaching. Moreover, Life Sciences such as Medicine were ranked in the top 100, while Arts & Humanities subjects stood slightly outside this figure.
Ultimately the strong global position of the University of Nottingham is a proud achievement for both its staff and students.
However, while some may place great importance on University Ranking, First Year Undergraduates such as Jamie Elderton, Spanish and Chinese student, expressed they were “never bothered by the rankings” while further stating: “I visited the University of Nottingham and decided independently that it was the best institution for me”.
Mustafa Karimji
Image: Flickr Matt Buck
How has the University of Nottingham improved its world standing when it has apparently reduced spending on quality research, and today, under its new leadership, has placed emphasis on getting undergraduate bums on seats rather than improving research?
Also, why are so many undergraduates being admitted to science subjects at the University of Nottingham so terrible with basics such as Math?
The University should at least organise foundation courses or extra tuition for these students.