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The purpose of this study is to measure the awareness of the global university ranking and its parameters among the faculty members at Dhaka University. This also identifies the challenges linked to university ranking and explores opportunities to overcome these challenges.

The target population of this study is the faculty members of Dhaka University. This study used the online survey questionnaire method, contacting approximately 2,000 faculty members individually through their email addresses. In total, 311 faculty members responded, and the response rate was 15.55%. Data were collected from September to December 2022, and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences was used to analyze the survey data.

The findings indicate that a majority of the faculty members are acquainted with global university rankings, with Times Higher Education being the most recognized. Faculty members at Dhaka University are confident in their ability to excel in research and citation weighting scores in the ranking parameters. However, challenges such as a lack of incentives, inadequate recruitment policies, limited research funding, minimal collaboration, a scarcity of international students and faculty and limited local journal publications hinder the university’s ranking.

Due to the limited number of responses, the findings may not accurately represent the entire faculty. The findings of this study can guide Dhaka University and other universities to design policies for overall improvement of university ranking.

This is the first time an attempt has been made to measure the awareness of university ranking by collecting primary data in the context of a public university in Bangladesh.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the integration of sustainable practices in the strategies and operations of world-class higher education institutions (HEIs) under the theoretical guidance of Max Weber's instrumental and value rationalities.

The results of the Quacquarelli-Symonds World University Ranking, Times Higher Education World University Rankings, THE Impact Rankings and GreenMetric World University Ranking rankings from 2019 to 2022 were paired, and the correlation between them was verified. Institutions with simultaneous occurrence in the four rankings in at least one of the years were also classified. A quantitative and qualitative methodology was used to explore how elite HEIs integrate sustainable practices into their operations and strategies, under the theoretical guidance of Max Weber's instrumental and value rationalities. Furthermore, multivariate regression models with supervised data mining techniques were applied, using the SMOReg algorithm on 368 instances with multiple attributes, to predict the numerical value of sustainability in the rankings. Coefficients were assigned to variables to determine their relative importance in predicting rankings.

The results of this study suggest that although many HEIs demonstrate a commitment to sustainability, this rarely translates into improvements in traditional rankings, indicating a disconnect between sustainable practices and global academic recognition.

The research has limitations, including the analysis being restricted to data from specific rankings between 2019 and 2022, which may limit generalization to future editions or rankings. The predictive models used selected data and, therefore, cannot cover the full complexity of metrics from other rankings. Furthermore, internal factors of HEIs were not considered, and the correlations identified do not imply direct causality. The limited sample and potential methodological biases, together with the heterogeneity of the rankings, restrict the generalization of the results. These limitations should be considered in future studies.

The theoretical contributions of this study include an in-depth understanding of the intersection between academic excellence and environmental and social responsibility. From a management perspective, guidance is provided on integrating sustainability into HEI strategies to enhance visibility and classification in global rankings, while maintaining academic integrity and commitment to sustainability.

This highlights the importance of reassessing academic rankings criteria to include sustainability assessments, thereby encouraging institutions to adopt practices that genuinely contribute to global sustainable development.

The originality lies in the predictive analysis between these rankings, examining the link between the level of sustainability of an HEI and its classification as a World Class University. Furthermore, it combines theories of rationality with the analysis of sustainability integration in elite HEIs, introducing new analytical perspectives that can influence future educational policies and institutional practices.

This paper aims to examine whether the position of universities in the times higher education (THE) impact rankings (IR) is related to the different dimensions of academic quality of universities according to the THE world universities ranking.

The research, based on universities ranked in the top 100 of THE IRs, uses a regression model obtained by the panel data method, using the fixed effects approach, to identify the relationship of academic quality dimensions with that ranking.

The results show an increase in the dissemination of information on sustainable development goals (SDGs) by universities. In addition, it is shown that research, number of citations and international outlook are positively associated with a higher score obtained by universities in THE IRs, which implies a higher impact on the SDGs by these universities.

Based on multifaceted theories, the study highlighted the universities that are best positioned in the THE IRs in relation to their contribution to the SDGs.

This study aims to examine the relationships between social and environmental reporting (SER) and the size and university ranking of 39 Australian universities. The study examines Australian universities and the impact of size on corporate social responsibility (CSR) using an accountability model. Not many studies have considered this relationship in the university environment.

The study uses content analysis by applying the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) disclosure index to university annual reports and adopting the accountability model of Coy et al. (2001) to examine the impact of the size of Australian universities on SER, measured by the number of student enrolments. Data was collected in 2014. This classification of Australian universities based on size was adopted from Universities Australia (2022). The authors collected data about the academic ranking of Australian universities using the Shanghai ranking (Shanghai, 2022).

The authors predict and find that there is no relationship between SER and size. As the authors expected, the level of SER is marginally influenced by the world academic ranking of universities. The findings provide significant insight into the SER practices of Australian universities. The authors expand the SER literature and practice nationally and internationally.

Few studies have explored CSR in Australian universities. The current study expands the debate on SER using an accountability model in Australian universities. This paper describes CSR in 39 Australian universities and the importance of size and university ranking. The results offer new insights into the relationship between CSR in Australian universities and their size and ranking.

The study investigates the connections that university buildings and campuses establish with their environments and the effects of their environments on universities. Many factors influence the location of universities in a particular region. The initial university settlement and the subsequent facilities needed by university branches, colleges, or faculties are related to each other by the time parameter Istanbul, a historical city that is also Turkey’s largest, hosts several state and founding universities. This study investigates the connections between the urban areas where university campuses in Istanbul are located within the city and the specific characteristics of universities.

We evaluate the data on university locations in the city to determine the relationships between their establishment date, size, type, place of location in the city, and unique characteristics. The analysis is based on data for occupancy rate, satisfaction level, university ranking, and space area per student.

Results: Campus areas are affected by the availability of public transport and other amenities in urban areas. There are also interactions between meeting students’ satisfaction, university ranking, and public perceptions of the university and campus location in the city.

This study investigates the connections between the urban areas where university campuses in Istanbul are located within the city and the specific characteristics of universities.

The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual framework that explores the determinants, mechanisms and consequences of reporting on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) by universities. The framework considers the relationship between reporting on the SDGs and the three main activities of universities: research, teaching and service. As universities hold a unique position in society, understanding their experiences with SDG reporting offers insights into the promotion and integration of SDGs into reporting and practice more broadly.

The paper adopts a conceptual approach and draws on existing literature to develop a framework for understanding reporting on the UN SDGs by universities. The framework considers the challenges faced by universities in providing sustainability information and examines the motivations and outcomes associated with reporting. It also explores the coordination and collaboration necessary across departments within universities and discusses the risks associated with greenwashing.

The paper highlights that reporting on the UN SDGs can enhance university engagement with stakeholders, improve their reputation, and foster innovation and transdisciplinary research ideas. However, universities encounter challenges such as limited data availability, resource constraints, lack of coordination and competing priorities. The growing scepticism surrounding reporting motives has led to increased allegations of greenwashing within the sector.

This paper contributes to the accounting literature by presenting a comprehensive framework that explores the determinants, mechanisms and consequences of reporting on the UN SDGs by universities. The framework offers insights into how reporting on SDGs can lead to embedding the SDGs in research, teaching and service activities and can be adapted to other organisational contexts. The paper also emphasises the need for further research on the mechanisms of reporting, which play a crucial role in driving long-lasting change.

This study aims to investigate the level of online sustainability disclosure provided by international universities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The ultimate goal is to identify the factors influencing the amount of sustainability information these universities disclose through their websites.

This study conducts a manual content analysis to measure the extent to which a sample of 100 international universities disseminate information on sustainability and COVID-19 issues via the web. A multiple regression analysis is performed to test the research hypotheses.

The findings confirm that universities worldwide leverage the potential of websites to convey sustainability information beneficial for stakeholders and society. Moreover, while board gender diversity positively affects the level of online sustainability disclosure, board size exerts a negative effect. Furthermore, university size, internet visibility and ranking position have no significant impact on the amount of online sustainability information provided by international universities.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that provides insight into the possible determinants of universities’ online sustainability reporting during COVID-19. This study extends prior research mainly conducted in single countries by providing data on the sustainability disclosure level of universities in different geographical regions. Empirical findings also support policymakers’ global action in the past decade to increase the role of women in leadership and governing positions.

This study aimed to find possible answers to whether U.S. universities are merely looking good or doing good regarding their third mission using elements of the triple bottom line (people, planet, prosperity) and the 2030 Agenda.

Qualitative exploratory empirical study based on an in-depth analysis of publicly available documents (i.e. mission statements and strategic planning) and information from the Impact Rankings 2020 edition (webpages). The study uses a multilevel analysis to capture the parameters “looking good” and “doing good.” The sample consists of 15 U.S. universities.

The findings demonstrate that universities are looking good in terms of their effort to support their third mission. Data show that all universities covered themes related to people and prosperity in their mission statements and strategic planning. However, when the authors dived into the managerial metrics, KPIs, benchmarks and other evidence to characterize them as doing good, the authors encountered some challenges in identifying evidence. The data suggest that universities most likely participated in the Impact Ranking act as “cherry pickers” and might participate in unproblematic goals for their organization.

The 3Ps and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals used in this study to examine the university public mission never used in other studies. The goal in this study was not to evaluate those universities in terms of looking good and doing good but rather to contribute to the gap in the literature and provide suggestions to university C-suite.

The ranking of universities and other research-intensive institutions in global ranking systems is based on numerous indicators, including number of articles with external collaboration, number of articles with international collaboration, number of articles with industry collaboration as well as co-patents with industry. The purpose of this paper is to examine university–industry research collaboration in Ghana, with the aim of exploring the relationship between the research output collaborations in the top four universities in Ghana and industry across different geographical scales.

This study’s data was obtained from the SciVal database, which drawn its data from the Scopus bibliographic and citation database. The bibliographic and citation data were extracted using a search of the publications affiliated to the University of Ghana, for the period 2011–2020.

Key findings demonstrate a constant rise in the number of research publications by the selected universities over time. Research collaboration intensity in the selected universities in terms of co-authored publications was higher as compared to single-authored publications. University–industry research co-authorships were, however, lower when compared to university–university research co-authorships. The university–industry research co-authorships occurred mostly with Europe, Asia-Pacific and North American-based institutions as opposed to African-based institutions. In Ghana, four industry-based institutions were engaged in intensive research with the selected universities.

This study demonstrates that, for each selected university, it is possible to measure the performance of individual universities in both intra-regional and international collaboration. Such results may be useful in informing policy as well as merit-based public funding of universities in Ghana.

This study aims to develop an educational tourism demand model, particularly in respect to dynamic effects, university quality (QU) and competitor countries. Educational tourism has been identified as a new tourism sub-sector with high potential, and is thus expected to boost economic growth and sustainability.

This study reviews the literature on the determinants of educational tourism demand. Even though the existing literature is intensively discussed, mostly focusing on the educational tourism demand from an individual consumer's perspective, this study makes an innovation in line with the aggregate demand view. The study uses data that consist of the enrolment of international students from 47 home countries who studied in Malaysia from 2008 to 2017. The study utilised the dynamic panel method of analysis.

This study affirms that income per capita, educational tourism price, price of competitor countries and quality of universities based on accredited programmes and world university ranking are the determinants of educational tourism demand in both the short and the long term. Also, a dynamic effect exists in educational tourism demand.

The results imply that government should take the quality of services for existing students, price decisions and QU into account to promote the country as a tertiary education hub and achieve sustainable development.

Research on the determinants of the demand for educational tourism is rare in terms of macro data, and this study includes the roles of QU, competitor countries and dynamic effects.