There's something seriously odd about these rankings. How on earth did Charles Darwin University outrank the University of Tasmania, Griffith, Curtin, Deakin, Flinders, La Trobe, UniSA ... hell, I'm surprised that Charles Darwin University outranked any Australian institution. Is there something about the place that they've been keeping a secret?

Seriously, though. The problem, in my opinion, is that rankings such as this one oversimplify universities. They try to rank them as a body rather than a set of discrete bodies. The School of Medicine at one university may be shocking, but the School of Business grand. The research output may be awe-inspiring, but the teaching atrocious. The reputation may be terrific, but the university may have ridden on that reputation for too long and, as a result, not have too much left to offer.

It's been my experience that some of the lesser universities trying to make a name for themselves tend to be among the best places to study. Without pretty sandstone buildings and a big name to ride on, some work doubly hard to earn - and keep - students. I've studied at a few institutions, and I'd say that Griffith and Macquarie both punch above their weight. The trouble is, if they rise too high in the rankings, they might become complacent and lose that edge.

oto,

I suspect menzies school of health research would have a lot to do with charles darwin making it. I suspect CDU would also be ok in indigenous research. On other areas I'm not so sure...

Oto,

I think Charles Darwin University has done very well in health, education and community studies. Thus, higher rank from the previous years.

Thanks dane and moburne. In truth, my comment was tongue-in-cheek. What you say seems to be in line with my second post: universities that are trying to make a name for themselves often do wonderful things that may well go unnoticed in a nation where the Group of 8 dominates. I was actually surprised that James Cook Uni didn't make the cut. While the 'elite' kids here in Townsville all tend to pack their bags and head for the south when they finish school, JCU seems to offer a lot and has wisely focused much of its attention on matters relevant to the region: indigenous health, tropical medicine (and other tropical sciences), marine archaeology (rather than classical archaeology) and so on. Perhaps these fields are overlooked, perhaps they aren't especially valued in the 'serious' world of academia - after all, they are nice markets of little interest to the frosty types in Europe, Britain and North America.

Agree with you. Why JCU didn't make it? It's clearly one of the leaders in fields such as marine science and biology.