I recently came across the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) by Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China. Thanks to a friend’s share of the latest rankings. Although this ranking is not as well-known as THE or QS, which are conducted by Western institutions, it is interesting to see an Asian university running this ranking. After reviewing their methodology, it is clear that they employ extensive Big Data procedures.
I completely agree that we should not chase after rankings. Instead, let the rankings chase after us.
I visited the ARWU website to explore the rankings, and while we are not driven by these numbers, rankings can be useful indicators of whether our ecosystem is on the right track. I specifically looked at the rankings by subject and was pleased to see that UTM’s education subject is ranked number #1 in Malaysia for 2023. This is particularly notable since we haven’t appeared on this list since it was first introduced in 2017.
As I mentioned, our work is not driven by rankings but by our commitment to serve humanity in the name of God. Nonetheless, this ranking is a testament to the fact that our education subject (in the context of this post) is on the right track. We strive to do our best sincerely, and leave the rest to God.
On a related note, enrolment is now open for Cohort 4 of the Master of Education (Mathematics) Open and Distance Learning (ODL) program for the next semester. If you are interested, please send me a message at p-halim@utm.my, and I will get back to you as soon as possible.
