QS-Chosun Ilbo Rankings Shows YU’s Jump of 15 Places for Last 3 Years
Big Jump Shown in Research Quality Indicated by Academic Reputation, Paper Per Faculty, Citations Per Paper
Noticeable at Internationalization Index by International Faculty, International Students
Natural Science Area Enters Top 100 in Asia, Balanced Rising in Every Science Area
[2015-6-11]
Yeungnam University (President NOH, Seok-Kyun) in 2015 Asian University Rankings noticeably moved up 12 notches in ranking than the previous year.
According to the 2015 QS-Chosun Ilbo Asian University Rankings announced at 10th June, Yeungnam University(hereinafter called ‘YU’) moved up steeply and ranked 135th in Asia in terms of overall indices, while almost all universities in Korea largely showed low-toned performance.
YU has been steadily in uptrend for the last 3 years. It was reported YU moved up 15 notches for three years since 2013. Especially this year, the index of ‘academic reputation’ pushed up YU into 118th place (16th in Korea) in Asia, 23 steps up from the last year. There is also a rise in ranking of the ‘research quality’, which is scored by paper per faculty and citations per paper. In terms of the evaluation in academic area, YU’s natural science area particularly moved up into 90th in Asia, which indicates an outstanding research quality. Besides the high-class positioning (12th) in ranking of natural science quality among universities in Korea, YU are also in the upper ranks in research quality of other academic areas such as engineering & technology (12th), bioscience & medicine(16th), human science & arts(23th).
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Such high performance comes from a strict criteria of faculty employment and promotion under the catch phrase of “To be the Best Professors’ University“ and at the same time from the special attention on research support system for best faculty. Since the time the president NOH took his office in 2013, YU has provided an exceptional support on the research through the ‘Research Equipment Support Project.’ This Project is the only one case being carried out by YU among universities in Korea, which selects best 25 professors out of top 30% professors in research performance every year and supports them with a total of 4 million dollars of research fund for four years. The selected professors are obliged to publish one or more papers on the top 30% SCI journals in their professional fields within one and half year after finishing the research projects. Otherwise, the professors are not allowed to apply for school-funding projects any more and have no right to have the beneficiary research years. In addition, YU has invited and funded foreign young scientists through post-doctoral program and foreign research faculty program since 2008 and 2010, respectively, in order to encourage an international cooperative research for future synergy effect. As a policy system for strengthening the research ability, YU plans to appoint an outstandingly excellent faculty in research performance as a chair professor, and specially promote an excellent faculty in such performance to a higher position.
According to the President NOH, “A long-term ceaseless support of research fund, equipment and human resource is more important for cultivating excellent research ability than a short-term investment, and such system is necessary for the support. We will spare no cost and no support as it is for more and better world-class performance.”
A highly remarkable rise is shown also in Internalization Index. The number of foreign professor ranked 66th in Asia (13th in Korea), and the out-bound exchange students ranked 36th in Asia (15th in Korea), which are maximum 10 notches up from the last year. This is due to a daring investment by employing doubled number of foreign faculty than the last year and providing YU students with overseas learning opportunities of international internship and student exchange program. As of June in 2015, YU is now vividly engaged in international exchange activities by making sisterhood relationships with 301 universities and institutions in 40 foreign countries.
