From the Vice-Chancellor

It seems barely a week goes by without the University of Adelaide featuring in some sort of university ranking, be it a national or international ranking. Whether we like it or not, rankings are becoming increasingly popular as devices for trying to measure a university's value and contribution to our society - and they are here to stay.

More often than not, the University of Adelaide does quite well in these rankings and consistently punches above its weight. Occasionally we rank lower than we had anticipated, such as in the recent Graduate Careers Australia survey of Australian universities' learning and teaching performance - but for every ranking of this kind, we can point to two or three other rankings which portray the University of Adelaide in a far more positive manner. For example, in November last year The Times Higher Education Supplement ranked us as the 56th best university in the world, ahead of such renowned universities as Brown in the US, King's College in London and St Andrews in Scotland.

Rankings will never be the definitive method of establishing a university's impact on society. They do, however, provide a snapshot of how a university is performing in particular areas over a given period of time and it is for this reason we welcome them, as they highlight and reinforce where we are performing well and where we need to improve.

At the same time, irrespective of any given ranking, good or bad, our fundamental commitments are to improving the overall student experience at the University of Adelaide and ensuring the best outcomes for our graduates. Had we topped the recent teaching rankings, these commitments would not change. They underpin all that we do and while I like to think that we do it very well, we can always improve.

Our teaching ranking was based on perceptions of students who were studying at the University between 1999 and 2002. It is no secret that this period was a particularly difficult time for the University, and I am pleased to say that we have moved forward quite considerably since then.

It is important to consider some other relevant data, which this ranking either gave little weighting to, or ignored altogether. The University of Adelaide remains the university of choice in South Australia for people wishing to undertake tertiary studies, particularly when measured by first-preference applications. Our graduates are more sought after, and earn higher starting salaries than their counterparts from other South Australian universities. If they were not receiving a quality education, which equipped them with the skills and knowledge needed for a successful career, then this would not be the case. Our student-staff ratio continues to rank among the lowest in the nation, and since 2002, we have increased our investment in improving facilities, infrastructure and resources for our students and staff.

We have already done a lot, and there is more we must continue to do - but I firmly believe we are heading in the right direction. Evidence for this is starting to come readily to hand. A much more recent ranking by the Graduate Management Association of Australia gave our MBA (Advanced) five stars - up from two stars in the previous survey - and our MBA four stars. We were also strongly endorsed by the 2006 Good Universities Guide.

All rankings enable us to identify, and react to, challenges and opportunities in particular areas. Underlying this is our commitment to delivering the best outcomes for our students, and this commitment ensures that we do not shy away from constructive criticism; in fact, we welcome it.

PROFESSOR JAMES A. McWHA
Vice-Chancellor