More than half of the continent’s top 15 universities in terms of research influence are South African according to a new ranking system‚ the University of Johannesburg (UJ) said on Tuesday.
UJ hosts the inaugural Times Higher Education (THE) Africa Universities Summit on July 30 and 31.
THE‚ a university rankings provider‚ has rated the “top 15 universities in the region‚ based on …how much African universities’ research papers are referred to and cited by other academics across the globe”.
The University of Cape Town and the University of the Witwatersrandscooped the top two positions‚ while the other South African universities in the top 15 were the University of Stellenbosch‚ University of KwaZulu-Natal‚ University of the Western Cape‚ UJ‚ University of Pretoria and University of South Africa.
“To be included in this future-gazing table‚ an institution must have published a minimum of 500 research papers in the five year period assessed with at least 50 papers per year‚” the UJ statement said.
The full table‚ containing the top 30 universities in the region‚ will be revealed at summit.
“Furthermore‚ as the first major public consultation on the future THE Africa University Rankings‚ academic leaders and opinion formers will discuss plans for a full and comprehensive ranking for the region.”
“This new ranking will be based on Times Higher Education’s respected World University Rankings‚ but shaped following this initial meeting by bespoke metrics designed to meet the region’s specific challenges.”
UJ vice-chancellor and principal Professor Ihron Rensburg said the rakings were important as “Africa’s universities sit at the forefront of the continent’s renewal and revitalisation”.
“Our challenge is to nurture universities with diverse missions and to contribute magnificently towards Africa’s high-skilled people‚ research and innovation needs. In this manner‚ we must all contribute to realising Africa’s century. This summit is about moving Africa’s universities forward and building our shared global legacy.”
UCT is the top African research university
More than half of the continent’s top 15 universities in terms of research influence are South African according to a new ranking system‚ the University of Johannesburg (UJ) said on Tuesday.
UJ hosts the inaugural Times Higher Education (THE) Africa Universities Summit on July 30 and 31.
THE‚ a university rankings provider‚ has rated the “top 15 universities in the region‚ based on …how much African universities’ research papers are referred to and cited by other academics across the globe”.
The University of Cape Town and the University of the Witwatersrandscooped the top two positions‚ while the other South African universities in the top 15 were the University of Stellenbosch‚ University of KwaZulu-Natal‚ University of the Western Cape‚ UJ‚ University of Pretoria and University of South Africa.
“To be included in this future-gazing table‚ an institution must have published a minimum of 500 research papers in the five year period assessed with at least 50 papers per year‚” the UJ statement said.
The full table‚ containing the top 30 universities in the region‚ will be revealed at summit.
“Furthermore‚ as the first major public consultation on the future THE Africa University Rankings‚ academic leaders and opinion formers will discuss plans for a full and comprehensive ranking for the region.”
“This new ranking will be based on Times Higher Education’s respected World University Rankings‚ but shaped following this initial meeting by bespoke metrics designed to meet the region’s specific challenges.”
UJ vice-chancellor and principal Professor Ihron Rensburg said the rakings were important as “Africa’s universities sit at the forefront of the continent’s renewal and revitalisation”.
“Our challenge is to nurture universities with diverse missions and to contribute magnificently towards Africa’s high-skilled people‚ research and innovation needs. In this manner‚ we must all contribute to realising Africa’s century. This summit is about moving Africa’s universities forward and building our shared global legacy.”
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