scholarly journals Introduction

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Ku-ming (Kevin) Chang ◽  
Alan Rocke
Keyword(s):  
Research Universities ◽  
Academic Career ◽  
International Competition ◽  
Original Research ◽  
University Rankings ◽  
The West ◽  
Research Education ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
The World ◽  
Global University

Few would question the value of advanced research today. Considered key to the health and wealth of a nation, research universities receive ample support, especially when global university rankings draw countries into a new level of international competition. Our age has come to assume that an academic career, characterized by the pursuit of new knowledge, starts with a doctorate, generically known as the PhD. Doctoral education prepares the student for a career in academia or industrial research and development, and culminates with the presentation of novel research results in a dissertation that is based on years of original research in a specialized field. This established pattern of research education, taken for granted today, first emerged in parts of the West only in the nineteenth century, and even later in the other parts of the world. This volume studies the emergence and development of research education across disciplines in major areas of the globe—Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia—over the second half of the nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth centuries....

scholarly journals Editorial: Behind the Scenes

2016 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-105
Author(s):  
PAUL RAE
Keyword(s):  
Developing Economies ◽  
Limited Resources ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
University Rankings ◽  
Direct Experience ◽  
The Past ◽  
Arts And Humanities ◽  
The World ◽  
Global University ◽  
Different Parts

One of the pleasures of editing Theatre Research International is the opportunity to engage with scholars from different parts of the world about their research. In the past year or so, I have visited several universities in South East Asia, finding out about the practices and ideas people are investigating, and how they are doing it. In the process, I have been struck by the alacrity with which ambitious universities in the fast-developing economies of the region – and, I suspect, elsewhere in the world – are embracing the metrics and other criteria required for success in global university rankings exercises. The legitimation, prestige and increased attractiveness to talented staff and students that a good showing in such exercises can bring is presumably an important reason why governments and university administrations see participation as an efficient use of limited resources. However, as anyone with direct experience of rankings-motivated institutional change will be aware, the practical results can be highly disruptive, and their cost can fall disproportionately upon arts and humanities researchers, so much of whose activity remains resistant to easy quantification.

scholarly journals The Shanghai Global Ranking of Academic Subjects: Room for improvement

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erwin Krauskopf
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Life Sciences ◽  
Objective Measure ◽  
University Rankings ◽  
Medical Sciences ◽  
Global Ranking ◽  
Quality Of Higher Education ◽  
The World ◽  
Global University

Global university rankings have achieved public popularity as they are portrayed as an objective measure of the quality of higher education institutions. One of the latest rankings is the Shanghai Global Ranking of Academic Subjects, which classifies institutions according to five fields –Engineering, Life Sciences, Medical Sciences, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences– which are divided into 54 subjects. Despite being introduced in 2017, no study has analyzed the methodology applied by this ranking. The results of our analysis show that the methodology currently used by the Shanghai Global Ranking of Academic Subjects presents several issues, which negatively affect a large proportion of universities around the world. Needless to say, if the Shanghai Global Ranking of Academic Subjects is meant to be global, it needs to expand its surveys to countries located in the Global South.

scholarly journals Determining the Priorities of the Development of EU Research Universities Based on the Analysis of Rating Indicators of World-Class Universities

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maksym W. Sitnicki
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Research Universities ◽  
Foreign Students ◽  
Modern Trend ◽  
University Rankings ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Scientific Publications ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
The World ◽  
World Class

Abstract The object of this research is the activity of 25 leading research universities in the world. One of the most problematic issues is the in-depth analysis of the ranking indicators of world-class research universities in order to identify the priorities for the development of research universities in the European Union. The following scientific methods were used in the research: generalizations, analysis, synthesis, graphical method, and also comparison method. The study is based on data on the global university rankings in QS World University Rankings 2018 and empirical data from publicly available sources provided by the research universities. The article also systematizes the scientific views of the leading scientists of Europe and the world on the course of development of research universities and analyses the experience of implementing joint scientific projects in the EU countries. The importance of international cooperation between research universities in the fields of academic mobility and scientific research is underlined due to the fact that the global challenges and prospects that the research universities in the European Union and the world are facing are transient and create a tough competitive environment. Strengthening their leadership potential and developing entrepreneurial thinking has been revealed as a modern trend in the development of research universities. The article characterizes the 25 best world-class research universities, and the factors which have enabled them to uncover their strengths and systematize the key areas of in-depth specialization. The contrasting differences between the analysed research universities are shown, as there are significant disparities in the total number of students, foreign students and staff of research universities, showing fundamentally different approaches to the organization of educational and research processes, even within a single country. This is due to the fact that the ratio of student per staff representative significantly affects the quality of education. The author proposes the key development priorities for research universities in the European Union, which consist in intensified work on: academic reputation; the number of foreign students; reputation of employers; improvement of the ratio of the number of students to the number of staff; improvement of quality and increase in the number of citations of scientific publications by university researchers; increasing the share of the university’s participation in international educational and scientific networks of other countries and continents.

scholarly journals La igualdad de género en la universidad. Capitalismo académico y rankings globales

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-281
Author(s):  
Sonia Reverter-Bañon
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Academic Capitalism ◽  
University Rankings ◽  
World University Rankings ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
The World ◽  
Global University ◽  
The University ◽  
Theoretical Reflection ◽  
Current Reality

Purpose. This article proposes to reflect on how universities are committed to gender equality. Methodology. After a theoretical reflection that introduces the current reality of universities and the framework of academic capitalism that surrounds them, I investigate the global university rankings (GURs), specifically The High Education (THE) World University Rankings. Results and Discussion. The analysis of the rankings shows us the need to rethink how, in the current reality of university practices imposed by academic capitalism, we can carry out the university equality policies that laws and regulations impose on academia. Conclusion. As a conclusion and contribution, I point out the urgency of a new conception, which puts the commitments of sustainable development and the 2030 Agenda at the center and adjusts the standards and methodologies to these objectives, and not vice versa, the objectives to the methodologies.

scholarly journals Mis-measuring our universities: how global university rankings don't add up

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Gadd
Keyword(s):  
University Rankings ◽  
Economic Success ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Problematic Use ◽  
The World ◽  
Global University ◽  
The University ◽  
University Success

Draws parallels between the problematic use of GDP to evaluate economic success with the use of global university rankings to evaluate university success. Inspired by Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics, this perspective argues that the pursuit of growth as measured by such indicators creates universities that ‘grow’ up the rankings rather than those which ‘thrive’ or ‘mature’. Such growth creates academic wealth divides within and between countries, despite the direction of growth as inspired by the rankings not truly reflecting universities’ critical purpose or contribution. Highlights the incompatibility between universities’ alignment with socially responsible practices and continued engagement with socially irresponsible ranking practices. Proposes four possible ways of engendering change in the university rankings space. Concludes by calling on leaders of ‘world-leading’ universities to join together to ‘lead the world’ in challenging global university rankings, and to set their own standards for thriving and maturing universities.

Postdoctoral Destination Decisions

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anju Mary Paul
Keyword(s):  
Research Universities ◽  
Academic Career ◽  
Life Sciences ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
Destination Choice ◽  
Doctoral Training ◽  
The West ◽  
Postdoctoral Training

Postdoctoral training is now essential for an academic career in the life sciences. As Asian research universities invest in improving their infrastructure and funding, Asian-born aspiring bioscientists now have a destination choice to make between the West and Asia for their postdoctoral training. This chapter highlights the role played by Asia-based scientists (many of whom are returned migrants from the West) in mediating their students’ understanding of the relative merits of these different destination options. Interviews with eighty-two Asian-born, Western-trained bioscientists who have since returned to Asia to work in Singapore, India, China, or Taiwan, reveal that these scientists still recommend postdoctoral training in the West, though they increasingly recommend doctoral training in Asia, leading to hybrid training pathways. These findings demonstrate the ongoing (though narrowing) gap between Western and Asian scientific research structures, particularly in terms of status, networking opportunities, and research cultures.

scholarly journals Mis-Measuring Our Universities: Why Global University Rankings Don’t Add Up

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Gadd
Keyword(s):  
University Rankings ◽  
Economic Success ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Problematic Use ◽  
The World ◽  
Global University ◽  
The University ◽  
University Success

Draws parallels between the problematic use of GDP to evaluate economic success with the use of global university rankings to evaluate university success. Inspired by Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics, this perspective argues that the pursuit of growth as measured by such indicators creates universities that ‘grow’ up the rankings rather than those which ‘thrive’ or ‘mature.’ Such growth creates academic wealth divides within and between countries, despite the direction of growth as inspired by the rankings not truly reflecting universities’ critical purpose or contribution. Highlights the incompatibility between universities’ alignment with socially responsible practices and continued engagement with socially irresponsible ranking practices. Proposes four possible ways of engendering change in the university rankings space. Concludes by calling on leaders of ‘world-leading’ universities to join together to ‘lead the world’ in challenging global university rankings, and to set their own standards for thriving and maturing universities.

Prevalence of Suicidal Ideation in Sri Lanka

Crisis ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sudath Samaraweera ◽  
Athula Sumathipala ◽  
Sisira Siribaddana ◽  
S. Sivayogan ◽  
Dinesh Bhugra
Keyword(s):  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
General Population ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
National Average ◽  
The West ◽  
Suicide Methods ◽  
Suicide Rates ◽  
Completed Suicide ◽  
The World

Background: Suicidal ideation can often lead to suicide attempts and completed suicide. Studies have shown that Sri Lanka has one of the highest rates of suicide in the world but so far no studies have looked at prevalence of suicidal ideation in a general population in Sri Lanka. Aims: We wanted to determine the prevalence of suicidal ideation by randomly selecting six Divisional Secretariats (Dss) out of 17 in one district. This district is known to have higher than national average rates of suicide. Methods: 808 participants were interviewed using Sinhala versions of GHQ-30 and Beck’s Scale for Suicidal Ideation. Of these, 387 (48%) were males, and 421 (52%) were female. Results: On Beck’s Scale for Suicidal Ideation, 29 individuals (4%) had active suicidal ideation and 23 (3%) had passive suicidal ideation. The active suicidal ideators were young, physically ill and had higher levels of helplessness and hopelessness. Conclusions: The prevalence of suicidal ideation in Sri Lanka is lower than reported from the West and yet suicide rates are higher. Further work must explore cultural and religious factors.

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