World University Ranking:
New Ranking Confirms Pole Position in Agricultural Science [04.04.17]
University of Hohenheim agricultural research is #1 in Germany and one of the best worldwide. For the first time, CWUR ranking by subject names top universities for individual subjects.
The University of Hohenheim and the TU München are the only universities in Germany with top ten spots in agricultural science according to the new subject ranking by the Center of World University Rankings (CWUR). Across Germany, only 17 universities achieved ranks in the top ten. They primarily shine in medicine, physics, mathematics, and engineering. For its new subject ranking, the CWUR evaluated the scientific publications of 26,000 universities worldwide in 227 subjects. You can find details of the CWUR ranking by subject at cwur.org/2017/subjects.php
The University of Hohenheim was the only university in Germany to achieve two top ten rankings in the area of agricultural sciences: Both in plant production and horticulture, the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR) placed the university as spot 7 worldwide. This means that all current rankings of agricultural research place the University of Hohenheim as no. 1 in Germany and among the top in the world.
The second spot for agricultural sciences in Germany is taken by the TU München together with its worldwide no. 10 placement in “multidisciplinary agriculture.”
With its first subject ranking, the CWUR lists each of the top 10 universities worldwide for a total of 227 subjects. To do so, it assessed the number of scientific publications from 26,000 universities across the globe in high-level journals.
The database was provided by the company Clarivate Analytics (previously Thomson Reuters). The CWUR subject rankings were published last Monday afternoon.
Expertise in Bioeconomy, Climate Research, and Fighting Droughts
Especially plant cultivation covers a very broad field with its top placement. Very different areas such as plant breeding and seed science, plant nutrition, soil management, agricultural climatology, and water management are included in it.
“Excellence in these areas covers several concentrations and is thus important for the entire university,” emphasizes University of Hohenheim President Prof. Dr. Stephan Dabbert. This applies particularly for the concentrations
- Bioeconomy: The goal of bioeconomy is to find new products and production processes using plants, animals, and microorganisms. Researchers from all faculties of the University of Hohenheim are looking into this vision: agricultural, natural, business, economic, and social scientists.
- Regional climate change: For the regional climate, feedback processes among plants, soil, and the atmosphere play a greatly underestimated role. In one research group, agricultural scientists, meteorologists, and social scientists are working together on new computer simulations with previously unheard of precision.
- Agricultural Droughts in the Digital Era: With a view to the increasing threat from droughts, the University of Hohenheim is also looking into countermeasures. To mitigate the consequences of drought, for the first time they are also using Big Data methods.
According to all rankings: Germany’s number 1 in agricultural research
Currently, all international rankings put the University of Hohenheim’s agricultural sciences and food sciences as no. 1 in Germany.
National Taiwan University Ranking (NTU-Ranking, Oct. 2016)
University of Hohenheim placement for the areas of agricultural science and food science:
- #1 in Germany
- #5 in Europe
- #16 in the world
Best Global Universities Ranking (Jan. 2017)
University of Hohenheim placement for the subjects of agricultural science and food science
- #1 in Germany
- #3 in Europe
- #9 in the world
QS-Ranking (March 2017)
University of Hohenheim placement for the subject of agricultural science
- #1 in Germany
- #8 in Europe
- #31 in the world
Among students, the University of Hohenheim’s agricultural sciences have the highest recommendation rate in the nation: According to the ranking of agricultural universities by the journal TopAgrar, 88% of Hohenheim graduates would recommend their alma mater.
BACKGROUND: CWUR subject ranking and German universities
In all, 17 universities in Germany were able to reach one or more of the top ten placements in the first subject ranking by the Center for World University Rankings. They were able to achieve the most success in the natural science subjects of medicine, physics, mathematics, and engineering.
Overview of the successes of German universities:
- 5 top ten placements:
Humboldt Universität Berlin (4 x medicine, 1 x physics) - 4 top ten placements:
FU Berlin (medicine) and the TU München (agriculture, mathematics, computer science, physics)
- 2 top ten placements:
Universities of Bremen (geosciences), Bonn (medicine), Hohenheim (agriculture), Heidelberg (medicine), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT (geosciences, physics)
- 1 top ten placement:
Universities of Bayreuth (minerology), TU Darmstadt (logic), TU Dresden (microscopy), Freiburg (medicine), Göttingen (soil science), Jena (optics), LMU München (medicine), Münster (medicine), the Veterinary University of Hannover (veterinary medicine), and the RWTH Aachen (engineering)
Text: Klebs
