Faculty of Engineering celebrates REF2014 success
A new assessment of higher education institutions, positions Leeds’ Faculty of Engineering as one of the UK’s top engineering and computing faculties for research and impact power.
The results of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) sees all schools within the Faculty of Engineering achieving over 80% of research activity rated as either ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’.
Notable successes include:
- Computing – over 85% of research activity rated as either ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’.
- Civil Engineering – 7th in the UK with over 90% of research having either ‘outstanding’ or ‘very considerable’ impact.
- Chemical and Process Engineering – over 80% of research activity rated as either ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’ in the general engineering unit of assessment.
- Electronic and Electrical Engineering – top 5 in the UK in a combined unit of assessment with 100% of research activity rated as either ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’ – sector-leading across all subjects and all universities.
- Mechanical Engineering – 4th in the UK in a combined unit of assessment with 100% of research having either ‘outstanding’ or ‘very considerable’ impact.
The REF is a robust and internationally-recognised exercise to measure the quality of UK university research. The results are used to allocate around £2billion of government funding for research each year.
Professor Giles Davies, Pro-Dean for Research and Innovation in the Faculty of Engineering, said: “I’m delighted with our REF results, which once again demonstrate the international quality of our research and the significant impact that our research achieves. This is a testament to the calibre and hard work of our academic and professional services staff.”
Following results in the last independent assessment in 2008, the University of Leeds received more than £41 million each year in quality-related research funding from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The next funding allocations are due to be announced in March 2015.
Professor Davies continued: “Our continued high research ratings enable us to keep recruiting the best research staff and students, and give them an exceptional experience, as well as allowing us to invest further in our facilities and continue to build links with industry and research partners in the UK and overseas.”
Further information
For further information, contact the University of Leeds press office at pressoffice@leeds.ac.uk or call 0113 343 4031.
For a full breakdown of the University of Leeds results, the University has created a dedicated REF website.
The sector results from the HEFCE website can be found here.
To support the University’s research ambitions, the University has already made a significant investment in recruiting 250 new University Academic Fellowships and 220 new Anniversary Research Scholarships.
