Universities in Taiwan are ranked amongst the top one percent of research institutions from around the world over a period of five years from January 2003 to December 2007. According to data derived from the Essential Science Indicators(SM) (ESI) database of the Scientific business of Thomson Reuters, at least one Taiwan institution is ranked among the world’s top 100 in five of 22 categories, namely Agricultural Science, Chemistry, Engineering, Materials Science, and Pharmacology & Toxicology.
Engineering and Materials Science were two fields in which more than one Taiwan university was represented within the top 100.
Essential Science Indicators is a bi-monthly compilation of the Web of Science(R), the world’s most authoritative citation database used at more than 3,500 research institutions around the world and in more than 40 countries. Derived from ISI Web of Science and monitored in Essential Science Indicators, this ranking of Taiwan universities allows for variations and changes of university names to be managed in a consistent manner. The ranking is based on each institution’s research output in high-standard international scholarly journals and is considered as evidence of their academic excellence. This approach differs from that used in other university rankings, most of which are consolidated based on multiple aspects of university research and education using both objective and subjective criteria.
The ranking derived from ESI below shows up to five Taiwan universities that appeared in each of the five categories along with their world standing. Ranking of the universities is based on the total number of citations of their published research papers from January 2003 to December 2007.
“The ranking result derived from ESI reflects the citation impact of Taiwan universities which has been growing significantly these past five years,” said Mr. Mark Garlinghouse, Vice President, Asia Pacific for the Scientific business of Thomson Reuters. “Methodological consistency is important to maintain statistical validity, especially for research evaluation. Since 2001, Scientific has been applying consistent methodology in ESI and continuously improving its quality. As the leading global provider of authoritative information to research communities, we are committed to ensuring the integrity of our information in research evaluation and supporting the local research community with value-added resources such as informed and balanced analysis to help them evaluate their academic positioning.”
Ms. Nobuko Miyairi, Senior Information Analyst for the Scientific business of Thomson Reuters, commented, “When interpreting these university rankings, it is important to consider the size of the universities as well as the research focus in their academic pursuit. Universities with a large number of researchers, such as National Taiwan University and National Cheng Kung University, tend to dominate these rankings if ranking is based on the number of papers published or citations received as a total. National Chiao Tung University, National Tsing Hua University and National Central University compete with these two biggest institutions in physical science and applied sciences.”
She added, “A strong focus in certain disciplines will give some universities an advantage in specific fields such as Pharmacology & Toxicology in the case of Taipei Medical University and National Yang Ming University. University administrators and evaluators are encouraged to consider not only domestic rankings but also the world ranking of their institutions, and the time-series change in these rankings to assess their academic progress as part of their strategic decision making process.”
The Scientific business of Thomson Reuters provides information and knowledge to accelerate research, discovery and innovation. Our authoritative, accurate and timely information is essential for drug companies to discover new drugs and get them to market faster; researchers to find relevant papers and know what’s newly published in their subject; and businesses to optimize their intellectual property and find competitive intelligence. We create the research platforms and services of the future that will power our customers toward business and personal success. For more information, visit scientific.thomsonreuters.com.
