Waikato improves most in latest ranking of world universities

The University of Waikato has jumped 32 places in a new world ranking.

The improved performance puts Waikato in the top 300 of QS (Quacquarelli Symonds) World University Rankings. 

The rankings are based on indicators such as reputation, teaching, research and internationalisation to determine an overall ranking for more than 900 universities.

The University of Auckland, down one place at 82nd equal, retains the country’s top ranking.

The University of Otago (151) rose 18 places on last year, while the University of Canterbury (214) was unchanged and Victoria University of Wellington (219) rose nine places.

Waikato’s big jump of 32 places takes it to 292 ahead of Massey University (316=), up 24 places, and Lincoln University (319=) up 24 places.

AUT remains bottom-placed at an unchanged ranking of 441-450.

Waikato is the best performer in the Citation per Faculty indicator, ranking 133^rd ahead of Otago (174^th ) and Canterbury (178^th).

Six universities have gained ground in the Academic Reputation indicator while five improve in the Employer Reputation indicator.

The only indicator nearly uniformly deteriorating is the Faculty/Student ratio, with the exception of Lincoln University, which rises and features among the Top 200. The next best performing local university in this indicator ranks 540 globally.

Tertiary Education Minister Paul Goldsmith says the results are positive with all eight universities ranked in the top 450 for the second year running.

“This reflects the steady progress we are constantly making to raise the quality of our universities, and the investments into high-quality research by the government," he says.

Top 10 in the world
The US and UK continue to dominate the upper echelons of the rankings. Indeed, for the first time, American universities occupy the top four places, with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) leading the world for the sixth year in a row.

Stanford, Harvard and Caltech are next followed by four UK universities, Cambridge, Oxford, University College London and Imperial College London.

Chicago is ninth with ETH Zurich, the Swiss technological university, preventing a clean sweep of the top 10 by US and UK universities. It is also the top-ranked university from outside the English speaking world, although even it teaches courses in English.

The Australian National University improved two places to 20th to head that country's rankings.