Aarhus University continues to gain ground in international rankings, advancing from 81st to 63rd place in the 2009 THE-QS World University Rankings published on 8 October. The Vice-Chancellor of Aarhus University is pleased that Denmark boasts two universities in the international elite: The University of Copenhagen and Aarhus University.

For the third year running, Aarhus University has shown marked progress towards the top of the influential THE-QS university ranking list published by the London-based magazine Times Higher Education .  Aarhus University advanced from number 126 in 2006 to number 114 in 2007 and then to number 81 in 2008, a placement which brought AU considerable recognition in the international academic community. This achievement has now been surpassed by a leap to number 63.

Aarhus University now ranks number 2 in Scandinavia and number 20 in Europe as a whole. At number 51 worldwide, University of Copenhagen is the highest ranking university in Scandinavia. The Universities of Lund and Uppsala rank number 67 and number 75 respectively on THE-QS, which as usual ranks Harvard University number 1, followed by Cambridge, Yale and University College London.

Vice-Chancellor Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen is understandably pleased by AU's progress.

”In the first place, I’m pleased that Denmark has two world-class universities in the international elite, the University of Copenhagen and Aarhus University.  This gives Denmark an extremely strong position on the international market for research and education, which is important for the continuing development of our knowledge society”, says Vice-Chancellor Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen.

The THE-QS rankings employ six different parameters to measure universities’ performance. For example, THE requests over 200,000 researchers worldwide to rank the best research environments within their field of study. Aarhus University received high rankings in this category, which indicates that AU's quality is widely recognised amongst researchers from other institutions.

”Aarhus University’s ranking has improved primarily because our research has achieved greater visibility and recognition in international academic circles.  We certainly don’t allow ranking lists and the criteria they employ to influence us unduly; but whatever your opinion of the rankings, the fact remains that a high placement is one of the factors students and researchers take into account when deciding where to continue an international academic career. We are increasingly sought out by foreign elite universities and researchers with interest in collaborating with us", explains Vice-Chancellor Holm-Nielsen. Holm-Nielsen is Vice-Chancellor of the one of the youngest universities in the top 100 - and one of the universities which has improved its placement most dramatically.

View the entire THE-QS list of the world's 200 best universities

THE-QS ranking criteria
Researchers’ evaluations of the best universities (40%)
Employers’ evaluations of the best universities (10%)
Researcher/student ratio (20%)
Frequency of citation of articles by other researchers (20%)
Proportion of international students enrolled (5%)
Proportion of international researchers on staff (5% )

Further information

Vice-Chancellor Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen, tlf. +45 8942 1141, mobile + 45 2338 2126

Head of Press Affairs Anders Correll, tlf. +45 2899 2235

Since 2005, Aarhus University has advanced from a placement as number 138 to number 63 worldwide.