What do global rankings try to measure? Global university ranking methodologies since 2003

Abstract

Since 2003 global university rankings have proliferated. There are now seventeen global rankings listed in the IREG Inventory of International Rankings plus specialised offshoots such as subject and regional rankings. International university rankings have generally fallen into three categories: research only, research plus some indicators related to teaching and learning, and mainly or entirely web activity. Recently there has been discussion about moving into the ranking of universities with reference to third missions, such as sustainability, equity, regional links or social contributions. Global rankings have then become more numerous, they include more institutions, they have become more sophisticated as field-normalisation and standardisation have become routine, and the number and accuracy of the metrics have improved. It is, however, noticeable that progress has been greater with respect to those indicators that measure research than those that are related to teaching or the quality of students or graduates.