The Australian Financial Review (AFR) has published its inaugural 'Best Universities Ranking', with Deakin University named one of the country's top universities.
Deakin was ranked equal seventh across all Australian institutions.
According to the AFR: "the ranking, which takes in dozens of publicly available data sources, provides a more nuanced picture of the higher education landscape than traditional rankings.
"The ranking is the first in Australia that recognises traditional notions of excellence, such as research and reputation, alongside important measures of student satisfaction and equity.
"The aim is to provide a balanced scorecard that recognises that some universities start from a different position than others and run a very different race which is just as worthy and important as that of some of our oldest and wealthiest universities."
It calculates a university's rank based on five categories: student satisfaction, research performance, global reputation, career impact, and equity and access.
Deakin's highly ranked achievement particularly reflects strong results in both student satisfaction (5) and research rank (10).
The AFR evaluation is focused on the twin missions of universities: education and research.
Deakin's 'balanced excellence' in these two areas is central to the University's identity and is something that the AFR notes is rare in the sector.
Deakin Vice-Chancellor Professor Iain Martin recently reflected on the importance of this dual strength.
"Deakin strikes a deliberate balance between research and teaching," Professor Martin said.
"We haven't said we want to be a research-intensive university at the expense of our education mission; we've really tried to balance out the two, and for us, it's a really important part of our makeup.”
You can read more about the 'Best Universities Ranking' methodology on the AFR's website.
