30 November 2019 – Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB) has improved its position in the newly-published 2020 Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings (QSWUR): Asia at 137. UTB has risen 44 places from its previous position at 181. A total of 557 institutions were listed in the ranking this year.
The QSWUR:Asia highlights the top universities in Asia annually since 2009. The methodology used to create the ranking is similar to that used for QS World University Rankings (QSWUR), but with some additional indicators and adapted weightings.
The QSWUR:Asia assessments are based on the eleven indicators comprising of Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, Faculty-Student Ratio, Staff with PhD, Citations per Paper, Papers per Faculty, International Research Network, International Faculty, International Students, Inbound Exchange Students, and Outbound Exchange Students.
The overall results indicated that UTB performed among the top 25% in the ranking. The indicators show that UTB has made great strides in six criteria namely: Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, Faculty-Student Ratio, Citations per Paper, Inbound Exchange Students and Outbound Exchange Students.
This achievement follows an equally remarkable accomplishment in June this year where UTB was ranked at 379 globally based on the QSWUR 2020. UTB is also the only university in the country rated Five Star by QS.
These encouraging developments will provide further impetus for the University to strive towards accomplishing its vision to become ‘A Global University Impacting Society’. With UTB’s noteworthy performance in the latest Asian edition of the QS World University Rankings, UTB is on track in positioning itself as a university of international caliber and attract talented students and scholars from the country and internationally.
In its five-year Strategic Plan 2019-2023, UTB is putting its focus on four strategic areas: Quality Education, Independent Learners, Translational Research and Quadruple Helix Engagement. Successful implementation of initiatives under these focus areas within the five-year period will see the University improving its global prominence while making a strong impact and contribution to the country’s human resource and industrial capabilities.
UTB has continuously ensured that its academic programmes are of a high standard and at the same time, relevant to the needs of employers and industry. One of the important efforts is to ensure that its academic programmes are accredited by the respective professional bodies. Professional accreditation is an indicator that the programmes meet the high standards set by the professions and also able to equip graduates with the right aptitude and solid foundation for the discipline. As of 2018, UTB has acquired professional accreditation for its Civil Engineering, Computing and Accounting programmes.
The recent ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System Certification received by the University is also a strategic effort to ensure its management system is robust enough and capable to support the University in delivering its mission, especially in the provision of quality teaching, learning and research.
In the research, efforts are under way to boost research activities, particularly in collaboration with international partners. As a member of the ASEAN ICT Virtual Organisation (ASEAN IVO), a consortium of research institutions in ASEAN and Japan, UTB is actively collaborating with its partner universities in a number of funded applied research projects in the areas of Disaster Management, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain and Internet of Things.
UTB has around 1,400 students undertaking Undergraduate Degree, Masters and PhD programmes. UTB currently offers 25 Undergraduate Degrees including part-time degrees and 10 Master’s Degrees and PhD programmes. To date, UTB has produced over 5,141 BDTVEC Higher National Diploma; 295 Higher National Diploma Level Five; 1,784 undergraduates and 199 Master’s degree graduates from various programmes offered by the Faculty of Engineering, School of Computing and Informatics, and UTB School of Business.
