ICS Rated Among the World's Best
A nationwide assessment of Australia's research performance has confirmed that research undertaken by the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) is "well above world standard".
Released today, the Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) round scored ICS a '5' rating in Cultural Studies, the highest ranking possible.
The Institute also received a rating of '4' in human geography, meaning it is placed "above world standard" in this field of research.
Director of ICS Professor Paul James, attributes the success of the Institute's research performance to a collective effort.
"To be judged by our peers to be 'well above world standard' in Cultural Studies and 'above world standard' in Human Geography, and in Language, Communication and Culture, is an extraordinary achievement. It is only made possible by the teams of researchers and research administrators who are dedicated to excellence in the Institute for Culture and Society and across Western Sydney University. There is no doubt about the level of commitment. Such a result is testimony to the countless times that people have supported each other in their projects beyond the call of even good collegiality," he says.
The '5' ranking was also applied to other fields of research across Western Sydney University: applied mathematics; ecological applications; soil sciences; ecology; plant biology; forestry sciences; materials engineering; complementary and alternative medicine; oncology and carcinogenesis; and pharmacology and pharmaceutical sciences.
The overall ERA performance means that 80 per cent of Western Sydney University research is now ranked world standard or above.
"Achieving excellence in the Institute depends upon the development of a culture of intellectual excellence being fostered across the entire University. In these terms ICS celebrates the whole-of-university result. We are in this together," says Professor James.
Posted: 4 December 2015.
