Canberra’s two universities have slipped in the world rankings, but is it bad news for the educators? Photo: ANU.
The Australian National University, University of Canberra, University of Wollongong and Charles Sturt University rankings have all taken a tumble in the prestigious QS World University Rankings.
Some 69 per cent of Australia’s universities, including all but two of the top-10 ranked schools, saw their positions fall this year.
The ANU, once the nation’s top-ranked body for tertiary education, has continued a decade-long slide in which the institution has slipped from the top 20 globally to 32nd, its second-lowest position since 2012.
It also lost its top spot nationally in 2022, dropping to fourth behind the Universities of Melbourne, New South Wales, and Sydney.
ANU deputy vice-chancellor Lachlan Blackhall said he was pleased by the ranking and that the university was seeing improvements across a majority of indicators.
“ANU is moving in the right direction in many areas, including academic and employer reputation, citations per faculty, and our international benchmarks,” he said.
“Our focus will always be on providing the best student experience possible and delivering excellence in research and education.”
The ANU’s administration has been under pressure since vice-chancellor Genevieve Bell initiated major cuts last year.
Internal critics have said her actions are impacting the quality of education. Senior lecturer Liz Allen said the cuts affected how people perceived the university.
“I’ve seen firsthand the pipeline in academia being majorly disrupted,” she said.
”We’ve got scholars who are thinking about doing PhD doctoral research at the ANU, seeing what’s happening at the place and deciding to go to other universities. Now, that’s highly problematic.
“It means that scholars and future employers are not looking terribly kindly on new qualifications, and that, of course, adversely impacts the pipeline all the way through.”
The University of Canberra’s rankings have climbed 200 places since 2015, hitting a decade-high 403rd globally last year.
It has slipped to 494 but saw an increase in its overall score.
UC vice-chancellor Bill Shorten celebrated the rankings and said the university was committed to making sure research was the highest quality.
“We are making sure that our undergraduate students are able to gain quality employment as quickly as possible after graduation,” Mr Shorten said.
”Equally important is our continued commitment to providing our students with the support they need during their studies.”
The University of Wollongong ranked equal 184th on the global stage, and was 13th among Australian institutions.
The university’s vice-chancellor Max Lu praised his school’s record.
“These results reinforce UOW’s standing as a globally connected institution, with strong research performance and diverse international connections and collaborations, as we continue to deliver meaningful impact through research, education and engagement.”
Charles Sturt has had a relatively consistent ranking, hovering between 700 and 1000 over the past decade.
Each institution had its own theory on what was behind the decline in Australia’s rankings on the global stage.
The UC said it was caused by changes to QS methodology.
The ANU said university rankings were increasingly competitive and pointed to improvements in ratings for campuses in China and India as having an effect on the global results.
The UOW described the rankings as “an increasingly competitive market”.
Charles Sturt declined to comment.
