LSMU Strengthens its Leading Position in Study Field Rankings: Medicine Taking the Lead

The Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (LSMU) has not only maintained but also strengthened its stable top position among the country’s universities. Another metric has also improved – employers hold an increasingly favourable view of LSMU graduates. This was revealed in the 11th comparative evaluation of university study fields presented by the magazine Reitingai.

Compared to the excellent results of the previous study field rankings, LSMU retained stable positions in 17 out of the 20 study fields evaluated and moved up in three study fields. Among the highlighted indicators is the even better opinion about the LSMU graduates among the employers and a reduced dropout rate among students.

Leadership in Health-Related Fields

In the latest rankings, LSMU confidently leads in the group of integrated studies related to Health Sciences. This year, the university also excels in the Medicine study field, scoring 87.2 points, and has retained top positions in the study fields of Odontology (93.35), Pharmacy (89.1), and Veterinary Medicine.

These achievements are particularly significant as the rankings allocated 20 points of the total weight for master’s degree evaluations to employer opinions and another 20 to the quality of research in the field. The results of the comparative expert evaluation of research fields by the Research Council of Lithuania underscore LSMU’s leadership in medicine and health sciences nationally and its accomplishments in highly rated fields such as biology, veterinary sciences, and animal science.

In Bachelor’s degree programmes, LSMU holds leading positions in Nursing and Midwifery (93.84) and Oral Care. In Master’s degree studies, it leads in Nursing and Midwifery (84.92) and Rehabilitation (57.7) within the Health Sciences field.

Evaluation criteria included the number of school leavers achieving high scores (86-100) in state exams who chose a particular university, as well as the number of students admitted to state-funded or non-funded places. The lowest entry score and average entry score were also considered, along with the number of students who discontinued their studies. This year, a new metric was introduced – the average income of 2023 graduates 12 months after graduation.

Excellent Study Conditions

According to LSMU Vice-Rector for Studies, Professor Kęstutis Petrikonis, LSMU’s consistently high positions in national and international rankings are the result of the preceding strategic decisions.

“The university has prioritised process optimisation and enhancement of the study quality, and the results of these planned efforts from several years ago are now evident,” noted the Vice-Rector.

Professor Kęstutis Petrikonis also emphasised that LSMU’s progress will continue: the plans include further improvements to study infrastructure, increase in the range of student practical activities, modern knowledge acquisition methods, and enhanced student services.

The university’s scientific and educational base is steadily expanding. This year saw the opening of an impressive new building of the Faculty of Nursing, with plans for state-of-the-art Medicine and Odontology faculty buildings and Lithuania’s largest animal hospital. The aspired high-quality study facilities and improved conditions for staff are expected to lead to even stronger LSMU performance indicators in the future.

LSMU – a Specialised University

This year, the Reitingai magazine evaluated around 90 Bachelor’s and integrated study programmes across universities.

LSMU’s sustainable leadership in health sciences is particularly significant as it is a specialised university, offering studies in just 20 of the ranked fields. It does not offer any study programmes in areas such as law, engineering, or mathematics, which are also covered by the rankings.

Each year, Reitingai also publishes rankings of Lithuanian gymnasiums providing secondary education. LSMU Gymnasium achieved excellent results, ranking as the best in Lithuania for Lithuanian language proficiency and fourth in chemistry and English language proficiency.