Oxford was ranked joint fifth in the world in the Times Higher Education Supplement’s World University Rankings 2009. In the disciplinary tables, Oxford was ranked second in the world in art and humanities and in life sciences and biomedicine; third in the social sciences; fifth in the natural sciences; and eleventh in engineering and information technology.
Oxford is repeatedly ranked in the top ten of universities worldwide in the annual tables compiled by Shanghai Jiaotong University.
In September 2009, Oxford University was ranked first in the UK by the annual Sunday Times Good University Guide, completing a clean sweep of British national newspaper league tables for 2009. The Sunday Times also named Oxford University of the Year.
In June 2009, the annual Times Good University Guide named Oxford Britain’s top university for the eighth year running.
In May 2009, Oxford University topped The Guardian’s UK rankings for the fifth consecutive year.
In April 2009, Oxford topped the national university league table, The Good University Guide, for the seventh time in the last eight years. The table is published in association with the Independent newspaper.
Oxford’s Saïd Business School is ranked in the top 20 European Business Schools (Dec 2009) and in the top 20 MBA programmes in the world (Jan 2009) by the Financial Times; the top 10 business schools outside the USA by Business Week (Nov 2009) and the top 15 accelerated MBA programmes worldwide by the Wall Street Journal (Sep 2009).
Oxford and Enterprise
Isis Innovation Limited, the University’s wholly owned technology transfer company, has created more than 60 companies.
Isis files, on average, one patent application each week and manages over 400 patent application families and 200 licence agreements.
In the year to March 2009, Isis Innovation's trading turnover increased from £4.8 million to £5.8 million, four new spin-out companies were created and the number of new consultancy agreements almost doubled to 151.
The collegiate University is the second largest employer in Oxfordshire. At a conservative estimate, over 18,000 jobs are supported directly or indirectly by the University, the Colleges, Oxford University Press and University spin-out companies.
Oxfordshire is one of Europe’s leading centres of enterprise, innovation and knowledge. The county’s growth rate in high-tech employment remains one of the highest in the UK and many of its 1,500 high-tech companies have links to Oxford University.
Oxford University is a founder member of the Oxfordshire Economic Partnership, a network of public and private sector partners committed to building a world-class economy in Oxfordshire.
Oxford’s Saïd Business School is ranked in the top 20 European Business Schools (Dec 2009) and in the top 20 MBA programmes in the world (Jan 2009) by the Financial Times; the top 10 business schools outside the USA by Business Week (Nov 2009) and the top 15 accelerated MBA programmes worldwide by the Wall Street Journal (Sep 2009).
Oxford Entrepreneurs has over 4,500 members and is the largest student society at Oxford University and the largest free business and entrepreneurship society in Europe.
Oxford University Press, publisher of the famous dictionaries and a department of the University, is the largest university press in the world, with publishing operations in 16 countries, sales offices in 90 countries, and almost 5,000 employees worldwide.
Oxford Finance
In 2008–9, total University income rose by 13 per cent to £862.5 million.
The University’s largest source of income continues to be external research grants and contracts. In 2008-9 40 per cent (£340.5 million) of total income was derived from external research sponsors.
Of the remaining income, 23 per cent came from grants from the Higher Education Funding Council for England and the Teaching and Development Agency; 14 per cent from academic fees; and 23 per cent from other sources including trading activities and investments.
Research income has doubled in the last five years and grew by almost 20 per cent between 2008 and 2009 alone.
Oxford consistently has the highest research income from external sponsors of any UK university.
Total University expenditure in 2008–9 was £866.8 million.
In May 2008 Oxford launched the biggest fund-raising campaign ever by a European university, aiming to raise at least £1.25 billion. £776 million of this total – well over half - has now been raised.
In 2008-9, the turnover of Oxford University Press was £579 million.
In 2007-8 the income of the colleges, as separate from the University, amounted to £267 million.
Museums, Collections and Libraries
Oxford has the largest university library system in the UK, with over 100 libraries.
Oxford University Library Services, which manages most of the main University libraries, holds over 9 million printed items, and vast quantities of materials in many other formats. Its collections grow by three miles of shelving a year.hxw.red