The world’s number one university in THE’s Impact Rankings 2023 revealed

• The world’s highest ranked university in the world in THE’s Impact Ranking 2023, in the overall category, is Western Sydney University 
• Australian and Canadian universities dominate the top 10 in the overall category taking three and four places respectively
• Australian universities also dominate the upper echelons of the individual Sustainable Development Goals hitting top spot in seven out of the 17 goals
• The UK has the most universities in the overall top 100 with 26, followed by Canada with 16 and Australia has 15
• World’s only university ranking that measures universities’ contributions to the United Nations' (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• Assesses universities’ commitment to sustainability across four broad areas: research, stewardship, outreach and teaching covering all 17 of the SDGs 

Universities’ progress towards tackling the world’s greatest challenges are laid out in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2023.

The ranking, now in its fifth year, is the world’s only one that measures universities’ contributions to the United Nations' (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and assesses their commitment to sustainability across four broad areas: research, stewardship, outreach and teaching. 

A record 1,705 universities from 115 countries/regions are assessed. Progress is measured for each of the individual 17 SDGs, and across the goals as a whole, which sees 18 universities from 10 countries and regions achieve number one positions. 

Australian and Canadian universities dominate the top 10 of the overall category with three institutions from Australia: Western Sydney University taking the overall top spot, the University of Tasmania in fifth and RMIT University is in joint seventh place. There are four universities from Canada: Queen’s University is third, the University of Alberta joint seventh, both the University of Victoria and Western University are joint ninth.

Also in the top 10 is one university from the UK – University of Manchester coming second, one from Malaysia - Universiti Sains Malaysia which is fourth, one from the US – Arizona State University (Tempe) coming sixth and one from Denmark – Aalborg University in joint ninth. 

With the University of Manchester coming second it is the top European institution and with Queen’s University in Canada coming third it makes it the top north American university and Universiti Sains Malaysia in fourth place makes it the highest ranked in Asia. University of Johannesburg, in joint 46th makes it the highest ranked African university. National Autonomous University of Mexico in 32nd position is the highest placed Latin American university. 

Impact Rankings 2023: overall top 10 

UK universities have the most universities in the overall top 100 with 26, followed by Canada with 16, Australia has 15. New Zealand and the US each have seven in the top 100. 

Turkey has the second most universities in the overall ranking with 79 and its highest placed is Istanbul Technical University, which came joint 58th. 

More than 55 per cent of Australian and Canadian universities made the top 100 – the highest success rate of all 115 countries taking part in the rankings. 

Australian universities dominate the top spots in the individual Sustainable Development Goals taking first place in seven of the 17 goals. 

Western Sydney topped three of the 17 individual rankings – SDG 5 – gender equality, SDG 12 – responsible consumption and production and SDG 17 – partnerships for the goals – and is in the top 10 for six others. The university takes fifth spot for SDG 11 – sustainable cities and communities. Taking top spot for that SDG is Simon Fraser University (Canada), which was a focus of the UN’s High-Level Political Forum in July after the organisation highlighted its importance post-Covid. 

Results of the 17 SDGs  

• SDG 1 – No poverty – University of Johannesburg (South Africa) 
  Research on poverty and support for students from poor families  
• SDG 2 – Zero hunger – Queen’s University (Canada) 
  Research on hunger, teaching on food sustainability and commitment to tackling food waste and hunger on campus and locally  
• SDG 3 – Good health and well-being - RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences (Ireland)  Research on key diseases and conditions, support for healthcare professions and health of students and staff
• SDG 4 – Quality education - Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (Ghana) 
  Contributions to early years and lifelong learning and commitment to inclusive education  
• SDG 5 – Western Sydney University (Australia)  
  Research and policies on gender equality and commitment to recruiting and promoting women  
• SDG 6 – Clean water and sanitation – University of Exeter (UK) 
  Research related to water, water usage and commitment to ensuring good water management in wider community  
• SDG 7 – Affordable and clean energy - Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (Malaysia)  
  Energy research, energy use and policies, and commitment to promoting energy efficiency  
• SDG 8 – Decent work and economic growth - IPB University (Indonesia), RMIT University (Australia)Economics research, employment practices and share of students taking work placements
• SDG 9 – Industry, innovation and infrastructure - University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (Germany), University of Stuttgart (Germany), Technical University of Munich (Germany) University of Twente (Netherlands)  
  Research on industry and innovation, number of patents and spin-off companies and research income from industry  
• SDG 10 – Reduced inequalities – RMIT University (Australia)  
  Research on social inequalities, policies on discrimination and commitment to recruiting staff and students from under-represented groups  
• SDG 11 – Sustainable cities and communities - Simon Fraser University (Canada) 
  Research on sustainability, role as custodians of arts and heritage and internal approaches to sustainability  
• SDG 12 – Responsible consumption and production – Western Sydney University (Australia)  
  Research on responsible consumption and approach to the sustainable use of resources  
• SDG 13 – Climate action – University of Tasmania (Australia)  
  Research on climate change, use of energy and preparations for dealing with consequences of climate change  
• SDG 14 – Life below water - Macquarie University (Australia)  
  Research on life below water and education on and support for aquatic ecosystems  
• SDG 15 – Life on land – University of Manchester (UK)  
  Research on life on land and education on and support for land ecosystems  
• SDG 16 – Peace, justice and strong institutions – Universiti Sains Malaysia (Malaysia) Research on peace and justice, participation as advisors for government and policies on academic freedom
• SDG 17 – Partnerships for the goals – Western Sydney University (Australia) 
  The broader ways in which universities support the SDGs through collaboration with other countries, promotion of best practices and publication of data  

Europe is relatively over-represented within SDG 8 – decent work and economic growth, SDG 9 – industry, innovation and infrastructure, SDG 11 – sustainable cities and communities and SDG 16 – peace, justice and strong institutions. The 106 African universities in the rankings are most active within: SDG 1 – no poverty, SDG6 – clean water and sanitation and SDG 10 – reduced inequality. 

The two most popular SDGs (excluding SDG 17) are SDG 4 – quality education – with 1,304 universities, followed by SDG 3 – good health and well-being – with 1,218 universities.  

Canadian universities submitted to the most goals – with an average of 13.2 SDGs out of 17. The global average is nine SDGs per university. 

The nine countries that participated in the rankings for the first time this year are: Brunei, Curaçao, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Panama, Serbia, Syria and Zimbabwe. 

This year is an important milestone in the Sustainable Development Goals, which were adopted in 2015, as it marks just over halfway to the 2030 deadline. 

THE’s Chief Global Affairs Officer, Phil Baty, said: 

“The Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, now in its fifth year, is establishing itself as one of the world’s most important university rankings. 

“It moves away from the traditional and more narrow approach to rankings and looks at far broader issues - examining how universities’ are improving our world.   

“It is inspiring to see even more universities participate and see countries that don’t normally rank so highly do so well.  

“This is an extremely valuable tool for universities, governments, funders and policymakers to understand how universities are supporting the drive to meet the UN’s SDGs and what must be done to improve their performance even further in this massively important area.  

“The rankings are also vital for millions of prospective students who are increasingly demanding to see evidence that the universities they consider for their education are committed to sustainability and to helping them to become sustainably minded citizens.”   

Any university that provides data on SDG 17 – partnerships for the goals – and at least three other SDGs is included in the overall ranking. A university’s total score is calculated by combining its score in SDG 17 with its top three scores out of the remaining SDGs. The score for the overall ranking is an average of the last two years’ total scores. 

THE Impact Rankings differ from its more established World University Rankings in their dynamism – they are growing fast, and this year the organisation has updated some of the questions asked of participants and more comprehensive validation of submissions was introduced. 

• View the full Impact Rankings 2023 results 
• View the full Impact Rankings 2023 methodology  
• Scroll down for overall top 100 
• Hashtags for social media: #THEglobalimpact #THEUniRankings #THEImpact23 

APPENDICES   

1. About the Impact Rankings and methodology

The rankings assess universities on metrics across all 17 UN SDGs. The methodology was developed in conjunction with our partners Vertigo Ventures and Elsevier, and after consultation and input from individual universities, academics and sector groups. The findings are displayed in 18 league tables, one for each of the 17 individual SDGs, and one overall ranking table. To appear in the overall ranking table, universities must have submitted to SDG 17 (partnerships for the goals) and a minimum of three other SDGs. The total score is calculated as follows:  

• SDG 17 – 22% 
• Top scoring SDG – 26% 
• Second best scoring SDG – 26% 
• Third best scoring SDG – 26%

The score for the overall ranking is an average of the last two year’s total scores.  

New for this year: 

• Emphasis on the importance of education for refugee students
• More challenging questions on education for sustainability
• Updated questions in SDGs 3, 4, 11 and 16, and 17 where most universities were able to answer “yes” to the previous versions 

2. Overall top 100 

If any of the tables are reproduced, you must credit: Times Higher Education (THE) and link to the full results here.