The University of Iceland is ranked between 201-300 in the field of Social Sciences on the Times Higher Education University Rankings published today. This is the second time in a short period of time the the University of Iceland makes the Times Higher Education list for a field of study.
The magazine Times Higher Education has published a list of the best universities in the world from 2004, and their list for 2017-2018 was issued earlier this autumn. The University of Iceland was ranked between 201-250 worldwide and in place 13-19 of the Nordic countries, but the University has had a place on the list from 2011.
The Times Higher Education published this autumn a list of the best universities world wide in various fields of study, and today they published their list of the world's best universities in the field of Social Sciences. When evaluating individual fields of study the same operational factors are considered as when the University as a whole is evaluated; i.e. research activity, international impact, teaching, and study environment. Research and publishing traditions in each field of study receive special attention.
The evaluation of Times Higher Education of the best universities in the field of social studies is comprised of media and communication studies; political science and international affairs; sociology, and geography. According the Times Higher Education the University of Iceland is ranked between 251 and 300 in these fields, but this is the first time that the University ranked among the world's top universities in social sciences.
"This confirms that the University's strength on an international level is not based on one specific field of study, but rather to its dynamic research and scientific work within highly diverse fields. It is a great asset for Icelandic society to have access to dynamic scientific researchers and world-class higher education in social sciences. This success is thus extremely satisfying," says Daði Már Kristófersson, Dean of the University of Iceland's School of Social Sciences.
The Times Higher Education list is one of the most influential and prestigious of its kind. The other one is the Shanghai Global Rankings; which the University of Iceland made for the first time earlier this year. The list is based on the thorough and independent assessment of more than 1,200 universities worldwide and confirms, along with the Times Higher Education Rankings the international strength of the University of Iceland in diverse fields of study.
"This is excellent news for the University of Iceland and Icelandic society. The School of Social Sciences is the largest of the University of Iceland's five schools. The ranking confirms the remarkable success worldwide of our academics in social sciences. The number of students in Social Sciences has grown considerably over the last few years; much faster than the number of academic staff in the field. This excellent success is achieved despite the increased pressure in teaching taking place in social sciences," says Jón Atli Benediktsson, Rector of the University of Iceland.
Times Higher Education published their list of the world's top 400 universities in the arts and humanities earlier this fall; and among them is the University of Iceland. The magazine will consequently publish their list of the world's top universities in the fields of 1) engineering, technology and computer science 2) bioscience, psychology, medicine and public health sciences and finally 3) natural sciences.
Further information on the Times Higher Education World Rankings in the field of Social Sciences can be found on the THE's website. https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/by-subject