London, Mar 5 (ANI): Educational institutions in the United Kingdom have gone down in ratings as compared to institutions in other parts of the world, although Cambridge and Oxford are still among the most prestigious universities in the world, according to latest university rankings. The latest Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings, which have placed Oxford and Cambridge in the third and the fourth places respectively, have shown that UK has only nine universities in the top 100 rankings as compared to 12 two years ago, the Daily Star reports. The rankings, which assess the power of university brands on the opinions of senior academics, show that UK had lost Leeds University, Sheffield University and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, from the top 100 in the last two years. Only the United States had more institutions into top 100 this year – 43 in total – with Harvard taking first place in the rankings, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in second, the report added. However, dismissing the claims of such rankings, Dr Wendy Piatt, director general of the Russell Group, which represents 24 leading universities, said that the global reputation of UK remains strong, with seven universities ranked in the top 50 worldwide, and overall it comes second only to the United States. Stating that students should look beyond such rankings if they want to pursue a degree course in UK, Platt said that if UK is to remain a global leader in higher education, with world-class institutions, then the government must concentrate on investing in areas where it will have the most impact. (ANI)
