The UWI soars to the top in the latest global universities rankings

Since 2016 when the management of The University of the West Indies (The UWI) took the strategic decision to prepare and position the institution for global competitive rankings, its performance results have been steadily progressive. The choice to engage the Times Higher Education (THE) ranking system was based on its standing as the most reputable and independently quality assured. Its annual rankings have become a standard measuring tool in the comparative performances of the best global universities.

The ranking results for 2022, released by the THE in early September 2021 show that The UWI has soared within the scales, moving up a very impressive 94 places. From the global field of some 30,000 universities and elite research institutes, The UWI now stands in the top 1.5%, up from 3% in the prior year.

“This is a spectacular performance,” Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Hilary Beckles noted. “While we have maintained our number one position in the Caribbean, and top 1% of the best in Latin America and the Caribbean, the surge to the top 1.5% in the world gives us a considerable degree of professional satisfaction as a management and leadership team,” Sir Hilary added. “The top global tier is where we set out to position our university and we have reached there,” he concluded.

Pro Vice-Chancellor for Strategic Planning, and Principal of the Five Islands Campus, Professor Densil A. Williams, who has guided the global ranking engagement noted that, “the impressive performance of the university is rooted in the work of Faculties and Research Institutes. Campus principals and their leadership teams along with faculty and staff should also be commended for embracing the vision embedded in the Triple A Strategic Plan which laid the foundation for this ranking engagement since 2018.”

In the current World University rankings, only 1,668 universities from 99 countries satisfied the eligibility criteria of the THE. This is up from 1,500 across 93 countries last year. The UWI rising is therefore within the context of a significantly expanded field of participants, which makes the performance even more impressive.