University retains top ranking for Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

The University of Edinburgh retained joint 1st position in the world for its contribution to Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure in the Times Higher Education Impact rankings 2025.

THE Impact Rankings 2025 logo

The University's overall ranking has risen to 71st out of 2,318 institutions, placing it in the top 5% of universities globally.

The University placed in the top 25% of institutions for its commitment toward 11 of the individual UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, SDG 15: Life on Land, and SDG 17: Partnership for the Goals.

The Times Higher Education Impact Rankings assess the social, environmental and economic impact of universities, ranking their performance against the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Leading innovation

SDG 9 focuses on the need to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation.

The University is one of 11 institutions, and the only UK university, to score 100 out of 100 for its contribution to this SDG. The factors deciding this result include a university's research, patents citing the university's research, research income from industry and number of spin outs.

Last year, Edinburgh Innovations, the University of Edinburgh’s commercialisation service, supported the launch of 127 staff and student companies, attracting £141m of investment. Industrial and translational research projects brought in £151m of funding.

  • Exergy3 founders: Dr Markus Rondé and Dr Adam Robinson at Annandale distillery. Credit: Sam Christie.
  • The CGEN team: Mike Galbraith, Joe Burchell, Markus Mueller. Credit: Mocean Energy.
  • Douglas Martin, MilAlgae

Amongst the year’s successes, student startup MiAlgae secured £14 million for its sustainable omega-3 for fish feed, produced by biologically engineering co-products from the whisky industry. MiAlgae was also a finalist in the Earthshot global environmental prize.

Spinout CGEN Engineering launched with modular generator technology that can improve the efficiency and lifespan of renewable energy wind turbines, and Exergy 3’s high temperature industrial energy storage system was installed at Annandale distillery in the west of Scotland.

As part of its Research and Innovation Strategy 2030, the University launched a pioneering Innovation Career Pathway, formalising innovation alongside teaching and research in terms of academic career development.

An independent economic impact report in 2023 found the University supports more than 32,760 jobs across the UK. Researchers working with businesses and the public sector to address global challenges in the University’s focus areas of climate, data and health generated £350m for the UK economy. 

Dr Andrea Taylor, CEO of Edinburgh Innovations, the University’s commercialisation service, said:

The University of Edinburgh has world-leading research, a track record in major therapeutics and life sciences spinouts, and emerging technologies in areas like cell and gene therapy, semiconductors and engineering biology. We also have the expertise to translate discoveries into world-changing innovations.

We do this by protecting and licensing our technologies, working with our industry partners and supporting students and staff to form companies to turn their ideas into societal benefits.

We recently announced the Innovation Career Pathway, a new route to career development for academics wishing to focus on commercialisation and engagement with industry.

All of this activity is helping us consolidate our position as a world-leader in innovation, and to find solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.

Dr Andrea Taylor CEO of Edinburgh Innovations, the University’s commercialisation service

As an early signatory to the environmental sustainability of research and innovation practice, the University has committed to carrying out research and innovation activities sustainably.

Sustainable research and innovation practice

Commitment to sustainability and social impact

Through its Strategy 2030 vision, the University remains committed to embedding environmental and social sustainability across every aspect of the its activities; from research and innovation, to teaching and learning and the University’s operations and estate.

The University has been recognised for its sustainability and social impact performance by the QS World Rankings (Sustainability), ranking 7th globally and 2nd in the UK.

University of Edinburgh ranked 7th globally for sustainability 

This summer the University will be releasing its SDG Stories of Impact, a publication which sets outs its contribution to society through the lens of each of the UN SDGs.

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