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University · Belfast · United Kingdom

Queen's University Belfast

In research, Queen's University Belfast stands highest in Health Sciences (#302 of 11,982 worldwide), Social Sciences (#275 of 10,521 worldwide) and Medicine (#332 of 10,443 worldwide), 2022–2025. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Pharmaceutical Science, History and Geriatrics and Gerontology — Pharmaceutical Science is 8.1× its share of world research.

qub.ac.ukROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022–2025
#438
of 28,054 · #299 all time
Rank in United Kingdom
#23
of 1,094
Research works
50k
▲ 12% vs 2013–17
Citations
1.2M
24.7 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
24.2%
record average 16.5%
Open access
37%
world 28%

What is Queen's University Belfast known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022–2025, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Health SciencesDomain #302 of 11,982 23.4%1,445 #292
Social SciencesDomain #275 of 10,521 23.5%2,088 #285
MedicineField #332 of 10,443 23.5%1,111 #325
Physical SciencesDomain #553 of 12,888 23.7%2,199 #248
EngineeringField #309 of 6,636 25.3%884 #264
PsychologyField #116 of 2,181 23.2%313 #301
Social SciencesField #357 of 6,365 23.6%1,109 #287
Life SciencesDomain #533 of 7,800 29.4%727 #526
Sociology and Political ScienceSubfield #247 of 2,578 23.0%444 #196
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational HealthSubfield #92 of 828 24.9%155 —

Each strip is that field’s whole ranked pool, with the notch where Queen's University Belfast sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no world mark, because the world rate differs by field (from about 6% to 21% in this record).

Which of those standings moved

The same fields on both windows: where it stood over the whole record, and where it stands in 2022–2025. The distance is the story, and it is the one thing the two rank columns above cannot show.

  1. Health Sciences#292 #302
  2. Social Sciences#285 #275
  3. Medicine#325 #332
  4. Physical Sciences#248 #553
  5. Engineering#264 #309
  6. Psychology#301 #116
  7. Social Sciences#287 #357
  8. Life Sciences#526 #533
  9. Sociology and Political Science#196 #247
all time2022–2025, better2022–2025, worse

A dot further right is a better standing. Fields it was not ranked in over the whole record are left out.

What does Queen's University Belfast specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Pharmaceutical Science takes 8.1× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Pharmaceutical ScienceSubfield · 55.8 works8.1×
  2. HistorySubfield · 81.2 works3.9×
  3. Geriatrics and GerontologySubfield · 25.1 works3.6×
  4. Small AnimalsSubfield · 28.4 works3.6×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.54× its world share, 166 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.99× its world share, 341 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Immunology and Microbiology: 1.11× its world share, 72 worksImmunology and Micro…Neuroscience: 0.81× its world share, 85 worksNeurosciencePharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics: 2.78× its world share, 63 worksPharmacology, Toxico…Chemical Engineering: 1.81× its world share, 41 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.78× its world share, 79 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.88× its world share, 443 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 0.63× its world share, 64 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.66× its world share, 39 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.91× its world share, 884 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 0.88× its world share, 284 worksEnvironmental ScienceMaterials Science: 0.70× its world share, 159 worksMaterials ScienceMathematics: 0.68× its world share, 52 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 1.07× its world share, 154 worksPhysics and AstronomyDentistry: 0.79× its world share, 25 worksDentistryHealth Professions: 1.48× its world share, 251 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.89× its world share, 1,111 worksMedicineNursing: 0.92× its world share, 29 worksNursingVeterinary: 3.32× its world share, 29 worksVeterinaryArts and Humanities: 1.72× its world share, 320 worksArts and HumanitiesBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.67× its world share, 139 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 0.98× its world share, 61 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 1.06× its world share, 146 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 1.59× its world share, 312 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 1.36× its world share, 1,109 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Veterinary, 3.3×. Every wedge is a field page.

Who are the top researchers at Queen's University Belfast?

Ranked on the composite score, Mike Clarke, Manuel Salto‐Tellez and Daniel F. McAuley lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Queen's University Belfast.

  1. 1 Mike Clarke United Kingdom · #222 worldwide 7.5k citations · 108 works
  2. 2 Manuel Salto‐Tellez United Kingdom · #2,011 worldwide 1.4k citations · 95 works
  3. 3 Daniel F. McAuley United Kingdom · #2,955 worldwide 1.4k citations · 83 works
  4. 4 Philip D. Dunne United Kingdom · #7,641 worldwide 979 citations · 57 works
  5. 5 Liam Murray United Kingdom · #7,911 worldwide 1.1k citations · 55 works
  6. 6 Kenneth R. Seddon United Kingdom · #9,907 worldwide 1.4k citations · 127 works
  7. 7 Paula Reimer United Kingdom · #10,166 worldwide 1.6k citations · 50 works
  8. 8 Bruce Campbell United Kingdom · #10,262 worldwide 788 citations · 91 works
  9. 9 Helen G. Coleman United Kingdom · #10,602 worldwide 1.1k citations · 48 works
  10. 10 Patrick G. Johnston United Kingdom · #10,639 worldwide 693 citations · 57 works
All ranked researchers at Queen's University Belfast

Which keywords describe research at Queen's University Belfast?

By fractional works in 2022–2025, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Nationalism, Identity, Conflict, Transition, Ethnicity, Epidemiology, Globalization and Reconciliation.

▲ more of its work than of the world’s◆ about the world’s share▼ less than the world’s

Size is fractional works in 2022–2025 in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Epidemiology276◆ 1.08×126 topics
  2. Globalization205▲ 1.62×101 topics
  3. Mental Health180▲ 1.90×41 topics
  4. Deep Learning175▼ 0.79×79 topics
  5. Machine Learning174▼ 0.82×79 topics
  6. Identity168▲ 3.6×54 topics
  7. Nationalism160▲ 5.4×23 topics
  8. Public Health156▲ 1.66×59 topics
  9. Climate Change154◆ 0.89×92 topics
  10. Inflammation147◆ 1.10×82 topics
  11. Human Rights139▲ 2.1×50 topics
  12. Ethnicity119▲ 4.9×16 topics
  13. Conflict108▲ 10×10 topics
  14. Environmental Impact104◆ 0.95×46 topics
  15. Nanoparticles102▲ 1.25×37 topics
  16. Transition98▲ 16×6 topics
  17. Quality of Life97◆ 1.04×54 topics
  18. Energy Efficiency90▲ 1.47×30 topics
  19. Healthcare89▲ 1.22×28 topics
  20. Reconciliation89▲ 82×2 topics
  21. History88▲ 1.95×43 topics
  22. Paramilitarism88▲ 67×2 topics
  23. Peace Process88▲ 67×2 topics
  24. Consociationalism87▲ 111×1 topic
  25. Northern Ireland87▲ 111×1 topic
  26. Risk Factors82▲ 1.16×35 topics
  27. Resilience77▲ 2.5×17 topics
  28. Colonialism71▲ 2.3×34 topics
  29. Democracy67▲ 2.9×19 topics
  30. Gender66▲ 1.89×43 topics
  31. Health Disparities60▲ 3.5×9 topics
  32. Ethical Considerations56▲ 2.6×17 topics
  33. Primary Care56▲ 2.3×15 topics
  34. Politics47▲ 2.7×16 topics
  35. Wireless Communications45▲ 3.9×5 topics
  36. Global Governance44▲ 3.0×16 topics
  37. Macular Degeneration39▲ 4.9×3 topics
  38. National Identity38▲ 5.1×6 topics
  39. Diabetic Retinopathy35▲ 5.5×2 topics
  40. Sovereignty34▲ 5.6×9 topics

Which research topics does Queen's University Belfast publish most on?

By volume in 2022–2025: Irish and British Studies, Antenna Design and Analysis, Advancements in Transdermal Drug Delivery and Retinal Diseases and Treatments.

Irish and British Studies87Irish and British Studies: 87 fractional worksAntenna Design and Analysis: 27 fractional worksAdvancements in Transdermal Drug Delivery: 27 fractional worksRetinal Diseases and Tre…23Retinal Diseases and Treatments: 23 fractional worksAdvanced Drug Delivery Systems: 22 fractional worksInnovations in Medical Education: 21 fractional worksAdvanced Wireless Commun…20Advanced Wireless Communication Technologies: 20 fractional worksMigration, Health and Trauma: 19 fractional worksPharmaceutical Practices and Patient Outcomes: 19 fractional worksEuropean and International Law Studies: 18 fractional works
Sociology and Political ScienceAerospace EngineeringPharmaceutical ScienceOphthalmology5 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Irish and British Studies Sociology and Political Science 87 works
  2. 2 Antenna Design and Analysis Aerospace Engineering 27 works
  3. 3 Advancements in Transdermal Drug Delivery Pharmaceutical Science 27 works
  4. 4 Retinal Diseases and Treatments Ophthalmology 23 works
  5. 5 Advanced Drug Delivery Systems Pharmaceutical Science 22 works
  6. 6 Innovations in Medical Education Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health 21 works
  7. 7 Advanced Wireless Communication Technologies Electrical and Electronic Engineering 20 works
  8. 8 Migration, Health and Trauma Clinical Psychology 19 works
  9. 9 Pharmaceutical Practices and Patient Outcomes Geriatrics and Gerontology 19 works
  10. 10 European and International Law Studies Political Science and International Relations 18 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world’s own shares — the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available37.3%not open62.7%

World: 28% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors24.2%domestic only75.8%

World: 19% is written across borders.

How has Queen's University Belfast's research output changed?

Output in 2018–2022 was 12% higher than in 2013–2017.

1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon — one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Other research institutions in Belfast

All research institutions in Belfast

Research measures only: rankings here say nothing about teaching, admissions or student experience. Comparable institutions and collaboration partners are in the interactive view on the map.