{"id":1507,"date":"2022-05-12T16:32:10","date_gmt":"2022-05-12T15:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ris\/?p=1507"},"modified":"2025-05-19T16:33:06","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T15:33:06","slug":"kent-celebrates-outstanding-ref-2021-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ris\/2022\/05\/12\/kent-celebrates-outstanding-ref-2021-results\/","title":{"rendered":"Kent celebrates outstanding REF 2021 results"},"content":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021<\/a>\u00a0has confirmed Kent as a leading research university, with the majority of our submissions rated as world-leading (4*) or internationally excellent (3*). The University has also risen 11 places to 38 in the\u00a0Times Higher Education<\/em>\u2019s (THE) ranking<\/a>\u00a0for overall research quality in the REF.<\/p>\n

The University has eight subjects ranked by the THE in the top ten for research quality (Architecture<\/a>;\u00a0Classics<\/a>;\u00a0History<\/a>;\u00a0Law<\/a>;\u00a0Philosophy<\/a>;\u00a0Social Work\u00a0and\u00a0Social Policy<\/a>;\u00a0Theology<\/a>;\u00a0Music, Drama and Film and Screen studies<\/a>), with a further seven subjects in the top 25 (Anthropology<\/a>,\u00a0Biological Sciences<\/a>,\u00a0Computer Science<\/a>,\u00a0Economics and Econometrics<\/a>;\u00a0English Language and Literature<\/a>;\u00a0Geography and Environmental Studies<\/a>; and\u00a0Modern Languages and Linguistics<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Long recognised as a university that engages with its external communities, stakeholders and the world beyond academia, Kent also has 10 subjects in the sector\u2019s top quartile for world-class (4*) impact. These are: Biological Sciences; Classics (maximum score); History (maximum score); Law; Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies (maximum score); Philosophy;\u00a0Politics and International Studies<\/a>; Social Work and Social Policy;\u00a0Sport and Exercise Science<\/a>s; and Theology and Religious Studies (maximum score).<\/p>\n

Responding to the University\u2019s performance,\u00a0Professor Shane Weller<\/a>, Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation, said: \u2018We are extremely proud of our results. They clearly demonstrate that Kent continues to produce research that not only informs and underpins our teaching at all levels but also makes a very clear and significant difference to lives and livelihoods regionally, nationally and internationally.<\/p>\n

\u2018I would like to thank all our academic and professional services staff who participated in REF 2021. These results testify to a strong communal culture and to the efforts of so many people, staff and students alike. They have a lot to celebrate, and I very much look forward to building on this remarkable success with them.\u2019<\/p>\n

For REF 2021, Kent summitted to 26 of the exercise\u2019s 34 Units of Assessment, three more than in 2014. Across the submission,\u202f1,688\u202fresearch outputs were submitted from\u202f830 Kent staff, along with\u202f78 impact case studies. 100% of all eligible staff were submitted to the REF.<\/p>\n

The impact of Kent\u2019s research and researchers span the arts and humanities, sciences, and social sciences, with our recognised strengths in:<\/p>\n