The University of Canberra topped the world rankings for its work to reduce inequalities in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2021 released last night.
Now in its third year, the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings is the only system in the world that ranks universities according to how they measure up to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. The result is an important indicator of the University's impact on local and global communities, as well as its progressive outlook and strong focus on partnerships.
"This is an amazing achievement for UC," said Professor Paddy Nixon, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University. "Education is the key to addressing inequality and as a civic university it is our role to ensure we have a warm, living community that supports all our students and staff and that the research we do impacts the real world."
In the Reduced Inequalities category, the University's research on social inequalities, policies on discrimination, and commitment to recruiting staff and students from under-represented groups, were among the factors that led to it being named the number 1 university in the world.
"We are immensely proud of this result because it is high external recognition that the University of Canberra is achieving our sustainable development goals" said Professor Leigh Sullivan, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research and Innovation.
"Of UC's student population, 38 per cent are First Generation students, and 10 per cent identify as students with disabilities.
"Last year, we reached the milestone of having two per cent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment at the University, well on the way towards our goal of three per cent.
"These are just some quantifiable indicators of UC's diverse community of both students and staff, and that our strong policies supporting equity and diversity are effective."
The University also tied for fifth place in the world for Quality Education, and is placed in the Top 20 for Gender Equality.
"The University is proud that five per cent of our graduates have gained teaching qualifications and serve the community in an educational capacity," said Professor Sullivan. "In addition, the University offers lifelong learning opportunities, outreach and a host of events for our broader communities, as part of our commitment to supporting high quality education."
"These rankings results belong to each and every member of the UC community, whose efforts to support diversity and equity have made such a difference. As we celebrate, we also acknowledge that there still remains much to address in these areas, and we are also looking forward to building on our current work, towards achieving all our sustainable development goals," said Professor Sullivan.
