Monash and UNSW are each global leaders in four research fields

It’s a measure of the impact that Australian universities have in global research that they are world leaders in 20 different research fields, or 8 per cent of the total.

UNSW and Monash University are the stand outs. Each of them are world leaders in four fields of research.

Also noteworthy, is that fact that the fields in which Australian universities are world leaders are spread across the spectrum of research disciplines. Some. such as Asian Studies & History, are areas in which Australian has long had recognised expertise. The Australian National University is the world leader in this field and, not surprisingly, two other Australian institutions – the University of Melbourne and RMIT University – are second and third.

Other areas of global leadership are in fields where Australia has invested research effort because of our country’s unique challenges. For example, the University of Queensland is the global leader in Water Supply & Treatment (and UTS is third.) The University of Melbourne leads globally in Biodiversity & Conservation Biology, and Curtin University is world leader in Geochemistry & Mineralogy.

This distinction of global leadership in research also extends to health fields – Addiction, AIDS & HIV (UNSW), Nursing (Griffith University), Physical Education & Sports Medicine (Australian Catholic University), Rehabilitation Therapy (Monash University). Then there are the technological fields in which Australian institutions are world leading – Polymers & Plastics (UNSW), Software Systems (University of Melbourne), and Environmental & Geological Engineering (Monash University).

Australian universities that are global leaders in research fields

Addiction UNSW

AIDS & HIV UNSW

Asian Studies & History Australian National University

Audiology, Speech & Language Pathology University of Sydney

Biodiversity & Conservation Biology University of Melbourne

Discrete Mathematics Monash University

Education Deakin University

Environmental & Geological Engineering Monash University

Forensic Science University of Technology Sydney

Game Theory and Decision Science UNSW

Geochemistry & Mineralogy Curtin University

Higher Education Deakin University

International Business Deakin University

Nursing Griffith University

Physical Education & Sports Medicine Australian Catholic University

Polymers & Plastics UNSW

Rehabilitation Therapy Monash University

Reproductive Health Monash University

Software Systems University of Melbourne

Water Supply & Treatment University of Queensland

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