Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) saw a significant rise and improvement in the impact and quality of research citations, moving up 35 positions in the research category for the latest The Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, according to the university.
“Progress was also observed in the number of publications per staff, doctorates awarded and industry income,” the university said.
In the region, UBD stands at 38th out of universities in Asia and fifth in ASEAN for Research Citations.
According to the latest announcement from THE, International Outlook is UBD’s strongest indicator as it is ranked 18th in this category, said UBD. The university added that since it first broke into the QS World University Rankings in 2018, it has moved up a total of 93 places.
It said UBD is in the top 18 percentile of universities in the whole world this year. “Despite a slight decline in the overall ranking, this achievement remains a laudable feat for a young university especially when there is a nine per cent increase in the number of new universities participating in the ranking exercise,” it said.
In the QS indicators, UBD performed well as compared to a majority of the universities worldwide, particularly in International Faculty, Faculty Student Ratio, and International Students Ratio where it scored well over the global median. In International Faculty particularly, UBD maintained a perfect score.
The university’s performance in these indicators demonstrates its sustained efforts to ensure that UBD provides world-class teaching and research, fitting for a university of research excellence.
“While it actively participates in ranking exercises, UBD is not consumed by the rankings. Instead, both THE and QS provide a guidepost on how the university can further develop its capabilities and capacity as an institution of higher learning. UBD continues to focus on high quality education, peaks of excellence in teaching as well as research with both economic and social impact.
UBD’s commitment to providing quality education to its students can be seen in the way it stays up-to-date with the latest digital developments and technologies as part of its strategic plan for 2025.
The latest addition of the School of Digital Science (SDS) in UBD enables the university to fully incorporate the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0) into its curriculum.
“With students and academics conducting studies in areas such as big data, data analytics, robotics, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, UBD aims to produce graduates and researchers who can contribute to technological innovations and technology-based economic development,” said the university. “To facilitate the effective delivery of the new programmes, UBD set up new laboratories, acquired equipment and recruited new faculty members with expertise in relevant areas,” it said, adding that the teaching and research activities in digital science are supported with facilities such as high-performance computers, augmented reality (AR)/ virtual reality (VR) training kits, robotic systems, high specs vision systems, sensors and actuators, and smart prototyping equipment such as 3D printers and laser cutters.
UBD said it received its first batch of 17 Digital Science undergraduates in 2020, with another 32 students the year after, adding that the upcoming intake of students is expected to double that, demonstrating both increased interest and demand in this area.
