See in-depth analysis of our REF 2014 results (login access for Imperial members only)Read a message from the Provost about the REF 2014 results
First for impact
The REF’s new impact measure ranks Imperial’s research highest of any major university. Moreover, eight of Imperial’s 14 REF-assessed research areas are top or joint-top for “outstanding” or “very considerable” impact.
World-leading
- Imperial comes fourth out of major UK universities for 4* or “world-leading” research, behind the London School of Economics, Oxford and Cambridge, and just ahead of UCL
- 91% of Imperial research is classed as “world-leading” (46% achieved the highest possible 4* score) or “internationally excellent” (44% achieved 3*) – the highest proportion of any major university.
Moving up
Imperial research quality has improved significantly since the Research Assessment Exercise 2008. The proportion of 4* or 3* classified research has moved from 73% to 91%, and 4* graded research has increased from 26% to 46%, while we have maintained the proportion of eligible staff submitted for assessment (93% in RAE 2008; 92% in REF 2014).
