CHENNAI: When Chennai-based Saveetha Dental College raced ahead of world's top dental colleges and made it to the 18th position in the prestigious Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) world ranking, there were genuine queries on their triumph. How did they do it? The answer lies in their dedication to impart quality education, tremendous research, and a slew of citations.
Undeniably, the accomplishment has placed the institution, a part of Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences (SIMATS), prominently in the global map as it is the first institute in India and the third in Asia to get the impressive ranking in the dentistry sector.
Chancellor of the university, NM Veeraiyan, is ecstatic. Speaking to TNIE, Veeraiyan said years of hard work and the dedication of the entire team have gone into achieving this success. "The QS ranking has come as a surprise to us. Our institute’s ranking was good on a national level, but getting 18th position among all global institutes is really remarkable," said Veeraiyan.
He said the focus of the institute has always been in ensuring quality education to the students. "During the pandemic, when all educational institutes were shut down, we were open. We utilised the time in strengthening our research works, and our students managed to publish 5,000 research papers in one year," he said.
The research work and citations played a major role in pulling off the rare feat in the QS ranking. The institute now aims to improve its ranking further next year by working on other parameters of QS ranking. At the same time, the institute is hopeful that the global ranking will help it attract sizeable number of international students.
"In ancient days, India was regarded as a prestigious educational hub and students from around the world came to study at Nalanda University. I genuinely aspire to see those golden days again, when Indian institutes will be recognised globally," said Veeraiyan.
Prior to introduction of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), the institute had a good number of students from overseas studying in its Chennai campus. "The Union ministry of education has lots of plans to attract international students to India. They will definitely chalk out some strategy to help us in attracting students globally," said the chancellor.
He sought from the Central government financial support for private educational institutions, which have been proving their mettle in the international arena. In QS world ranking, the institution’s detailed performance by indicator and overall score across all the subjects and broad subject areas have superseded other institutions in the academic reputation survey.