Academic Centre
The University of Latvia for the first time has entered the prestigious Times Higher Education World University Rankings in the subject of life sciences and attained 501–600th place, and in the subject of physical sciences the UL has risen, attaining 601–800th place, thus ranking the highest among Latvian higher education institutions, inform the authors of THE World University Rankings.
THE Rankings for Life Sciences is based on 13 indicators across a number of life science disciplines: Biological Sciences, Veterinary Science, Agriculture & Forestry, as well as Sport Science.
THE Rankings for Life Sciences 2020 encompass 821 universities, compared with 751 higher education institutions last year.
The results are obtained according to the following criteria: teaching (learning environment) – 27.5%, research (volume, income and reputation) – 27.5%, citations (research influence) – 35%, international outlook (staff, students and research) – 7.5%, industry income (innovation) – 2.5%.
“We are pleased to have entered one of the most prestigious rankings, as we successfully compete with other universities of the world. It is a particular achievement to show the capacity for global competitiveness in the current legal and financial environment,” emphasizes the University of Latvia Acting Vice-rector for Exact Sciences, Life and Medical Sciences Valdis Segliņš.
“Furthermore, it is delightful to be considered not only as the University of Latvia in its entirety, but also according to specific subjects. For example, we were ranked in the social sciences for the first time, which we are very proud of. In the life sciences, we have been showing high scores in some disciplines for several consecutive years. The rankings show the areas in which we can most surely enter the TOP 500 of world’s best academic institutions, as we continue to devote strength, finance, investment and motivation, and also consider the achievements of young researchers. The results show that talented young researchers can achieve high rankings in these fields,” noted V. Segliņš.
THE Rankings for Physical Sciences, in turn, consist of the following disciplines: Physics & Astronomy, Chemistry, Geology, Environmental, Earth and Marine Sciences, Mathematics & Statistics.
THE Rankings for Physical Sciences 2020 includes 1054 universities, compared to 963 universities last year.
“When it comes to the physical sciences, we are not surprised by the results of the rankings, as these are the scientific areas we have been proud of for some time. This is a very clear signal for students and teachers to increasingly focus on physics, as the UL is the right place to study and be among the best 600 in the world out of 20 000,” says V. Segliņš.
The Dean of the University of Latvia Faculty of Physics, Mathematics and Optometry Sandris Lācis emphasizes: “These news delight and engender pride on the growth of the University of Latvia as a whole. Clearly, the move to the UL House of Science has been an unrivalled achievement, which is not based only on new, modern facilities and advanced laboratory equipment, but most importantly, it is enabled by situating all the areas of physical sciences in a single location. This is a prerequisite for further growth of our university, enjoying synergies.”
The top three places of THE Rankings for Life Sciences are taken by the universities of the United Kingdom and the United States of America. The 1st place – by the University of Cambridge, the 2nd place – by Harvard University and the 3rd place – by the University of Oxford.
THE Rankings for Physical Sciences are also headed by the United States and the United Kingdom – the 1st place is taken by Princeton University, the 2nd place – by Massachusetts Institute of Technology, while the 3rd place is shared by the Stanford University and the University of Cambridge.
Latvia is further represented in THE Rankings for Life Sciences by the Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, which has been ranked 601+, while THE Rankings for Physical Sciences include Riga Technical University, which ranks 801+.
Times Higher Education is one of the world's three most influential university rankings, published for 17 years. THE World University Rankings use the same 13 performance indicators to assess the subjects of life sciences and physical sciences that are used in the general ranking of world universities, but the methodology is applied to particular fields.
World University Rankings 2020 by subject: life sciences.
World University Rankings 2020 by subject: physical sciences.
