[dropcap]R[/dropcap]egional Headquarters, Jamaica. Friday, 20 July 2018—The Times Higher Education (THE), the most respected higher education ranking agency in the world, has given The University of the West Indies (The UWI) the excellent ranking of 4th out of 129 best universities in the Latin America and Caribbean region for its international agenda. THE’s World University Rankings are the only global performance tables that judge research-intensive universities across all their core missions: teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook.
On July 18, 2018, the 70-year-old, Caribbean-based University made its debut in the independent, UK-based ranking publication, representing the tangible results of strategic management decisions effected over the span of the last two years.
The UWI’s international outlook performance score in THE’s rankings is demonstrable of the efforts of The UWI’s globalisation thrust, framed within its Triple A Strategy (Strategic Plan 2017-2022). The Triple A pillars of Access, Alignment, and Agility are consistent with the world’s most influential university ranking’s assessment criteria.
Since 2016, The UWI has been preparing itself for this type of hemispheric ranking as it has been strategically focussed on leveraging its reputational excellence to expand its global presence. The UWI has since established partnering centres with sister universities in North America, Asia, and Africa, such as, the State University of New York (SUNY)-UWI Center for Leadership and Sustainable Development, the UWI-China Institute of Information Technology, and the University of Lagos (UNILAG)-UWI Institute of African and Diaspora Studies.
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, who was elated on receiving this news, said: “This validates our strategy of enhancing our regional and global reputation, including the decision to establish an Office of Global Affairs to guide The UWI towards deepening its regional engagement and expanding its international partnerships and global connections.”
The UWI was also recognised as a very strong performer when it comes to research influence, ranking 26th on the citation impact measure.
— Source: The University Marketing Communications Office
