Research Assessment Exercise 2008 results
The University of York performed superbly in the RAE 2008:
- Results placed the University among the ten leading institutions in the UK for research
- Almost all departments in the top 20
- 90% + staff submission rate.
Departmental results
| Department | RAE comment |
|---|---|
| ARCHAEOLOGY | Ranked 6th for 4* research, and with 90% of research judged to be of 'international' standard. |
| BIOLOGY | Ranked equal 1st among broad spectrum bioscience departments in the UK for quality that was judged to be world-leading. |
| CHEMISTRY | Ranked 3rd among UK chemistry departments, with 75% of research assessed as internationally excellent. |
| COMPUTER SCIENCE | Confirmed as a leading research department in the last three RAEs, and in the top 10 in 2008 for 'research power'. |
| ECONOMICS | Ranked 8th for 'research power', and a strong performer in all previous RAEs. |
| EDUCATIONAL STUDIES | Ranked in the top 10 of education departments in the UK. |
| ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING | The majority of research assessed as 'world-leading' or 'internationally excellent', with excellent 'output' scores. |
| ENGLISH | Ranked 1st. Officially recognised as the UK's best Department of English for research. |
| ENVIRONMENT | 60% of research assessed as world-leading or internationally excellent. |
| HEALTH ECONOMICS | York ranked 1st for health services research. |
| HEALTH SCIENCES | Ranked joint 1st for health services research, and 4th for nursing and midwifery. |
| HISTORY | A majority of research rated 'internationally excellent' or 'world-leading'. |
| HISTORY OF ART | The RAE places York 2nd for 4*, or 'world-leading', research in History of Art. |
| LANGUAGE AND LINGUISTICS | Ranked 2nd in the UK for linguistic research with a high proportion of staff entered. |
| YORK MANAGEMENT SCHOOL | One of the highest scores among small research intensive business schools in the 2008 RAE. |
| MATHEMATICS | Assessed for both pure and applied research, and scoring highly in both categories. |
| MUSIC | Ranked joint 2nd for 4*, or world-class, research in the 2008 RAE. |
| PHILOSOPHY | Another top 20 department, with over half of research measured as world-leading or internationally excellent. |
| PHYSICS | Another top 20 department with over half of research of internationally excellent or world-leading quality. |
| POLITICS | A top 20 department for research quality in the UK, and consistently strong in successive RAEs. |
| PSYCHOLOGY | Ranked 6th in the UK, and a strong performer in all previous RAEs. |
| REVIEWS AND DISSEMINATION | York ranked 1st for health services research. |
| SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIAL WORK | Social Policy and Social Work at York ranked 5th in the UK by the 2008 RAE. |
| SOCIOLOGY | Ranked joint 1st nationally among UK universities in the 2008 RAE. |
Units of assessment
A full breakdown of the results according to the RAE units of assessment is shown in the table below.
| Unit of Assessment Name | 4* | 3* | 2* | 1* | Unclassified | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Music | 50% | 25% | 20% | 5% | 0% | 3.2 |
| English Language and Literature | 45% | 30% | 20% | 5% | 0% | 3.15 |
| History of Art, Architecture and Design | 45% | 25% | 25% | 5% | 0% | 3.1 |
| Health Services Research | 35% | 40% | 20% | 5% | 0% | 3.05 |
| Nursing and Midwifery | 35% | 35% | 25% | 5% | 0% | 3 |
| Computer Science and Informatics | 25% | 50% | 20% | 5% | 0% | 2.95 |
| Chemistry | 15% | 60% | 25% | 0% | 0% | 2.9 |
| Sociology | 40% | 30% | 35% | 5% | 0% | 2.85 |
| Social Work and Social Policy & Administration | 25% | 40% | 30% | 5% | 0% | 2.85 |
| Linguistics | 20% | 45% | 30% | 5% | 0% | 2.8 |
| Psychology | 20% | 45% | 30% | 5% | 0% | 2.8 |
| Biological Sciences | 25% | 35% | 30% | 10% | 0% | 2.75 |
| Archaeology | 25% | 35% | 30% | 10% | 0% | 2.75 |
| History | 25% | 30% | 40% | 5% | 0% | 2.75 |
| Economics and Econometrics | 15% | 45% | 40% | 0% | 0% | 2.75 |
| Education | 15% | 45% | 30% | 10% | 0% | 2.65 |
| Philosophy | 15% | 40% | 40% | 5% | 0% | 2.65 |
| Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences | 10% | 50% | 35% | 5% | 0% | 2.65 |
| Physics | 15% | 40% | 35% | 10% | 0% | 2.6 |
| Electrical and Electronic Engineering | 10% | 45% | 35% | 10% | 0% | 2.55 |
| Applied Mathematics | 10% | 40% | 45% | 0% | 0% | 2.55 |
| Pure Mathematics | 10% | 35% | 50% | 0% | 0% | 2.5 |
| Business and Management Studies | 10% | 40% | 35% | 0% | 0% | 2.45 |
| Politics and International Studies | 15% | 30% | 30% | 5% | 5% | 2.3 |
| Epidemiology and Public Health | 0% | 30% | 60% | 5% | 0% | 2.2 |
* amount of research activity at each level