KINGSTON, Jamaica—The University of the West Indies (UWI) is reporting that since it took the strategic decision to prepare and position the institution for global competitive rankings and engage the Times Higher Education (THE) ranking system, it has seen progress.

According to results for 2022 released by the THE earlier this month, The UWI has moved up 94 places in the statistics. It reports that from the global field of some 30,000 universities and elite research institutes, The UWI now stands in the top 1.5 per cent, up from three per cent in the prior year.

THE‘s annual rankings have become a standard measuring tool in the comparative performances of the best global universities.

In a release, Vice-Chancellor at The UWI, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles dubbed the universities’ performance as “spectacular”. “While we have maintained our number one position in the Caribbean, and top one per cent of the best in Latin America and the Caribbean, the surge to the top 1.5 per cent in the world gives us a considerable degree of professional satisfaction as a management and leadership team,” he said. “The top global tier is where we set out to position our university and we have reached there.”

In the current World University rankings, only 1,668 universities from 99 countries satisfied the eligibility criteria of the THE. This is up from 1,500 across 93 countries last year.

Pro Vice-Chancellor for Strategic Planning, and Principal of the Five Islands Campus, Professor Densil A Williams, who guided the global ranking engagement noted that, “the impressive performance of the university is rooted in the work of Faculties and Research Institutes. Campus principals and their leadership teams along with faculty and staff should also be commended for embracing the vision.”