1. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Times Higher - QS World University Rankings Mahidol: Rankings, performance and branding Ben Sowter Head of Research QS Mahidol University, Bangkok 4 April 2008

2. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Graduated in Computer Science from University of Nottingham in 2000  Union Prize  Chair, Nottingham University Debating Society  Spent 3 months on work placement in northern India in 1999  Worked for international student charity – AIESEC – for two years after graduation  2 nd Year as UK National President  Operated on international strategic development team  Joined QS in 2002 Speaker Introduction

3. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Explain new developments in research methodology  Understand results and their implications for Mahidol  Understand performance measurement and ways to identify strategic improvement  Recommendations for progression of international brand  Collect feedback and input Objectives

4. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Session Flow

5. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) NEW DEVELOPMENTS THE – QS World University Rankings

6. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Reviewers prevented from selecting their own institution  Impact on institutions from countries with good response but low number of institutions from which to select Peer Review

7. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Enable institutions to interact with our data  Submission  Validation  Track history  Explanatory notes fields Implementation of online system

8. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  All personnel metrics based on FTE  If no FTE data is available an average is calculated based on national or regional norms  FTE numbers are a more accurate measure of an institution’s commitment to teaching and research Full Time Equivalent (FTE)

9. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Switch to Scopus

10. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  No viable alternative to Thomson in 2004  ESI not a thorough interpretation of Web of Science  Work with Evidence/Thomson led to many universities missing data  Main benefits of WoS relate to older data – particularly pre-1996  Scopus stronger journal representation outside US  Scopus tracks some non-English content  Access to much greater data detail Switch to Scopus

11. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Method used in various domestic rankings such as The Times (UK)  Stabilise data year on year  More accurate application of weightings throughout the sample  Smoothes any anomalies that remain  Essentially smoothes the curve for each individual indicator Z-Score Aggregation

12. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) The Effect of Z-Score Application on Rankings Indicators

13. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) 1.Online System  More thorough and complete data all the way down the list  Less need for averages 2.Peer Review  Countries with disproportionately high response but a small number of institutions lose unnatural advantage 3.FTE Data  Universities with particularly high or low numbers for part-time will be influenced 4.Scopus  Less pronounced bias towards US and English speaking world 5.Z-Score aggregation  Less advantage for the best institutions in lower weighted indicators  Increased stability year on year Effects of 2007 developments…

14. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  In understanding and using any ranking, it essential to develop a full understanding of what they are measuring  THE & QS are committed to:  Being open with our methods and data wherever possible  Engaging with universities and other stakeholders to help them understand the rankings  Providing as much qualitative information in support of the rankings as possible NOTE

15. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) THE RESULTS THE – QS World University Rankings

16. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Comparing Results THE – QS 1Harvard 2=Cambridge 2=Yale 2=Oxford 5Imperial 6Princeton 7=Caltech 7=Chicago 8UCL 10MIT SHANGHAI 1.Harvard 2.Stanford 3.Berkeley 4.Cambridge 5.MIT 6.Caltech 7.Columbia 8.Princeton 9.Chicago 10.Oxford WEBOMETRICS 1.MIT 2.Stanford 3.Harvard 4.Penn State 5.Berkeley 6.Michigan 7.Wisconsin 8.Minnesota 9.Illinois 10.Cornell

17. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Thailand Results RANK IN REGION2007 RANK 2006 RANK INSTITUTION NAME PEER REVIEW RECRUITER REVIEW FACULTY STUDENT CITATIONS PER FACULTY INT'L FACULTY INT'L STUDENTS OVERALL 52223161=CHULALONGKORN University71704624261452.3 70284=322=MAHIDOL University39477334281744.7 118401-500404=KASETSART University ------- 118401-500317=THAMMASAT University ------- 130401-500418=CHIANG MAI University ------- 160500+481PRINCE OF SONGKLA University ------- 164500+475KHON KAEN University -------

18. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Average Positions for Asian Institutions in the Top 500

19. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Faculty Level: Thailand  Arts & Humanities  Chula (136)  Thammasat (242=)  Chiang Mai (396)  Engineering & IT  Chula (100)  Chiang Mai (335=)  Mahidol (335=)  Kasetsart (346)  Life Sciences & Biomedicine  Mahidol (118)  Chula (138)  Kasetsart (266)  Khon Kaen (273=)  Pronce of Songkla (307)  Chiang Mai (347)  Thammasat (353)  Natural Sciences  Chula (159)  Chiang Mai (257)  Mahidol (295=)  Kasetsart (309)  Social Sciences  Chula (83=)  Thammasat (197=)  Mahidol (303)  Chiang Mai (371=)

20. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Available at www.topuniversities.com www.topuniversities.com  Top 100 for the following subject areas  Arts & Humanities  Engineering & IT  Life Sciences & BioMedicine  Natural Sciences  Social Sciences  World’s oldest universities  Year on year results The Results

21. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT THE – QS World University Rankings

22. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Identify institutions with similar characteristics domestically or internationally  Understand comparative performance in much greater detail than the published results permit  Identify key strategies for development QS Top Universities Benchmarking

23. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) INTERNATIONAL BRANDING THE – QS World University Rankings

24. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)

25. Online marketing  Promote  Reach global market  Use institutional and other ‘voices’  Optimize  Reduce administration  Utilise staff expertise effectively  Engage  Tune messages by segment  Be responsive to applicants  Measure  Track marketing campaigns  React to market changes

26. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Who are “Generation Y”?  Impatient  Team players  Hungry for feedback  Don’t hold back  Fearless of technology  Seek stimulation  Believe in themselves  Sceptical  Street smart

27. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  97% own a computer  94% own a cell phone  76% use Instant Messaging.  15% of IM users are logged on 24 hours a day  34% use websites as primary source of news  28% own a blog and 44% read blogs  49% download music using file sharing  75% of US students have a Facebook account  60% own portable music or video device e.g. iPod Who are “Generation Y”? Source: Connecting to the Net.Generation: What Higher Education Professionals Need to Know About Today's College Students, Reynol Junco and Jeanna Mastrodicasa (2007)

28. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Life-cycle marketing INTERESTED CANDIDATE ENQUIRER APPLICATION STARTED APPLICATION SUBMITTED PLACE OFFERED OFFER ACCEPTED

29. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Search engines all work differently and change frequently  2 main factors: Web site itself and incoming links  Ensure site is search engine friendly – but avoid using tricks  Titles, headlines, content, meta tags  Site maps used extensively by search engines  Page titles should also attract human users: clear & provocative  Research keywords and phrases used by your prospects  2 to 4 words usually less competitive  Include synonyms, plurals and misspellings  Keyword tools  Wordtracker, Yahoo! Suggestion Tool, Google Tool  Look at search words contained in your traffic logs  Links  Number, reputation and popularity  Industry hubs and directories  Press releases and free articles or feeds  Blogs, Forums and Social Networking SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)

30. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Paid Advertising  Three common pricing structures  CPM: Cost per thousand impressions  PPC: Cost per click  CPA: Cost per action (e.g. affiliate partners)  Keyword bidding  Typically 20 to 30 phrases or 300 to 400 “tail terms”  Use variety of word sequences and action words  Long terms (e.g. 4 words) offer better conversion rates  Use of others’ trademarks and names currently accepted  Congruency of landing pages

31. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Paid Advertising  Numbers are important

32. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) www.topuniversities.com

33.  Over 1,180,000 visits in 2007  Over 6,000 visits per day in 2008  Increasingly strong prominence in Google & Yahoo searches  Ranked 53,626 in Alexa  Home of the THE – QS World University Rankings  Institution Profiles  Detailed study abroad information www.topuniversities.com

34. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Banner advertising tips  Identify and measure objectives  Branding  Traffic  Conversion  Media plan  Target market  Related sites  Sites with similar demographics  Design  Clear message – 7 words or less  Eye catching but not obtrusive  Don’t overdo animation  Test

35. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Earning trust

36. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  Define proposition(s) based on market segment and stage of lifecycle  Differentiators, USPs, value and proof points  Messages to attract – then support and convert  Identify tangible objectives and measurements for each campaign  Branding  Conversion  Message content  Keep it simple with a clear call to action  Ensure relevance of landing page(s)  E-mail design  Keep it simple – limit use of images  Check spelling and grammar  Privacy and security  Opt in / Opt out  Restrict access to personal data E-mail marketing

37. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Online applications  But we already have an application form

38. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Online applications  Market adoption Source: QS Research – Web Survey

39. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com)  When people who are aware of your brand online need to recognise it when they see it  Print  People  On campus Online Offline Parity

40. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) CONCLUDING REMARKS… THE – QS World University Rankings

41. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) “ ” Education is not about filling a pail, it’s about lighting a fire WB Yeats

42. Copyright © 2008 QS Top Universities (www.topuniversities.com) Thank You Ben Sowter ben@qsnetwork.com