
UP in International Rankings
Palacký University Olomouc (UP) has repeatedly scored in prestigious international rankings comparing global universities in recent years. Such rankings evaluate the scientific performance of universities, based on Scopus and the Web of Science databases. Most of the rankings take into account the quality of teaching, internationalisation of the university, co-operation with industry and non-academic sphere, etc. Reputation of science, reseach and teaching of the university is significant for rankings too.
One of the most renowned global rankings of universities, The Times Higher Education (THE) World University Ranking, evaluating universities in several areas (quality of teaching, science and research, citation, international university environment and cooperation with industry), the university entered for the first time in 2015. At that time, it ranked among the 800 most respected universities in 70 countries. In the most recent ranking for 2023, more than 2,300 universities from 104 countries are already included in the ranking and Palacký University is ranked 1001st–1200th among them.
In 2016 Palacký University has been included in the prestigeous international QS World University Rankings. The Rankings list more than 1300 universities. Palacký University is ranked fifth among them for 2023, taking the 651st-700th position in the global ranking.
The QS EECA sub-rankings focusing on Eastern Europe and Central Asia included 450 institutions from 30 countries for 2022. Palacký University was ranked 36th, improving by 1 place compared to the previous year and reaching an all-time high. As in the previous year, Olomouc University was the best in the Czech Republic in the Citations per Paper indicators (13th overall in the ranking) and International Faculty (30th overall in the ranking).
In 2017, Palacký University placed on the prestigious Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU, or Shanghai Ranking) for the first time, occupied 601st to 700th position, and is featured in all the so-called "Great Three" rankings - together with Shanghai rankings are THE World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings. In the latest edition for the year 2022, Palacký University Olomouc is ranked 701st - 800th, which means the 3rd position in the Czech Republic after Charles University and Masaryk University.
In the context of ARWU, Palacký University has also scored other partial first places in recent years. The Faculty of Physical Culture of Palacký University has held the position of the Czech number one in the Global Ranking of Sport Science Schools and Departments since the very beginning in 2016. In the latest edition for 2022, FTK was ranked 151st-200th in this global ranking of sport science universities.
The placement of Palacký University among the world’s top universities was confirmed by the journal U.S. News & World Report, featuring the world-renowned U. S. News and World Report Best Global Universities Rankings. In the 2015 edition of the rankings, UP has stepped up to the 473th position among the 800 most respected universities, jumping fifteen positions compared to last year. There are 2,000 universities in the most recent rankings released in 2022, 250 more than last year. Out of the 2,165 institutions from more than 90 countries, Palacký University was ranked 611th, and 253rd in the European ranking. Within the Czech Republic, Palacký University is ranked 3rd, behind the second Masaryk University and the first Charles University.
The U-Multirank presents a slightly different concept of ranking of areas related to educational and teaching activities, research, knowledge transfer, the level of internationalization and regional engagement. Although at first glance it does not differ significantly from the above-mentioned charts, it is unique in its approach. U-Multirank does not evaluate the overall score but allows the user to choose an important criterion for him to compare the university with a competitive university environment.
Other rankings
Also of interest is Cross Ranking, which is published under the Education Policy Centre of Charles University's Faculty of Education and links the assessment of the three rankings mentioned above to the so-called The Big Three (THE, QS, Shanghai). In the latest edition, in 2019, Palacký University improved 62 places when it took 555th position. Overall, 17 domestic universities scored in this ranking.
In the ranking of the world’s best universities provided by The Center for World University Rankings (CWUR), In the 2023 ranking Palacký University was ranked 591st and is still in the TOP 600 in the world and TOP 3 in the Czech Republic. The one thousand best ranked universities represent a mere 3 percent of all the universities in the world.
Thanks to the high number of excellent scientific publications and strong cooperation with foreign researchers, UP has also succeeded in the international CWTS Leiden Ranking 2022. Based on the indicator of scientific impact of publications, Palacký University is ranked 145th in Europe and 355th in the world among the one percent of the most cited publications, and in the field of international cooperation it is even 120th in Europe. In both of these share indicators we can see it at the forefront of Czech universities. in Europe. In both of these share indicators we can see it at the forefront of Czech universities.
Rankings on sustainability and SDGs
As sustainability, social responsibility and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have become embedded in university strategies and plans, rankings have begun evaluating universities in these areas. The following three global university sustainability rankings are currently the most important and worth mentioning:
The first sustainability ranking that Palacký University Olomouc took part in was the 2019 Times Higher Education Impact Ranking, the first ever edition of this ranking. UP was listed in this ranking from the very beginning, placing 101st–200th out of 467 institutions evaluated. In the most recent 2022 edition, more than three times as many universities are included in the ranking (1406). Despite their growing number, UP managed to improve its position from 2021, advancing from 501st–600th to 201st–300th places. This means a shared Czech number one position together with Charles University in Prague.
Since 2021, UP has been part of the Green Metrics ranking, run by the University of Indonesia. Since 2010, it has been evaluating the extent to which universities develop their infrastructure and education with respect to the environment and sustainability principles. Palacký University was listed in the ranking for the first time in 2021, when it ranked 642nd out of 956 universities from 80 countries. In 2022, UP moved up 100 places to rank 546th out of 1,050 universities worldwide.
The most recent sustainability ranking in which the Olomouc’s university has been listed is the QS World University Rankings: Sustainability. This ranking focuses on the social and environmental sustainability performance of higher education institutions and is published by Quacquarelli Symonds since 2022. In total, 700 universities were ranked in the first edition, four of which were from the Czech Republic. Palacký University ranked 451st–500th.
2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) | 501-600 | 501-600 | 701-800 | 701-800 | |
U. S. News Best Global Universities Rankings | 519 | 529 | 568 | 611 | |
THE World University Rankings | 601–800 | 601-800 | 801–1000 | 1001–1200 | |
QS World University Rankings | 601–650 | 591–600 | 601–650 | 651–700 | |
The Center of World University Rankings (CWUR) | 572 | 573 | 572 | 566 | 591 |
QS Emerging Europe and Central Asia Ranking | 44 | 37 | 36 |
The results of international rankings are given according to the year of the ranking.