A repeated theme of mainstream media reporting on university rankings (nearly always QS or THE) is that Brexit has inflicted, is inflicting, or is surely going to inflict great damage on British education and the universities because they will not get any research grants from the European Union or be able to network with their continental peers.
The latest of these dire warnings can be found in a recent edition of the Guardian, which is the voice of the British progressive establishment. Marja Makarow claims that Swiss science was forced "into exile" after the 2014 referendum on immigration controls. Following this, Switzerland supposedly entered a period of isolation without access to Horizon 2020 or grants from the European Research Council and with a declining reputation and a loss of international collaboration and networks. This will happen to British research and universities if Brexit is allowed to happen.
But has Swiss research suffered? A quick tour of some relevant rankings suggests that it has not. The European Research Ranking which measures research funding and networking in Europe has two Swiss universities in the top ten. The Universitas 21 systems rankings put Switzerland in third place for output, up from sixth in 2013, and first for connectivity.
The Leiden Ranking shows that EPF Lausanne and ETH Zurich have fallen for total publications between 2011-14 and 2014-17 but both have risen for publications in the top 10% of journals, a measure of research quality.
The Round University Rankings show that EPF and ETH have both improved for research since 2013 and both have improved their world research reputation.
So it looks as though Switzerland has not really suffered very much, if at all. Perhaps Brexit, if it ever happens, will turn out to be something less than the cataclysm that is feared, or hoped for.
1 comment:
Our firm has established itself as the most trustworthy assignment help firm in Australia and globally. Join these thousands of students and achieve high distinction in each and every one of your college tasks. Anyone can attempt writing on your behalf, however, the question is would you pay someone to do it for you without checking their credibility? This is the main reason why most students search for assignment help australia over the internet and choose only the most proficient and trusted academic writing experts. So, if you are searching for quality usa assignment help you can find it right here from the local experts.
Post a Comment