WG Thinking critically about University Rankings Network (TURN)
WG Thinking critically about University Rankings Network (TURN)
Global university rankings have become deeply embedded in higher education ecosystems, influencing decisions made by students, university leaders, policymakers, and even funding bodies. While rankings claim to offer a simple measure of institutional quality, their reliance on narrow indicators - such as publication metrics - creates distortions that ripple across research assessment practices. These distortions often conflict with the commitments of CoARA, which advocates for fair, responsible, and robust evaluation of research and researchers.
CoARA signatories pledge to avoid the use of university rankings in research assessment, but this does not mean ignoring rankings altogether. Their influence extends far beyond research evaluation, shaping perceptions of institutional success and driving behaviors that undermine other CoARA principles. To address this, we need a deeper understanding of the complex relationships between rankings and the diverse stakeholders who interact with them.
WG Mission and Objectives
The Thinking critically about University Rankings Network (TURN) Working Group exists to create a space for dialogue, evidence-building, and awareness-raising around the global university rankings phenomenon. Our mission is to:
- Map the relationships between rankings and key stakeholders: students, university leaders, strategic planners, data analysts, and ranking organizations themselves.
- Generate evidence on the cascade effects of rankings on institutional strategies, research priorities, and academic culture.
- Foster critical engagement by developing tools and opportunities that challenge the notion of a single, universal measure of university quality.
The mission of this one-year Working Group is to provide a platform in which conversations can be held to both generate evidence as to the complex net of relationships surrounding the rankings, and by so doing to raise awareness of, and seek more critical engagement with the issues. To support these conversations the Group plans to develop a ‘University Top Trumps’ card game, through which the view of a unilateral view of university quality can be challenged.
Upcoming Events
Updated 13 January 2026
The CoARA Working Group TURN is starting its activities with a series of three Critical Conversations aimed at fostering dialogue on university rankings, research assessment, and alternative approaches to valuing universities.
The planned conversations are:
- 2 February 2026, 15:00 GMT – Conversation with students and early career researchers
- 16 March 2026, 14:00 GMT – Conversation on data infrastructures and data flows
- 20 May 2026, 15:00 GMT – Conversation with university and organisational leadership
In parallel, the Working Group will hold monthly meetings focused on the development of the University Top Trump (an interactive tool aimed at myth busting rankings), which will be one of the group’s key outputs.
For more information on upcoming activities, please see the contact details for the WG Co-Chairs below!
Affiliated Organisations
- INORMS, Global (WG co-lead)
- Trinity College Dublin, Ireland (WG co-lead)
- Maastricht University, Netherlands
- Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden
- Berlin University Alliance, Germany
Join the Working Group!
Contact
Erica Conte
INORMS, Global
Jelena Brankovic
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin