Research Assessment Exercise
Loughborough was confirmed as one of the country's leading research universities in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise. In WEDC’s category (Civil Engineering), Loughborough was ranked 7th in the UK. Research undertaken by WEDC was considered international and of world-leading calibre.
The Research Assessment Exercise is one undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions. Submissions from each subject area (or 'unit of assessment' – UoA) are given a rank by a subject specialist peer review panel. The rankings are used to inform the allocation of quality weighted research funding each higher education institution receives from their national funding council.
Research at Loughborough University has been central to recognition of our "outstanding educational achievement in areas of service and benefit to the nation", which has resulted in the award of six Queen's Anniversary Prizes, unsurpassed in the UK. One of these was for the outstanding contribution WEDC has made to international development.
"WEDC provides outstanding support for developing countries and is internationally recognised as a leader in providing sustainable infrastructure. Its partnerships with universities, aid agencies, non-governmental organisations and governments transcend academic, institutional and cultural boundaries in pursuit of improving the quality of life for those most in need."
Citation for the Queen's Anniversary Prize
for Higher and Further Education
More about the Research Assessment Exercise
http://www.rae.ac.uk/aboutus/
More about the Civil Engineering UoA
http://www.rae.ac.uk/results/qualityProfile.aspx?id=27&type=uoa.
