From nowhere to number 26: Taking part for the very first time in the rankings published by the British science magazine “Times Higher Education” (THE), the University of Bremen came in at place 26 among the world’s “100 Under 50” young universities, confirming its position as one of the world’s best under-fifty-year-old universities. “Such an outstanding result is further proof of the University of Bremen’s status of excellence in the international arena“, commented Rector Bernd Scholz-Reiter proudly. “This remarkable success is due to the hard work on the part of all the University’s scholars and scientists. Our performance in the THE rankings is due recognition for what has been achieved and spurs us on to even greater efforts in future.”

THE rankings in the category “100 Under 50” of the world’s young universities are based on the scope, productivity and reputation of university research (30 %), aspects of teaching like student/instructor ratios (30 %), the number of citations in external publications (30 %), the degree of internationalization (7.5 %), as well as cooperation with private and public enterprises (2.5 %). By this measure the University of Bremen finds itself in company with Ulm and Konstanz among the best young German universities. The universities of Bochum, Bielefeld, Duisburg-Essen and Bayreuth also made it into the top 100.

Although such university rankings sometimes come in for criticism for perceived weaknesses in their methodology, the THE “100 Under 50” rankings are generally seen to be comparatively accurate. In the traditional “Times Higher World University Ranking“ – where Bremen is placed among the top 251 to 275 universities – the century-old scientific reputation of some universities plays a much greater role. As the University of Bremen’s Vice Rector for Research and Young Academics, Professor Kurosch Rezwan, points out: “It is therefore only fair that Times Higher Education has introduced a ranking for universities that are not more than 50 years old”. At the end of April Professor Rezwan attended “The Young Universities Summit” in Dublin, Ireland, where the new THE “100 Under 50” were announced. To coincide with the occasion, there was a meeting of YERUN – the Young European Research Universities Network. The University of Bremen is a founding member of this network of young European research universities. “The impression I got from the meeting makes me very optimistic. The University of Bremen is making its mark on the international scene and has a good international reputation. We must along our successful Bremen path”, says Kurosch Rezwan.

For more information on this topic, please contact:
University of Bremen
Research and Young Academics
Dr. Achim Wiesner
Phone: +49 421 218-60320
e-mail: achim.wiesnerprotect me ?!uni-bremenprotect me ?!.de