UvA nabs spot as top Dutch university; 50th worldwide

The University of Amsterdam (UvA) has taken first place over Leiden University and Utrecht University as the top university in the Netherlands, breaking into the top 50 in the world in this year's QS World University Rankings. The Rankings rely upon six performance indicators to assess and compare top universities, giving UvA high marks in life sciences & medicine, social sciences & management, and arts & humanities. In the rankings, the UvA is up eight spots from 2013 landing squarely at 50th in the world. The QS made specific mention of the UvA’s strong internationalization program, bachelors programs, and over 100 masters study programs taught in english. QS also pointed to the UvAs multi-national environment boasting students, staff and researchers from over 80 countries. “The UvA offers an inspiring, broadly oriented international academic environment where staff and students can develop their capacities to the fullest,” the report said. “The UvA is characterised by a critical, creative and international atmosphere, open-minded and strongly engaged with society.” Six criteria were used to determine the rankings, including academic reputation, reputation with employers, the number of academic citations, the staff-student ratio, the proportion of international staff, and the proportion of international students. Across the Netherlands, the University of Leiden was ranked 76th, followed by the University of Utrecht placing 80th, and TU Delft, University of Groningen and the Erasmus University of Rotterdam placing with a 86th and shared 90th respectively. "It is beautiful that a large number of Dutch universities are in the top 100, and Amsterdam is even in the top 50, proving that our universities are of incredible quality, both in research and in education," a spokesperson from the UvA told broadcaster RTV-NH. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has again been awarded the best university in the world, followed by Cambridge (Great Britain) and Imperial College London.

QS World University Rankings: Top Universities in the Netherlands