UK universities fall in the League tables

Only seven UK universities remain in the top 50 list of top universities according to the Times Higher Education World Rankings 2014 – 2015.

There are 11 UK universities in the top 100 and 31 in the top 200. This is compared to 12 UK universities in the top 100 and 32 in the top 200 in 2011-2012.

Top UK universities that fell in the league tables include Bristol, Aberdeen, St. Andrews, Sheffield, Glasgow and Birmingham. Only London School of Economics, Durham, York and Edinburgh rose in the rankings.

The ranking shows that Asian universities make up almost one eighth of the world’s top 200 universities, while the US universities continue, to dominate the charts, with seven of the top ten places and 76 of the top 200.

Top Asian universities include Japan’s University of Tokyo at number 23, the National University of Singapore in 25th place and the University of Hong Kong at number 43.

Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, jumped 15 places to 61st. At the other end of the Asian continent, Turkey has its Middle East Technical University to top four others, and Israel’s Tel Aviv University also comes into the top 200.

Japan has five of its universities in the top 200, while Hong has four of its eight research universities in the top 200. South Korea’s Seoul National University and China’s Peking University are also doing well.

Universitas 21 put the UK in the 10th place for providing higher education in a ranking of 48 countries, of which the US was the first, followed by Sweden, Canada, Finland and Denmark.

The Criteria used by Universitas 21 includes resources, environment, connectivity and output. The study put the UK second for university research and teaching but 27th for spending on higher education.

These figures are part of the reasons why UK universities have fallen in the league tables. In addition a decrease in public funding and hostile visa conditions have played a part. The result being crippling tuition fees for both British and international students with the added disincentive of a frustrating, uncertain visa process for bright minds coming from overseas.

On the other hand, investments in top Asian research universities are contributing to their climbing the ladder in university ranking lists.

Affiliations such as Yale-NUS, a partnership between the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Yale, the mother of American liberal art universities, give Asian universities the same prestige as their counterparts from the west.

However, Warwick continues to rise from number 157 in 2011-2012 to number 103 in 2014-2015, according to Times Higher Education and was named 61st in the world according to QS world ranking.