From the Vice-Chancellor

What determines the prestige of a university? That's the question I find myself asking whenever a new ranking or survey is announced listing the best universities in the world.

I don't have a problem with rankings - you've really got to take them for what they are. Some, like the Chinese-based rankings, look mainly at research outcomes, while others, like the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) ranking, equate more to a "brand recognition" survey.

Luckily for the University of Adelaide, we fare pretty well in most lists that compare the quality of universities. Take the most recent ranking by the THES, for example. To be on this list alone - the world's top 200 universities, according to the THES - is a fairly prestigious event in itself. But what does it really mean to be in the top 200?

In its simplest terms, it means being recognised as one of the top 1% of universities in the world.

That's an impressive achievement, even if you disagree with certain aspects of how the ranking is determined.

As the only South Australian university in this year's THES ranking, Adelaide is flying the flag for this State. But let's put that into context - Adelaide is not a large university by world, or even Australian, standards. Therefore, to have been recognised among the top 1% of the world is a great result for the University.

But how does a university achieve greatness? Is it by appearing on a world ranking? Personally, I think it's much more complicated - and rewarding - than that.

If you look back over the rich history of our University, of the many great names among our alumni, the Nobel Prize winners and the (now) 100 Rhodes Scholars, you see a pattern developing over the years that leads to a university being considered great.

The more recent examples of this we can see today in the outstanding results for our University in research funding (more than $48 million in this year's ARC and NHMRC grant announcements) and in the brilliant academics we have here, considered among the best in Australia.

Our graduates are of a consistently high calibre, and we have the highest number of graduates in the nation who go onto further study. That is a significant boost to the qualifications, skills and knowledge of our graduates.

What makes any university great is more than just a ranking, and that is certainly true for the University of Adelaide. What makes us great are the people who study and work here, and the exceptional results we produce every day.

PROFESSOR JAMES A. McWHA
Vice-Chancellor and President