CHS Prompt Leads to UTEP Ranking in Times Higher Education Impact Initiative
Following a prompt last year from the leadership of the College of Health Sciences (CHS), the UTEP administration engaged in its first evaluation with the Times Higher Education Impact initiative, in which universities are ranked against the United Nations’ (UN) 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The SDGs are a global call to action issued by the UN and include areas such as education, reduction of poverty, gender equity, peace and justice, healthy living, and clean energy, among others. The Times Higher Education Impact rankings are the only global performance tables that evaluate universities against the SDGs. In 2019, the city of El Paso was ranked 80 th out of 105 cities that participated in a similar study conducted by the Sustainable Solutions Development Network in which cities’ performance toward achieving the SDGs were assessed ( https://www.sustainabledevelopment.report/reports/2019-us-cities-sustainable-development-report/).
Following a lengthy data-gathering process led by the Center for Institutional Evaluation, Research, and Planning, university officials were notified that UTEP would receive its first official ranking. For the year 2020, the university was ranked in the 300 to 400 band out of 768 universities from 85 countries. A university’s final score is calculated by combining its score in SDG 17 with its top three scores out of the remaining 16 SDGs.
UTEP’s top three scores and SDG 17 score are as follows:
SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-Being (Ranked 201-300): This area measures universities’ engagement in research in key diseases and conditions, support for healthcare professions, and health of students and staff.
SDG 4 – Quality Education (Ranked 101-200): This area measures universities’ contributions to early education and lifelong education, engagement in pedagogical research, and commitment to inclusive education.
SDG 5 – Gender Equality (Ranked 101-200): This area measures universities’ engagement in research on gender, policies on gender equality, and commitment to recruiting and promoting women.
SDG 17 – Partnerships for the Goals (Ranked 201-300): This area looks at the broader ways in which universities support the Sustainable Development Goals through collaboration with other countries, the promotion of best practices, and the publication of data.
With an official Times Higher Education Impact ranking, UTEP joins a prestigious list of universities whose work has been critically evaluated against measures of global impact and who are publicly acknowledged for efforts to contribute toward the greater good of humanity. At the college level, CHS has embedded community and global citizenship within the objectives of its recently completed strategic plan.
“A focus on global impact is central to the College of Health Sciences’ new strategic direction and our enhanced mission to effect positive change through transformational efforts,” said Dr. Shafik Dharamsi, CHS dean. “UTEP has a long history of working with the community and preparing its graduates with a deeper sense of purpose to improve the quality of life of the communities they will go on to serve.”
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