Students are members of our global community.
Essex has been ranked 22nd in the latest Times Higher Education 100 Under 50 ranking of the world’s best young universities, a rise of seven places. The University came third out of all the UK universities in the ranking.
In an interview with theTimes Higher Education, Vice-Chancellor Professor Anthony Forster explained that: "Having an impact on the world is not about tradition and history - it's about relevance in the contemporary world."
Essex's global outlook and excellence in education and research have strengthened the University's position in the world elite. Universities are ranked according to key factors including research, citations, teaching, international outlook and industry income.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Anthony Forster added: “As we approach our 50th anniversary, these rankings highlight our achievements in becoming one of the world’s leading universities. We were founded as a university which would challenge established conventions and structures and we continue, through our research and teaching, to explore new ways of thinking and to transform lives.
“An international outlook is in our DNA with our teaching and research focused on global issues and a genuinely global community of staff and students, with more than 130 countries represented on our campuses.”
Phil Baty, editor of Times Higher Education Rankings, said: “The academy's traditional, ancient elite should be warned – many of the exciting young universities on this forward-looking list do not see their youth as a disadvantage in the global knowledge economy.
“While they may not have had centuries to accumulate wealth and cannot draw on generations of alumni and rich traditions of scholarship to drive their reputations, they are free from the burdens of history: free to be more agile, lean, flexible and risk-taking, giving them an advantage in a rapidly changing global marketplace; free to offer innovative teaching and focus their research on niche, high-impact areas.
“The list contains many global superstars, including some of the most exceptional and well-funded East Asian institutions, so to make it into the top 100 is a significant achievement in itself. I would like to congratulate the University of Essex on its impressive performance this year, further strengthening its position amongst this world elite.”
The latest ranking comes just two months after the University’s world-leading strengths in the social sciences and humanities were highlighted in the QS World University Rankings by Subject.
Nine of Essex’s subject areas were listed in the world top 200, with Sociology ranked 24 th in the world and Politics in the top 100.
Philosophy and Economics have moved up to be ranked in the top 150 alongside Linguistics. English Language and Literature plus Law have moved into the top 200 to join Accounting and Finance and History.