The University of Nairobi (UoN) has regained its position as Kenya’s Best University after a new global ranking placed it ahead of all other local institutions.
The ranking, released by the Centre for World University Rankings (CWUR), placed UoN at position 1,425 out of more than 21,000 universities assessed worldwide, putting the institution among the top seven per cent of universities globally.
The results bring back the country’s oldest university after having been dethroned by Kenyatta University from the number one spot locally in the previous year.
To most students, lecturers and alumnus of the institution, this ranking will definitely be seen as an affirmation of the university’s excellence and scholarly activities amidst increasing competition among universities.
UoN is ranked 37 in Africa putting it among the leading universities on the continent.
Commenting on the success, the institution attributed its achievements to its continued investments in education, research and innovation.
“University of Nairobi is now ranked in the top 7 per cent of universities around the world,” the institution said in its statement.
Additionally, UoN emphasized its prowess in research and graduate employability noting that its graduates remain highly sought even outside the country’s borders.
UoN’s success is happening against the backdrop of universities across Kenya lobbying for research funding and collaborations internationally with efforts geared towards improving quality of learning at their institutions.
In Africa, South African universities took the lead in the CWUR ratings with University of Witwatersrand coming first. The other two top rated universities in the country include the University of Cape Town and Stellenbosch University.
Harvard University retained its ranking as the world’s number one university in the global scale above MIT and Stanford University.
University rankings by CWUR are based on criteria such as quality of education offered, performance of research carried out, faculty success, and graduate employment among others. According to the organization, their rankings are data-based rather than survey-based responses submitted by the universities.
The latest ranking is yet another accolade for UoN which is well known in the country as one of the premier centers of higher education.
