TU Dresden scores high in the area of sustainability worldwide. In the current 2024 QS Sustainability Ranking, it placed 181^st, making it one of the top German universities (9^th place).

TUD fared particularly well in the "Knowledge Exchange" category, coming in second best among German universities and an overall 54^th place. In this category, the global collaboration of scientists tackling the challenges of the future as well as the exchange of knowledge and local social commitment are considered in particular.

TU Dresden benefits from the fact that it is not only one of the most research-intensive universities in Germany, but has also established numerous projects for people of all ages in the region in and around Dresden that make science tangible, including the Children's University, the Junior Doctor, the Senior Academy and the Dresden Science Night. Other initiatives are dedicated to topics of the future such as ecological and social sustainability, diversity and a commitment to cosmopolitanism and the fight against racism. This commitment was significantly strengthened by pooling these crucial topics in the Vice-Rectorate University Culture, which was created in 2020.  

Jessica Turner, the CEO of QS, highlights the rising importance of these issues for students: "79 percent of prospective international students consider a university's sustainability practices to be extremely important or very important. Furthermore, 82 percent actively seek information about these practices when looking into universities. This shows a clear shift in priorities among today's students, who are increasingly considering the social and environmental impact of their future alma mater alongside academic excellence."

The ranking
Sustainability is growing in importance for international university rankings. After the major publisher Times Higher Education (THE) dedicated a separate ranking to this aspect in 2019, QS Quacquarelli Symonds followed suit last year and published the QS Sustainability Ranking for the first time. However, the assessment criteria differ significantly between the ranking systems. Around 1,400 universities from 95 countries and territories are represented in the 2024 QS Sustainability Ranking, twice as many as in last year's pilot edition.

Contact:
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