With 83.35 points in the overall evaluation, the University is among the five best state institutions in the country
The State University of Maringá (UEM) is the best state university in the Southern region and is among the five best in Brazil for the second consecutive year. An evaluation from the Folha University Ranking (RUF) 2024, published this Monday (21) by Folha de S.Paulo.
According to the ranking, UEM received 83.35 points - out of a possible 100 in the overall evaluation - and is among the 24 best universities in the country. Among the 39 ranked state universities, only the state universities from São Paulo and the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) are ahead of UEM. In all, the ranking analyzed 204 public and private Higher Education Institutions (IES) from the 26 Brazilian states and the Federal District.
According to UEM's rector, Leandro Vanalli, the institution's good result in the RUF 2024 reflects the daily efforts of the academic community. “All we have achieved, such as our performance in this ranking, are the result of the hard work of our teaching staff, university agents and students in order to consolidate our teaching, research and outreach activities,” he said.
As in 2023, UEM ranks second among all institutions in Paraná, behind only the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR) and leads in the state education system - the state universities of Londrina (UEL), Ponta Grossa (UEPG), Oeste do Paraná (Unioeste), and Centro-Oeste (Unicentro) were also ranked. The publication analyzed a total of 17 public and private institutions in the state.
Compared to 2023, UEM recorded advances in its score in three of the five indicators evaluated by the RUF - Teaching, Market and Innovation. “More than the prominent position in the ranking, we are proud to see the evolution of the University in different indicators, which help management in decision-making. With the support from the community and the state government, we will continue to work to impact lives and transform more and more realities in our region, in Paraná and throughout Brazil”, added the rector.
With the growth in the indexes, UEM is now considered the institution with the best Teaching among all the universities in Paraná, whether federal, state or private. The RUF's analysis in this area takes into account factors such as the proportion of PhDs and the quality of the teaching staff, as well as the grades of students in specific assessments.
For the Associate Provost of Teaching Affairs (PEN), Marcos Vinicius Francisco, UEM's achievement is relevant and the evolution must be continuous. “The rankings, in general, have captured the richness and strength of the work carried out at our institution, in its different sectors,” he said. “If, on the one hand, we are on the right track, on the other hand, we will need to continue with the task of dialog in order to improve our teaching and learning processes,” he concluded.
Undergraduate courses are also rated well
The RUF 2024 also evaluated institutions in terms of the quality of specific undergraduate courses. UEM, which offers 35 of the 40 courses analyzed, was highlighted in different areas of knowledge. In all, the university has eight undergraduate courses among the 20 best in Brazil in their respective areas.
The best position went to the Agronomy course, which was voted the eighth best in the country. The Dentistry (10th), Chemical Engineering (11th), Zootechnics (11th) Engineering (11th), Zootechnics (11th), Physical Education (17th), Mathematics (17th), Accounting Sciences (19th) and Veterinary Medicine (19th) also stood out.
Another 12 courses offered by the University were ranked among the 30 best in Brazil - Architecture and Urbanism, Visual Arts, Computer Science, Design, Economic Sciences, Environmental Engineering, Production Engineering, Pharmacy, Physics, Geography, Psychology and Social Work.
Folha University Ranking 2024
Published by Folha de S.Paulo since 2012 - with a break between 2020 and 2022 - the RUF is one of the main rankings of Brazilian higher education.
According to the organizers, the annual evaluation takes into account national and international data on Brazilian universities, as well as the results of Datafolha surveys. The overall score for each university is obtained using the Research, Teaching, Innovation, Internationalization and Market indicators. More information about the ranking and the methodology used can be found on the RUF 2024 website.
In 2024, a total of 112 Brazilian public universities were evaluated - 68 federal, 39 state and five municipal - and 92 private institutions. The University of São Paulo (USP) is once again in the lead, followed by the University of Campinas (Unicamp) and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). The top three is the same as in the 2023 edition.
Ranked by the RUF among the 24 best universities in Brazil, UEM has also achieved significant results in international rankings. Earlier this month, the University was also elected the best state university in Paraná by QS World, organized by the British consulting firm Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). The publication also ranked UEM as the 82nd best Higher Education Institution in South America.