The Ateneo de Manila University dropped seven spots in this year’s Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Asian University Rankings, landing three spots below the University of the Philippines (UP). The Ateneo placed highest in the list among Philippine universities last year.
Ateneo ranked 58th last year, claiming the highest ranking in the country since it first became part of Asia’s Top 500 Universities Ranking list in 2006.
This year, the school ranked 65th, three ranks below UP’s 62nd spot. The list was released last May 23.
Four Philippine universities made it to the Top 200 list. UP took the plum spot, followed by the Ateneo. The University of Santo Tomas ranked next at the 104th spot and De La Salle University at 107th.
Ranks are determined by the following criteria: academics, academic peer reviews, employer reviews, citations per faculty member, student-to-faculty ratio, and international faculty and students.
‘Not a true measure’
The administration’s statements on the annual ranking results have barely changed throughout the years.
In his 2006 statement, former university president Fr. Bienvenido Nebres, SJ, said that as a Jesuit school, the university should continue to prioritize leadership formation and national development.
“Rankings in the Times survey are important because they measure how the world perceives us. But just as persons have to take what people think of them in the context of their own values and priorities, we, too, have to reflect on these perceptions and measures within our own view of our vision and mission,” he said.
Sanggunian President Drew Copuyoc added that the rankings are just mere numbers.
“It in no way defines the quality of education that we, Ateneans, are blessed with,” he said. “No ranking can ever quantify how Ateneans have used their education for the betterment of not just ourselves, but of others and of our country.”
Newly installed university president Fr. Jose Ramon Villarin, SJ, said that the Ateneo can still do better, although it has a long way to go in comparison with other universities abroad. He added that he hopes to encourage research in the school.
