英國政府曾每七年左右組織一次大學科研水平評估(Research Assessment Exercise,簡稱RAE)。[1]RAE作為英國權威度最高的大學排名,在很大程度上不僅說明了一個大學的綜合實力,甚至直接左右了一個英國大學能獲得的研究經費多少。英國大學其實並不十分重視各媒體或者報紙的排名,但對於RAE的評分高低卻異常重視。RAE評分在學校經費、研究水平、頂尖學者數量上的影響至關重要。最近一次的RAE排名是在2008年。
2014年12月18日,英國官方發布了研究卓越框架(Research Excellence Framework,簡稱REF)結果,其取代了科研水平評估(RAE)。英國研究卓越框架(REF)是英國政府資助機構用來評價本國高等院校科學研究項目質量的一個新的行動計畫,其評估重點是科學研究項目的產出、影響以及環境三個要素,其結果將決定未來六年英國各高等院校從英國政府資助機構所獲得的研究經費數量。
REF官方並沒有直接給出各大學的整體排名 ,對於各大學的排名,多家媒體作了不同的解讀;目前有主要有兩種排名方式,即Research GPA排名和ResearchPower排名。
ResearchPower排名指英國各大學的科研力量,在此排名中,world-leading級別的學科、論文以及教師越多,則科研力量一般也越大。而ResearchGPA排名以各大學的平均科研質量為排名,world-leading級別的學科、論文以及教師占比越高,則排名越高。
下面以2014年英國REF排名數據中的牛津大學和帝國理工學院為例:
牛津大學 | 帝國理工 | |
world-leading | 1156 | 578 |
internationally excellent | 940 | 553 |
world-leading(%) | 48% | 46% |
internationally excellent(%) | 39% | 44% |
•牛津大學提交評審的2409個研究成果里,48% 即約1156個被認為是world-leading級別,39% 即約940個被認為是internationally excellent級別。
•帝國理工提交評審的1257個研究成果里,46% 即 約578個被認為是world-leading級別,44% 即 約553個被認為是internationally excellent級別。
結論:
ResearchPower排名中,牛津大學>帝國理工學院,因為牛津大學有1156個world-leading級別的成果與940個internationally excellent級別的研究成果,幾乎是帝國理工學院的兩倍,說明牛津大學學術實力雄厚。
ResearchGPA排名中,帝國理工學院>牛津大學,因為帝國理工學院world-leading與internationally excellent比例高於牛津大學,這個說明帝國理工學院的學科總體來講比較精煉。
以下是2014年REF科研水平綜合排名,ResaerchPower排名:
RF power rank | 2008 Rank | Institution | Number of departments | RF power rating |
1 | 1 | Oxford | 31 | 100 |
2 | 3 | UCL | 36 | 97.3 |
3 | 2 | Cambridge | 32 | 85.5 |
4 | 5 | Edinburgh | 31 | 62.6 |
5 | 4 | Manchester | 35 | 54.1 |
6 | 6 | Imperial | 14 | 52.2 |
7 | 11 | KCL | 27 | 51.3 |
8 | 7 | Nottingham | 32 | 45.6 |
9 | 10 | Bristol | 31 | 40 |
10 | 8 | Leeds | 33 | 38.4 |
11 | 13 | Southampton | 26 | 37.8 |
12 | 9 | Sheffield | 35 | 35.9 |
13 | 14 | Glasgow | 32 | 35.6 |
14 | 15 | Warwick | 23 | 33.8 |
15 | 12 | Birmingham | 33 | 33.3 |
16 | 17 | Newcastle | 28 | 28.5 |
17 | 16 | Cardiff | 27 | 28.1 |
18 | 19 | Durham | 23 | 24.9 |
19 | 21 | Queen's Belfast | 28 | 24.7 |
20 | 20 | Queen Mary, London | 21 | 23.4 |
21 | 25 | Exeter | 25 | 23.3 |
22 | 18 | Liverpool | 26 | 23.2 |
23 | 27 | LSE | 14 | 22.5 |
24 | 22 | York | 24 | 22.4 |
25 | 24 | Lancaster | 16 | 19.9 |
26 | 23 | Loughborough | 18 | 18 |
27 | 26 | Leicester | 25 | 17.6 |
28 | 28 | Reading | 23 | 17.6 |
29 | 32 | St Andrews | 20 | 17.3 |
30 | 31 | Strathclyde | 17 | 17 |
31 | 29 | Aberdeen | 25 | 16.7 |
32 | 40 | Kent | 23 | 16.6 |
33 | 33 | Bath | 13 | 15.8 |
34 | 30 | Sussex | 24 | 14.9 |
35 | 34 | East Anglia | 24 | 14.7 |
36 | 41 | Surrey | 15 | 12.6 |
37 | 35 | Dundee | 20 | 12.3 |
38 | 38 | Ulster | 20 | 12.2 |
39 | 36 | Royal Holloway, London | 17 | 12.1 |
40 | 37 | Swansea | 18 | 11.9 |
41 | 39 | Brunel | 21 | 11.7 |
42 | 53 | London Sch Hygiene & TM | 2 | 11.6 |
43 | 47 | Heriot-Watt | 12 | 10.7 |
44 | 43 | Essex | 14 | 10.5 |
45 | 45 | City | 12 | 10.5 |
46 | 42 | Open | 18 | 10.2 |
47 | 46 | Birkbeck | 14 | 9.49 |
48 | 54 | Stirling | 15 | 8.43 |
49 | 51 | Aberystwyth | 17 | 7.99 |
50 | 50 | Plymouth | 18 | 7.83 |
以下是ResearchGPA排名 :
2014 | 2008 | Institution | Total number of FTE staff submitted | Research power | Rank on research power 2014 |
1 | 1 | Institute of Cancer Research | 103 | 351 | 87 |
2 | 6 | Imperial College London | 1,257 | 4,223 | 8 |
3 | =4 | London School of Economics and Political Science | 532 | 1,783 | 28 |
4 | =4 | University of Oxford | 2,409 | 8,047 | 2 |
5 | 2 | University of Cambridge | 2,088 | 6,952 | 3 |
6 | =22 | Cardiff University | 738 | 2,412 | 18 |
7 | =22 | King’s College London | 1,369 | 4,422 | 6 |
=8 | 7 | University College London | 2,566 | 8,261 | 1 |
=8 | 9 | University of Warwick | 931 | 2,997 | 15 |
10 | 3 | London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London | 314 | 1,004 | 46 |
=11 | 12 | University of Edinburgh | 1,753 | 5,575 | 4 |
=11 | =14 | University of Bristol | 1,138 | 3,618 | 9 |
=11 | 13 | Queen Mary University of London | 671 | 2,133 | 22 |
=14 | =14 | University of Sheffield | 1,043 | 3,307 | 13 |
=14 | 10 | University of York | 643 | 2,038 | 23 |
=14 | =20 | University of Bath | 462 | 1,463 | 35 |
17 | 8 | University of Manchester | 1,561 | 4,933 | 5 |
=18 | =14 | University of Southampton | 1,113 | 3,506 | 11 |
=18 | =20 | Lancaster University | 580 | 1,826 | 26 |
20 | =14 | Durham University | 740 | 2,325 | 20 |
=21 | =14 | University of Leeds | 1,149 | 3,597 | 10 |
=21 | =14 | University of St Andrews | 519 | 1,623 | 32 |
23 | =35 | University of East Anglia | 455 | 1,415 | 36 |
=24 | =33 | University of Glasgow | 1,099 | 3,408 | 12 |
=24 | n/a | Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine | 35 | 109 | 114 |
=26 | =24 | University of Nottingham | 1,404 | 4,340 | 7 |
=26 | 27 | Newcastle University | 888 | 2,744 | 16 |
=26 | =24 | Royal Holloway, University of London | 378 | 1,168 | 40 |
=26 | =52 | Swansea University | 370 | 1,142 | 42 |
30 | =28 | University of Exeter | 736 | 2,267 | 21 |
=31 | 26 | University of Birmingham | 1,065 | 3,271 | 14 |
=31 | 49 | Cranfield University | 224 | 687 | 61 |
=33 | =40 | University of Liverpool | 760 | 2,325 | 19 |
=33 | =45 | Heriot-Watt University | 352 | 1,078 | 44 |
=35 | 11 | University of Essex | 339 | 1,034 | 45 |
=35 | =52 | Aston University | 199 | 608 | 69 |
37 | 50 | University of Strathclyde | 558 | 1,696 | 31 |
=38 | 42 | University of Reading | 590 | 1,788 | 27 |
=38 | =40 | University of Dundee | 396 | 1,199 | 39 |
40 | 30 | University of Sussex | 501 | 1,507 | 34 |
41 | 103 | Cardiff Metropolitan University | 35 | 105 | 115 |
=42 | 39 | Queen’s University Belfast | 868 | 2,596 | 17 |
=42 | =52 | Bangor University | 233 | 697 | 59 |
=42 | =66 | St George’s, University of London | 56 | 166 | 108 |
45 | =35 | University of Surrey | 459 | 1,367 | 37 |
=46 | 38 | University of Aberdeen | 597 | 1,774 | 29 |
=46 | =33 | Birkbeck, University of London | 328 | 973 | 48 |
48 | =56 | University of Stirling | 301 | 891 | 52 |
=49 | =28 | Loughborough University | 646 | 1,905 | 25 |
=49 | =31 | University of Kent | 591 | 1,744 | 30 |
=49 | =45 | City University London | 378 | 1,116 | 43 |
=49 | 62 | University of Bradford | 124 | 365 | 85 |
因為前兩項排名均沒有考慮到參與REF評審的教師的比例,Times Higher Education給出了ResearchIntensity排名,前30名大學包括 :
2014 | Institution |
1 | University of Cambridge |
2 | Imperial College London |
3 | University College London |
4 | University of Bristol |
5 | University of Oxford |
6 | London School of Economics and Political Science |
=7 | Queen's University Belfast |
=7 | University of Southampton |
9 | University of Warwick |
10 | University of Edinburgh |
11 | Loughborough University |
12 | University of Glasgow |
13 | University of St Andrews |
14 | King’s College London |
15 | University of Strathclyde |
=16 | University of Exeter |
=16 | University of Kent |
=16 | University of Reading |
19 | University of Essex |
20 | University of Birmingham |
=21 | Durham University |
=21 | Goldsmiths, University of London |
=23 | Newcastle University |
=23 | University of Manchester |
25 | University of Nottingham |
26 | Lancaster University |
27 | Birkbeck, University of London |
28 | Royal Holloway, University of London |
29 | University of York |
30 | University of Sheffield |