University of Oxford has
topped a global education ranking for the first time.
However, its vice-chancellor
warned that the exit of Britain (Brexit) from the European Union could damage
its long-term prospects.
Oxford is the oldest
university in the English-speaking world and feeder for the British elite.
Oxford knocked the leader
for the last five years, California Institute of Technology, into second place
in the Times Higher Education's global league table, which also saw Chinese
universities climb rapidly.
Phil Baty, editor of the
rankings, said Oxford, which educated four of the last six British Prime
Ministers, ousted its US rival after its research funding rose 10 per cent and
overall funding rose to $1.83 billion (Sh183 billion), while the impact of its
research increased.
But Mr Baty said Britain's
exit from the EU "is a serious risk to our success" by making it
harder to attract top academic staff and plug them into research projects.
Brexit risks driving away
students, staff and funding, Oxford Vice Chancellor Louise Richardson told the
BBC radio.
Prof Richardson said rival
universities had stepped up efforts to poach the 17 per cent of the
university's faculty who are EU citizens, and whose status in Britain was no
longer guaranteed following the June 23 vote.
"There are many
universities in the world that would be thrilled to have them and who are
approaching them and asking if they would return to their universities
instead," she said.
The Government had also
offered no reassurance that it would replace around $87 million (Sh8.7 billion)
a year it receives from the European Research Council to fund its work, she
said. "To be honest we're really quite worried about it," she said.
While Oxford, the
University of Cambridge and London's Imperial College make the top 10 along
with ETH Zurich, the list is dominated by US universities.
Stanford University is
ranked third, Cambridge fourth, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
fifth, Harvard sixth, Princeton seventh, Imperial eighth and ETH Zurich ninth.