University maintains second-place ranking on Research Infosource list

Just months shy of opening the premiere science and academic facility in the country, the University of Lethbridge’s reputation as one of Canada’s top research universities has once again been recognized by Research Infosource.

For the second consecutive year, the U of L is ranked second in the Research Universities of the Year Undergraduate classification. It marks the third successive year the University is in the top three and since being named Research University of the Year in 2012, the U of L has never been ranked outside the top five.

“What I take out of this is a level of consistent excellence from our faculty and the students who work with them in their research pursuits,” says Dr. Erasmus Okine, the U of L’s vice-president (research). “At the heart of being continually recognized and awarded by the country’s funding agencies is the fact that they are doing innovative, relevant work that is solving today’s problems and creating a better quality of life for the people of southern Alberta, Canada and beyond.”

Of the six classifications used in the rankings system, the U of L placed first in two categories, including research intensity per graduate student and total number of publications produced. The University was also second in the publication intensity category.

In total, the combined research income of Canada’s top 50 research universities jumped 6.8 per cent to $7.33 billion in the fiscal 2017 year, the strongest gain in a decade.

“Fiscal 2017 was the best year in a decade for research income growth at Canadian universities,” says Ron Freedman, CEO of Research Infosource. “In fact, the last time research income growth reached 6 per cent was in fiscal 2008. Promised future increases from the federal government should ensure a solid base of research support into the medium term.”

Okine says anticipation for the opening of the new Science & Academic Building in spring 2019 has researchers, faculty and students alike, excited about continuing the momentum of discovery on campus. With interdisciplinary research collaborations a strategic focus of the new facility, even greater research opportunities await.

“I don’t think we will fully appreciate how impactful the new facility is until our researchers are in the building, working alongside their colleagues and utilizing the state-of-the-art labs and equipment that will be available to them,” says Okine.

“This is a very exciting time to be engaged in research at the University of Lethbridge.”

Research Infosource is Canada’s leading provider of research intelligence for business and higher education. Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities List is released each fall. Using Statistics Canada data and the Canadian University R&D Database, the list ranks universities by their research income.

To look at the full rankings, visit the Research Infosource website.