King’s College London has been ranked 5th in the world in the 2019 THE University Impact Rankings, a pioneering initiative that recognises and celebrates the social and economic contribution of universities.
Challenging universities to consider their societal impact, the new rankings measure how their work contributes to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They provide an opportunity for universities to reflect on their local and global impact and to demonstrate the difference they are making to the world in which we live.
King’s Vision 2029 commitment to the service of society was recognised by the rankings, with the university marked highly for its focus on SDG 3 Good Health and Wellbeing, SDG 5 Gender Equality, SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities SDG 12 Responsible Consumption and Production, SDG 13 Climate action, SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions and SDG 17 Partnership for the Goals.
Professor Jonathan Grant, Vice President and Vice-Principal (Service) at King’s says: ‘We are delighted to see King’s placed 5th in the world for our commitment to social, environmental and economic impact. King’s has a long and proud history of serving the needs and aspirations of society and these results reassert our commitment to Service and social impact: the positive effect we have beyond, as well as through, our traditional missions of education and research.
‘It was the King’s community who set us on this path. In developing our Strategic Vision our students, staff and alumni emphasised that King’s informal motto “in the service of society” reflected our ethos as a university. Seeing how we now place against other global institutions provides us with a clear benchmark to measure our societal impact against.’
King’s students, staff and alumni continue to deliver on Vision 2029 through education, research and service, in London and around the world. There are countless examples from across the university: from a History graduate who supported a local school pupil to gain confidence and achieve academic success, to King’s Medicine alumna Dr Bhavagaya Bakshi who developed an online tool to help GPs identify patients at risk of developing cancer, to the university’s new socially responsible procurement policy that aims to make it easier for local businesses and social enterprises to work with King’s.
Learn more about King’s commitment to Service and find further details on the THE University Impact Rankings online.
