The University’s position in the influential university guide represents a rise of 12 places year-on-year. The move means that Newcastle University is ranked in the top 20 in the UK.

Published today (8 June), QS analysed 2,462 international institutions across six indicators: Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, Citations per Faculty, Faculty/Student Ratio, International Faculty Ratio, and International Student Ratio.

Newcastle University continues to score highly for Employer Reputation. It ranks 65th globally, based on survey responses from more than 99,000 employers about the relationship between institution and graduate employability.

The area that has seen the University’s highest climb is Citations per Faculty, reflecting the quality and impact of Newcastle University’s research.

A new category introduced by the QS this year, which is expected to become a weighted measure from next year’s edition of the rankings, is the International Research Network (IRN) Index. It is calculated from the number of international locations where universities have long-standing research collaborations. At 39th globally, the International Research Network is the strongest indicator for Newcastle University. 

Professor Chris Day, Vice-Chancellor and President at Newcastle University, said: “Our highest ever position and strong performance are testament to the quality and impact of our teaching and research. I am proud and grateful for the hard work and dedication of all University colleagues.

“Our strong employer engagement score is a credit to the brilliant work done by everyone at the University in helping our students build relevant employability skills. This is not just about students gaining an excellent degree, it demonstrates that they learn the 'soft' skills they will need to succeed in the world of work.

“It is pleasing to see we’ve scored highly for Citations by Faculty, which reflects the outstanding research across the full range of disciplines.”

The latest rankings complement the University’s performance in other international league tables, including the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, which ranked Newcastle first in the UK and eighth the world for its impact on society and leadership in sustainable development.

REF2021 confirmed growth in research excellence and impact at Newcastle. Published in May 2022, the national assessment of research performance reported world-leading research with outstanding impact for society and the economy across all disciplines at Newcastle University.