NUST features prominently in all 17 UN SDGs in Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2020

April 23, 2020

Ushered by its progressive vision of evolving as a world-class Centre of Excellence, National University of Sciences &Technology (NUST) has garnered global recognition and prestige for its unhindered regime of merit and quality in the realms of academics, research, innovation and sustainable collaborations. This success has been endorsed by NUST’s worldwide position in different rankings every year. The Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Ranking is the only global ranking that assesses universities’ impact on society in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Being a pioneer in Pakistan in aligning its research & development with the UN SDGs and thus becoming a truly SDGs-engaged university, NUST featured as an inaugural participant in THE Impact Rankings 2019, and was ranked in 4 SDGs. Maintaining its upward trajectory, NUST has now conspicuously surfaced in all 17 SDGs in THE Impact Rankings 2020, featuring among world top 100, top 200 and top 300 universities in different SDG categories, while moving up the overall ranking ladder from being amongst 300+ world universities in 2019 to 200+ in 2020. As many as 859 institutions from 89 countries worldwide were considered for this year’s rankings. At the national level, NUST has been ranked 1st in 4 SDGs and 2nd in 7 SDGs.

Detailed SDG-wise rankings, place NUST among the Top 100 World Universities in 2 SDGs – SDG 4- QUALITY EDUCATION (improved from last year’s rank among top 200 to current standing among Top 70) and SDG 12-RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION & PRODUCTION (Positioned among Top 80). One of the thriving impetuses that have led the university to achieve this honour is its staunch adherence to quality standards accepted worldwide. It also merits mention that all of the university’s Engineering programmes are accredited under the Washington Accord.

NUST ranked among global Top 200 Universities in 4 SDGs – SDG 7-AFFORDABLE & GREEN ENERGY, SDG 8-DECENT WORK & ECONOMIC GROWTH, SDG 9-INDUSTRY, INNOVATION & INFRASTRUCTURE, and SDG 17-PARTNERSHIPS FOR THE GOALS (improved from last year’s rank of top 301+).

NUST has also ranked among Top 300 World Universities in 6 SDGs –SDG 1-NO POVERTY, SDG 2-ZERO HUNGER, SDG 5-GENDER EQUALITY, SDG 6-CLEAN WATER & SANITATION, SDG 14-LIFE BELOW WATER, and SDG 15-LIFE ON LAND.

It is worth mentioning that NUST is the first university in Pakistan to have developed an application for automated tracking of 242 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of SDGs framework to gauge its impact in SDGs, and continuously conducts internal awareness sessions, engaging internal and external stakeholders. In addition, to strengthen partnerships to achieve SDGs, NUST has become an active member of the US-based Association for the Advanced Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), the SDG Accord, and the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI). NUST also has the singular honour from Pakistan to have been selected as a cohort for the Millennium Fellowship 2019, a joint fellowship of Millennium Campus Network (MCN) and UNAI.