USask’s College of Dentistry Earns Spot in a Prestigious Global University Ranking for Dental Schools

For the first time in the College of Dentistry’s 58-year history, the college has earned a spot in a prestigious university ranking for dental schools. The ranking was published on October 27, 2023 by Shanghai Ranking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.

The Shanghai Ranking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects, often referred to as the Shanghai Subject Ranking, is a widely recognized and respected system for evaluating the academic performance and reputation of universities and institutions in various fields of study. It is a tool used to assess and compare the research and educational quality of universities worldwide.

This ranking system takes into account factors like research output, research influence, international collaboration, and awards won by faculty and alumni. It covers a wide range of academic subjects, from medical and natural sciences to engineering, social sciences and the humanities.

In simple terms, the Shanghai Subject Ranking is a way to see how well universities are performing in specific academic areas, helping students, researchers, and institutions make informed decisions about education and research partnerships. It's like a scoreboard for universities in different fields to gauge their strengths and weaknesses on a global scale.

This ranking includes the top 300 dental schools worldwide.

Walter Siqueira, Dean of the College of Dentistry said he initially was expecting the college to be listed in the range of 290 to 300, after several new initiatives implemented in the college for enhancing their research portfolio, which would have already been a significant achievement for a college that had never been ranked before.  However, not only did the college make the list but shot up into its mid-range.

The USask College of Dentistry is now ranked between 151 and 200 worldwide, placing them on par with other strong dental schools in Canada, such as the University of Alberta and Western University.

Siqueira says, “Obviously, this is something to be extremely proud of as we have transitioned from being an unranked dental school in Canada to having a solid ranking position. We now stand tied at the 6th position in Canada and 151st globally”.

The ranking was a result of a new and concerted focus by the college to make teaching and research equally important. The college created a research strategic plan which included many internal initiatives that were implemented to support the research portfolio. Collectively, the initiatives created a number of meaningful outcomes which contributed to the ranking. The initiatives included the development of a research seminar series, supports for internal and external collaboration, internationalization and support for College of Dentistry faculty to attend external conferences. The college also implemented a publication incentive program, and a series of awards for research such as Impact Awards and Ambassador Awards for faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students.

The new research focus of the college also created opportunities for success in acquiring in provincial and federal grants. In addition, there have been numerous national research competition awards won by graduate students.

Siqueira feels that this recognition on the global stage, reinforces that all their efforts and focus on research has and will continue to pay off for both the College of Dentistry and USask. The ranking will help the college attract top notch professors, staff, and students. He adds, “plus, it will have a direct impact for the future of dental education in the province and it will positively affect how we provide patient care using the most advanced and up to date dentistry knowledge.”

For more information on the Shanghai Rankings visit Shanghai Ranking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.