Griffith University Law School is among the top 50 in the world, according to the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject.
Law came in at number 43 in the world after QS World University Rankings evaluated 2858 universities and analysed more than 8000 programs globally. They rank the top 200 in each subject area.
Vice Chancellor Professor Ian O’Connor said this was the first ever subject at Griffith University to be ranked in the global top 50 on any of the major university rankings.
“Law and Legal Studies at Griffith achieved a world rank of equal 43rd on the QS World University Subject Rankings 2013 which were released this morning,” he said.
“This places Law at Griffith in sixth position within Australia behind only Melbourne, Sydney, UNSW, Monash and ANU. Griffith was ranked at equal 43rd with the prestigious Tsinghua University in China, just two places adrift of Peking University and three behind the University of British Columbia. For the record, Griffith was also the top ranked university in Queensland in this discipline.
“It seems fitting that this first for Griffith should occur in the discipline in which our namesake, Sir Samuel Walker Griffith, was a leader.”
The QS Rankings subject list also includes seven other areas in which Griffith excelled.
Education is ranked in top 100, as is Politics and International Studies.
Environmental Sciences, Sociology, Communications and Media Studies and Agriculture and Forestry subject areas are all ranked in the top 150 worldwide. Psychology is in the top 200.
Outstanding research
Dean of Law at Griffith Law School, Professor William MacNeil, said he was delighted but not surprised.
“In terms of its outstanding research output, its high teaching quality and its extensive community service, the Griffith Law School is one of the leading law schools in the nation,” he said.
“We take scholarship seriously, and have taken every conceivable step to recruit, retain and promote researchers whose work is innovative, interdisciplinary and socially relevant–as benchmarked against the highest international, peer-refereed standards.
“That scholarly focus has very beneficial flow-on effects for our pedagogy; for we, at the Griffith Law School, are very much committed to exciting and inspirational teaching practices that not only put the student experience front row and centre but are informed by the best theoretical insights that research yields, instilling skills of rigorous critical analysis, as well as the highest standards of professional excellence and legal ethics.
“In short, our students are taught by and learn from scholars who wrote and continue to write the authoritative books in their respective fields.”
More to offer
Fifth year Griffith law student Samantha Nean says she always knew the Griffith Law School was the one for her.
“The Griffith Law School offers me a lot that other law schools don’t. This is something I’ve always known since I made the choice to study here. It is great that this is now being recognised,” the 21-year-old said.
She highlighted an innovative teaching structure, a strong critical environment and a practical focus as key and rewarding elements of her educational experience. “With every subject we are asked to think critically why the law is that way and about the tradition is has come from.”
The QS Subject rankings follow a strong showing in the CWTS Leiden ranking last month which listed Griffith overall in the top 400 universities worldwide, as did the overall QS World Rankings (368) and the Academic Rankings of World Universities (301-400 band). Griffith was also ranked in The Times Top 100 Institutions Under the Age of 50.