Goldsmith’s Department of Media and CommunicationsPic: Yuvan Kumar

Goldsmiths University’s Department of Media and Communications has been ranked eighth in the QS World University Rankings 2017.

The rankings, which were released on Wednesday (March 8), show a leap of 19 places from 2016, when Goldsmiths was ranked 27th.

QS Rankings are based on data for academic reputation, employer reputation, research citations per paper and H-index (research impact).

Sean Cubitt, co-head of the Media and Communications Department at Goldsmiths, told Eastlondonlines: “The QS rankings are special because they include a major component of international esteem from our peers across the world.

“Goldsmiths Media and Communications is so highly regarded because of the brilliant work of staff and students here in SE14 and internationally.”

Goldsmiths Media and Communications Department is in its 38th year and has established itself nationally and globally as one of the leaders in the field.

Lisa Blackman, co-head of the Media and Communications Department, said: “I have worked at Goldsmiths for over 25 years having studied for a PhD here in the early 1990s and have always been proud of being part of the Goldsmiths community.

“The hike in our world-rankings is testament to how effective our vision for studying media and communications is and for how much we shape the field. We look forward to welcoming more students into our community and setting the agenda for the future.”

This year, UK universities were ranked at the top in eight subject tables in international rankings by QS. The University of Sussex replaced Harvard University in the development studies table, re-taking the number one position.

Loughborough University is ranked the world’s joint best university for the study of sports-related subjects. The University of Oxford, however, is the UK’s biggest winner this year – bagging four number one positions, a feat achieved by only Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology before.