University College Dublin, UCD, was announced on November 3rd as the Sunday Times University of the Year for 2020. This was the third time that the University had received this accolade since 2002, it previously won in 2006 and 2012. The silver medal of the category was given to National University of Ireland Galway, who rose to being ranked the fourth best University in Ireland.
In reaction to receiving the prestigious moniker from the Sunday Times, UCD President Andrew Deeks said, “We are very happy to be University of the Year because it comes after a period of hard work. It’s a great honour and it’s a credit to everyone at UCD.” Deeks added that, “It is a confirmation of what we’ve seen through our strategic planning process, in terms of the progress that the university has made over the last five years, and a validation of that.”
UCD placed joint second overall on the Sunday Times Third Level League Table, alongside UC Cork, but still trail current leaders Trinity College Dublin by 31 points. UCD had a relatively low research score, only 69 out of a possible 100. Their nearest competitors, Trinity and Cork, scored 100 and 87 respectively. This was explained by UCD coming just fourth nationally in average researcher salary, the measure of a University’s research competitiveness. UCD’s Graduate employment rate was the second highest, at 97%, according to the table.
Despite UCD’s recent efforts at improving the student experience they scored 126/250, 50.6%, in the student satisfaction rating.
According to The Sunday Times University Guide, the worst scoring university was Carlow IT who got a rating of 572 of 1,000, contrasting against Trinity’s score of 762.
Athlone was named Institute of Technology of the year, Waterford IT received the silver medal in the category. President of AIT, Professor Ciarán Ó Catháin, said “We are delighted to be named The Sunday Times Institute of Technology of the Year – the second time in three years. This award marks a pivotal moment in our near 50-year history as we stand on the cusp of becoming a technological university. Our multi-award-winning institute is an educational powerhouse, one that consistently punches above its weight and defies expectations on a regional, national and global scale.” Athlone IT is scheduled to receive Technological University designation after its joint application with Limerick IT in early 2019.
The award comes just days after UCD was named the top University in Ireland by US News and World Report’s Best Global University index. UCD was also ranked 227th worldwide, an improvement of seven places from 2018 and scored 102nd in Europe. UCD’s improvement can be put down to their Agricultural Science section rising to 19th best in the world, however this was undermined by UCD’s poor performance in research related fields, such as their Global Research Reputation score, coming only 331st in that category.
University College Dublin, UCD, was announced on November 3rd as the Sunday Times University of the Year for 2020. This was the third time that the University had received this accolade since 2002, it previously won in 2006 and 2012. The silver medal of the category was given to National University of Ireland Galway, who rose to being ranked the fourth best University in Ireland.
In reaction to receiving the prestigious moniker from the Sunday Times, UCD President Andrew Deeks said, “We are very happy to be University of the Year because it comes after a period of hard work. It’s a great honour and it’s a credit to everyone at UCD.” Deeks added that, “It is a confirmation of what we’ve seen through our strategic planning process, in terms of the progress that the university has made over the last five years, and a validation of that.”
UCD placed joint second overall on the Sunday Times Third Level League Table, alongside UC Cork, but still trail current leaders Trinity College Dublin by 31 points. UCD had a relatively low research score, only 69 out of a possible 100. Their nearest competitors, Trinity and Cork, scored 100 and 87 respectively. This was explained by UCD coming just fourth nationally in average researcher salary, the measure of a University’s research competitiveness. UCD’s Graduate employment rate was the second highest, at 97%, according to the table.
Despite UCD’s recent efforts at improving the student experience they scored 126/250, 50.6%, in the student satisfaction rating.
According to The Sunday Times University Guide, the worst scoring university was Carlow IT who got a rating of 572 of 1,000, contrasting against Trinity’s score of 762.
Athlone was named Institute of Technology of the year, Waterford IT received the silver medal in the category. President of AIT, Professor Ciarán Ó Catháin, said “We are delighted to be named The Sunday Times Institute of Technology of the Year – the second time in three years. This award marks a pivotal moment in our near 50-year history as we stand on the cusp of becoming a technological university. Our multi-award-winning institute is an educational powerhouse, one that consistently punches above its weight and defies expectations on a regional, national and global scale.” Athlone IT is scheduled to receive Technological University designation after its joint application with Limerick IT in early 2019.
The award comes just days after UCD was named the top University in Ireland by US News and World Report’s Best Global University index. UCD was also ranked 227th worldwide, an improvement of seven places from 2018 and scored 102nd in Europe. UCD’s improvement can be put down to their Agricultural Science section rising to 19th best in the world, however this was undermined by UCD’s poor performance in research related fields, such as their Global Research Reputation score, coming only 331st in that category.
Hugh Dooley – Reporter
