Only one Queensland uni makes it into top 50 world university rankings
Only one Queensland university holds a spot in the world’s top 50 rankings.
The 2024 World University Rankings, released by QS Quacquarelli Symonds on Wednesday, featured good news for NSW and Victoria as three Australian universities were featured in the world’s top 20 for the first time.
The University of Queensland was the only Queensland institution to make it into the top 50.
The University of Melbourne ranked 14th – a historic high for any Australian university – while the University of Sydney and The University of New South Wales tied for 19th place, achieving their highest rankings to date.
No Queensland universities made it into the top 20, but the University of Queensland (UQ) hopped up seven places from last year, improving its rank from 50th to 43rd in the world.
In its commentary on Australia’s Group of Eight, QS Quacquarelli Symonds, higher education specialists who have ranked the world’s universities for the past 20 years, pointed out UQ “shines in its academic reputation and for its international faculty”.
QS chief executive Jessica Turner said Australia’s higher education system prioritised internationalism.
“In our 2024 rankings, Australia stands among the world’s top 15 countries for the proportion of international students enrolled,” she said.
“Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, Australian institutions are making a remarkable comeback, attracting more students from emerging markets.”
In fact, 14 Australian universities featured among the world’s top 100 for the proportion of international students enrolled, with UQ, Central Queensland University and Bond University among them.
All but two of Queensland’s universities improved their position in the annual global rankings, with the University of the Sunshine Coast remaining steady in the 1001-1200th band, while Bond University fell from 481th to 567th.
However, Bond University, based on the Gold Coast, was Australia’s top performer for its faculty-to-student ratio, coming in at 356th globally.
Queensland University of Technology improved its overall global position from 222nd to 189th, Griffith University moved from 300th to 243rd, the University of Southern Queensland went from 651-700 to 410th, James Cook University moved from 461st to 415th, and Central Queensland University improved from 651-700 to 590th.
Meanwhile, a report from the Queensland Audit Office revealed operating results for the state’s universities decreased by $1.3 billion in 2022-23 because of reduced federal funding, losses on investments due to a decline in market conditions, and continued cost escalations.
All Queensland universities, except the University of the Sunshine Coast, made a loss.
The easing of Australia’s border restrictions in 2022 saw a small increase in revenue from international students, but it remained below pre-pandemic levels.
A decline in domestic student enrolments – leading to domestic student revenue decreasing by 3.9 per cent – proved challenging to Queensland universities, the Audit Office said, with more young people deferring or reducing their studies to enter the workforce and manage cost-of-living pressures, while record low unemployment rates also caused reduced demand.