Universitas 21 has announced the “ninth and final” ranking of national higher education systems which is based on four groups of indicators: Resources, Environment, Connectivity and Output. Universitas 21 is a network of research universities now consisting of 27 universities in 18 countries. It is concerned with student employability, researcher engagement and educational innovation among other topics.

The overall rankings are dominated by North America, Western Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Some European countries have fallen since last year: the UK from third place to sixth, Czechia by three places and Slovakia by five. Singapore has continued to improve and is now in fourth place.

The top five countries in the overall rankings are:

1. USA
2. Switzerland
3. Denmark
4. Singapore
5. Sweden

The data shows that while there is a significant association between resources and output some countries have failed to take advantage of the resource with which they have been provided. These include Saudi Arabia, which is ranked 8^th for resources and 33^rd for output, and Turkey, 17^th for resources and 39^th for output.

In contrast, China, 40^th for resources and 16^th for output, and Russia, 45^th for resources and 29^th for output, have managed to use their resources wisely.

The top three countries in the four indicator groups are:

Resources; Norway, Singapore, Switzerland

Environment; United States, Australia, New Zealand

Connectivity; Switzerland, Austria, Singapore

Output; United States, United Kingdom, Australia.

Source:

U21 Rankings Report