Southern Cross University has been awarded 5 Stars in the prestigious Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Stars, an internationally recognised rating system that evaluates higher education excellence worldwide.
Through independent and in-depth evaluations across dozens of performance indicators that encompass at least nine categories – covering all the components that make a world-class university – QS Stars helps prospective students identify their best-fit universities.
Along with the QS 5 Stars overall award, Southern Cross University achieved 5 Stars in the categories of Employability, Environmental Impact, Facilities, Global Engagement, and Good Governance.
The standout ratings in these categories will come as no surprise to recent graduates. More than 90 per cent of Southern Cross graduates are employed within four months of graduating and the University consistently ranks in the top 10 Australian public universities for graduate employment and median starting salary, according to the Australian Government's Quality Indicators for Teaching and Learning (QILT).
The University has also embarked on a radical reimagining of its foundation campus at Lismore through a Master Plan process that aims to create a carbon net-zero campus by 2035. A similar process will shortly commence at the University's fastest growing campus on the southern Gold Coast.
A 4 Stars rating for research at Southern Cross from QS reflects the growing and significant research profile of the University internationally, particularly in areas such as natural medicines and novel crop development, sports and exercise science and catchment assessment.
Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Mary Spongberg said the latest accolade from QS was a welcome addition to the University's recent results in world rankings.
"It's further proof we are indeed a University on the rise. Last year we had fantastic results in the QS World University Rankings as well as the Times Higher Education World University Rankings where we were positioned in the top 100 Young Universities globally.
"QS's recognition of our facilities and environmental impact, not to mention good governance, also speaks to our commitment to sustainability as a University, not only in the research we undertake but also in our campus and operations management. We are indeed walking the walk."
