Birzeit and QS
Rankings
A History of
Academic Excellence
In 2017, QS University Rankings featured Palestinian universities for the first time in its 2018 World Rankings. Birzeit
University outranked its national peers, placing 38 th in the Arab world, and broke into the top 3 percent of universities
worldwide. Just prior, QS had chosen Birzeit University for the third time in a row as one of the leading 100 Arab
universities.
What are QS Rankings?
QS World University Rankings, published annually both
in regional and international formats by Quacquarelli
Symonds - a British company specializing in higher
education - is one of the top three most respected
international university ranking systems. It is based on
benchmarks that reflect each university’s educational
standards, research efforts, and local and international
influence.
The international format of QS Rankings includes the top
3 percent of universities worldwide, which amounts to
approximately 950 universities chosen from over 26,000
institutions the world over. The Arab Region Rankings, on
the other hand, includes the best 100 higher education
institutions in the Arab world, chosen from over 1,000
universities.
An Academic Breakthrough
Birzeit University was first featured in QS Rankings in
2015, where it placed as the top Palestinian university and
in the 61-70 range in the Arab world.
The university kept its stature as the leading Palestinian
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Al Ghadeer - Fall 2018
university in 2016, and jumped 11 places to rank 50th
overall in the Arab world.
In keeping with its mission and vision, Birzeit University
increased its research and academic efforts in subsequent
years, and in the 2018 QS World University Rankings,
leapfrogged into 38 th place in the Arab region rankings,
while also breaking into the top 3 percent of higher
education institutions worldwide, while remaining the
foremost Palestinian university.
Birzeit University’s focus on research was reflected in
the “ratio of citations per paper” indicator, by which
QS Rankings measure the impact of published research
studies. Due to its strong performance, the university
ranked 11th in the Arab world on citations per paper.
Despite the Odds
Despite the financial problems that beset the university,
and the extraordinary circumstances that envelope
Palestine, and impact the university’s measure in numbers
of international faculty and international student metrics,
Birzeit University continues to be a bastion of research and
academic excellence, and remains true to its mission as it
shapes the leaders of the future.
In Memoriam
B
irzeit University mourns the loss of its friend and supporter, famed
physicist Stephen Hawking, who passed away on March 14, 2018. The
renowned scientist had a close relationship with the university and actively
supported the Palestinian cause and Palestinian physics students.
Birzeit University hosted Professor Hawking in 2006 when he gave a lecture,
entitled “Origin of the Universe,” that was attended by hundreds of faculty
members and Palestinian physicists, and watched by thousands of students on
outdoor screens.
Professor Hawking was an ardent supporter of Palestine. He criticized Israeli
measures that violate intellectual freedom in Palestine, encouraged academic
cooperation between Britain and Palestinian academic institutions, and
supported the academic boycott of Israel. Professor Hawking himself declined
an invitation in 2013 to attend the Israeli Presidential Conference.
Professor Hawking had a close relationship with physics students and
professors at Birzeit University. Chair of the Department of Physics at Birzeit
Isma’el Badran grieved the loss of “one of the most influential physicists in
history after Einstein.”
“The death of Stephen Hawking,” Badran said, “is a huge loss to physicists
around the world, supporters of Palestine, and the Department of Physics at the
university. Professor Hawking’s work was one of the foundations upon which
the Big Bang theory is built, and his work on black holes shed light on such an
unknown astronomical phenomenon.”
Henry Giacaman, a professor of physics at Birzeit University, noted Professor
Hawking’s support for Palestine. “Professor Hawking did everything he could to
develop physics education and research in Palestine. He expressed his support
for the first Palestinian Advanced Physics School and called for a fundraising
initiative aimed at financing the second one, held at Birzeit University in the
summer of 2017.”
Born on January 8, 1942, in Oxford, England, Professor Hawking earned a
bachelor’s degree in math and physics from the University of Oxford and later
went on to pursue a Ph.D. in cosmology from the University of Cambridge.
Professor Hawking’s work included research on cosmology, the relationship
between black holes and thermodynamics, and the space-time continuum.
In 1963, a young Hawking was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
(ALS), a degenerative disease that involves the neurons controlling voluntary
muscle movement. The slow-progressing diseases paralyzed him and rendered
him able to communicate almost exclusively through a speech synthesizer.
In 1974, Professor Hawking was able to prove, theoretically, that black holes
emit radiation – named the Hawking radiation – in opposition to all theories
accepted at the time. His book, “A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to
Black Holes,” sold over 10 million copies worldwide, and a 2014 film on his life,
“The Theory of Everything,” was nominated for a number of Academy Awards.
“
My goal is simple.
It is a complete
understanding of
the universe, why it
is as it is and why it
exists at all”
“One, remember
to look up at the
stars and not down
at your feet. Two,
never give up
work. Work gives
you meaning and
purpose and life
is empty without
it. Three, if you
are lucky enough
to find love,
remember it is
there and don’t
throw it away.
”
Stephen Hawking
Birzeit University
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