Cardiff Joins Europe’s Top 50 Innovative Universities

Cardiff University is 45th in Europe and 8th in the UK in a new Thomson Reuters ranking of Europe’s 100 most innovative universities. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The league table is based on a range of data including academic papers, patent filings, industry citations and industry collaborations. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

It recognises institutions which specialise in practical research and applied science, turning research excellence in to real world answers. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Colin Riordan, said: “Cardiff has a long and proud tradition of invention and innovation, building partnerships with industry, growing spin-outs and start-ups, and nurturing academic and student expertise to create growth and prosperity. We are the only Welsh university in the table, and compete well against the UK’s big technical institutions like Manchester and Edinburgh. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“Our numbers tell our innovation story. Cardiff’s research contract awards have a total value of £500m, we have won six Queen’s Anniversary Prizes, and we rank 5th in the UK for estimated turnover (£72m) of all active graduate start-ups from 2008/09 to 2013/14.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Technical universities and colleges dominate the list which identifies the educational institutions that are doing the most to advance science, invent new technologies, and drive the global economy. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Europe’s number one innovative university is KU Leuven, a Dutch-speaking school based in Belgium’s Flanders region. It has enjoyed a long-standing academic relationship with Cardiff University. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Two years ago both institutions signed a Cooperation Agreement designed to boost research income, create new research collaborations and offer more opportunities for students and staff to study and teach abroad. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

KU Leuven’s researchers submit more patents than almost any other university in Europe, and outside researchers frequently cite KU Leuven inventions in their own patent applications. Imperial College London is ranked 2nd in the table, and overall some 17 UK institutions feature in the list, including Oxford and Cambridge. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​