Australian universities have figured prominently in a new ranking of the world’s most international universities.

The latest Times Higher Education list measures each institution’s influence in global research and teaching.

The Australian National University (ANU) cracked the top ten on the list, which takes into account the number of international students and academics, as well as the university’s international reputation and research collaborations.

The Canberra university placed seventh, between the UK’s prestigious Oxford and Cambridge universities.

The University of New South Wales and the University of Melbourne also ranked well, 14th and 18th respectively.

While Monash University in Melbourne came 21st and the University of Sydney placed 23rd. The top spot went to the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland.

‘Terrific news’ for Australian universities

The CEO of Universities Australia, Belinda Robinson, said the results were “a really terrific piece of news”.

“Australian universities have a really great track record in international education … and we are actually the envy of the world as a destination,” she said.
Ms Robinson said the best students and researchers around the world would use the ranking to decide where they want to study, though urged caution in their interpretation.

“The emphasis is very much so on the research intensity,” Ms Robinson said.

“So institutions that are very research intensive will tend to do better in international rankings than those who might … put more of their emphasis on teaching and learning.”

ANU tops the country

The ANU’s Vice Chancellor Professor Brian Schmidt said it was the fourth year in a row they had been the highest-ranked international university in Australia.

The University of Melbourne was one of five Australian universities to rank in the top 25 international universities.

“ANU is doing its part to bring Canberra to the world and the world to Canberra,” he said.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington said it was recognition the ANU was living up to its ambitions.

“Part of the ANU founding mission was to understand the world. Particularly the countries of Asia and the Pacific,” she said.

“We’re helped by having our campus in the heart of the nation’s capital, which also has a strong international outlook.

“[With] links to national institutions, government departments and foreign embassies and high commissions.”

The world’s most international universities:

1. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich
2. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne
3. University of Hong Kong
4. National University of Singapore
5. Imperial College London
6. University of Oxford
7. Australian National University
8. University of Cambridge
9. University College London
10. London School of Economics and Political Science