THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Union education ministry’s rankings of higher educational institutions, based on the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), presented a mixed result for state’s universities.The University of Kerala (KU), the only varsity in the state having the top A++ grade of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), saw its all-India rank plummet from 27 in 2021 to 40 this year in the ‘University’ category.Notably, Mahatma Gandhi (MG) University moved one rank up, to the 30th spot nationally, unseating KU as Kerala’s top-ranked university.
While Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) improved its ranking from 44 to 41, Calicut University’s rank dropped from 60 to 69 this year. KU’s huge drop came as a surprise as the institution recently bagged the NAAC A++ grade, an achievement widely celebrated by the state’s higher education sector.
Its NAAC grade score of 3.67 (out of four) was on a par with Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, that has clinched the top spot in the NIRF Ranking among universities.“We examined the ranking in detail and found that we have been awarded a very low score in the ‘peer perception’ parameter. We scored 21.44 in that parameter last year. This year, it was just 1.54,” said KU Pro-Vice-Chancellor P P Ajaykumar.
He said while the university was able to improve in most of the other parameters, the drastic drop in ‘peer perception’ score affected its overall ranking. The NIRF methodology gives importance to an institution’s perception by its stakeholders, including the industry and employers.
MG varsity pro-VC terms feat confidence booster
Peer perception is assessed through stakeholder surveys. “We will examine what went wrong and take corrective measures,” said KU Pro-Vice-Chancellor P P Ajaykumar. R Jayaprakash, former executive council member of Kerala State Higher Education Council, said NAAC and NIRF use different parameters and it would not be right to compare them.
“While the five-year NAAC accreditation takes into account an exhaustive set of parameters and involves strict physical inspection of facilities, NIRF rankings are not that comprehensive as they are valid only for a year,” he said.
Meanwhile, MG University is upbeat that it emerged the top-ranked varsity in the state. It scored higher in three of five broad parameters listed in NIRF. “We improved our scores in teaching, learning and resources, research and professional practice as well as graduation outcomes. This gives us the confidence to aim for a better score in the NAAC accreditation process due later this year,” said Pro-VC C T Aravindakumar.