2019 tables: Institutions - physical sciences

The 2019 tables are based on Nature Index data from 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2018.

Table criteria

# Institution Share 2017 Share 2018 Count 2018 Change in Adjusted Share* 2017–2018
1 University of Cambridge, United Kingdom (UK) 145.72 141.98 497 -7.9%
2 University of Oxford, United Kingdom (UK) 116.49 111.51 431 -9.5%
3 Imperial College London (ICL), United Kingdom (UK) 76.47 82.54 396 2.0%
4 University of Southampton (Soton), United Kingdom (UK) 42.82 54.85 215 21.1%
5 Durham University, United Kingdom (UK) 44.80 50.88 122 7.4%
6 UCL, United Kingdom (UK) 42.57 44.20 230 -1.8%
7 The University of Manchester (UoM), United Kingdom (UK) 39.72 39.47 243 -6.1%
8 University of Bristol (UoB), United Kingdom (UK) 27.99 30.33 215 2.5%
9 King's College London (KCL), United Kingdom (UK) 30.17 30.19 146 -5.4%
10 The University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom (UK) 31.67 28.97 226 -13.5%
11 The University of Warwick (Warwick), United Kingdom (UK) 28.26 25.63 183 -14.2%
12 The University of Nottingham (UoN), United Kingdom (UK) 24.51 24.51 62 -5.4%
13 Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), United Kingdom (UK) 15.88 23.51 148 40.0%
14 UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), United Kingdom (UK) 22.51 22.96 396 -3.6%
15 University of Leeds, United Kingdom (UK) 12.88 20.27 58 48.8%
16 University of Birmingham (UB), United Kingdom (UK) 17.28 19.72 190 8.0%
17 University of St Andrews, United Kingdom (UK) 14.59 18.13 64 17.5%
18 University of Glasgow, United Kingdom (UK) 24.78 18.05 179 -31.1%
19 University of Exeter, United Kingdom (UK) 18.21 14.98 43 -22.2%
20 The University of Sheffield, United Kingdom (UK) 19.87 14.21 123 -32.4%
21 University of York, United Kingdom (UK) 8.78 14.03 55 51.1%
22 Swansea University, United Kingdom (UK) 16.58 13.62 39 -22.4%
23 University of Liverpool, United Kingdom (UK) 17.65 13.41 184 -28.1%
24 University of Sussex, United Kingdom (UK) 16.24 10.54 90 -38.6%
25 Queen's University Belfast (QUB), United Kingdom (UK) 10.78 9.46 42 -17.1%
26 Heriot-Watt University, United Kingdom (UK) 11.63 9.28 35 -24.5%
27 Lancaster University, United Kingdom (UK) 8.93 9.14 115 -3.3%
28 University of Bath, United Kingdom (UK) 6.60 8.96 28 28.4%
29 University of Strathclyde, United Kingdom (UK) 10.13 7.34 39 -31.5%
30 Newcastle University, United Kingdom (UK) 6.74 5.91 21 -17.1%
31 National Physical Laboratory (NPL), United Kingdom (UK) 4.61 5.28 33 8.2%
32 University of Surrey, United Kingdom (UK) 9.08 5.21 24 -45.7%
33 University of London - Royal Holloway (RHUL), United Kingdom (UK) 6.17 4.96 96 -24.1%
34 University of Hertfordshire (UH), United Kingdom (UK) 2.16 4.19 14 83.1%
35 University of Leicester, United Kingdom (UK) 3.01 3.95 20 24.1%
36 Cardiff University, United Kingdom (UK) 5.67 3.28 28 -45.3%
37 City, University of London (CUL), United Kingdom (UK) 1.45 3.04 9 98.4%
38 Keele University, United Kingdom (UK) 1.48 2.75 13 76.4%
39 Armagh Observatory, United Kingdom (UK) 1.30 2.53 7 83.9%
40 University of Reading, United Kingdom (UK) 1.43 2.53 8 66.6%
41 Loughborough University, United Kingdom (UK) 6.79 2.46 10 -65.8%
42 Coventry University, United Kingdom (UK) 2.33 5 N/A
43 University of Portsmouth, United Kingdom (UK) 4.70 2.12 11 -57.4%
44 University of Plymouth, United Kingdom (UK) 2.49 2.07 6 -21.4%
45 The Francis Crick Institute, United Kingdom (UK) 1.56 1.88 7 14.5%
46 Northumbria University, United Kingdom (UK) 3.78 1.66 5 -58.4%
47 Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom (UK) 1.10 1.65 3 41.9%
48 NERC British Antarctic Survey (BAS), United Kingdom (UK) 0.03 1.64 7 4397.3%
49 Aston University, United Kingdom (UK) 3.70 1.39 6 -64.6%
50 UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), United Kingdom (UK) 0.81 1.37 11 59.8%
51 University of Kent, United Kingdom (UK) 1.84 1.36 7 -30.3%
52 Wellcome Sanger Institute, United Kingdom (UK) 0.33 1.19 6 241.8%
53 The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), United Kingdom (UK) 1.19 3 N/A
54 London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), United Kingdom (UK) 0.02 1.15 2 5554.2%
55 University of Dundee, United Kingdom (UK) 0.72 1.13 9 48.2%
56 University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom (UK) 2.10 1.11 7 -50.0%
57 AstraZeneca plc, United Kingdom (UK) 0.52 1.09 6 98.1%
58 IQE plc, United Kingdom (UK) 0.37 1.07 3 177.1%
59 The Open University (OU), United Kingdom (UK) 1.43 1.06 8 -29.7%
60 Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), United Kingdom (UK) 2.16 0.94 13 -58.7%
61 University of Lincoln, United Kingdom (UK) 0.04 0.87 2 2042.3%
62 University of East Anglia (UEA), United Kingdom (UK) 3.35 0.81 11 -77.2%
63 Anglo American plc, United Kingdom (UK) 0.60 0.77 4 22.0%
64 Met Office, United Kingdom (UK) 1.30 0.75 2 -45.6%
65 The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom (UK) 0.74 5 N/A
66 Birkbeck, University of London (BBK), United Kingdom (UK) 0.70 0.71 5 -3.2%
67 NERC National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS), United Kingdom (UK) 0.18 0.68 3 254.8%
68 Cranfield University, United Kingdom (UK) 0.16 0.60 4 252.6%
69 University of the West of Scotland (UWS), United Kingdom (UK) 0.20 0.59 12 185.0%
70 John Innes Centre (JIC), United Kingdom (UK) 0.56 0.57 1 -3.1%
71 Unilever, United Kingdom (UK) 0.65 0.56 3 -18.2%
72 University of Central Lancashire (UCLan), United Kingdom (UK) 0.27 0.56 4 99.8%
73 NERC Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH), United Kingdom (UK) 0.51 0.55 2 2.1%
74 Sheffield Hallam University (SHU), United Kingdom (UK) 0.62 0.54 2 -17.8%
75 Cambridge Display Technology Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.50 0.53 2 0.3%
76 Dyson Technology Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.50 1 N/A
77 University of Hull, United Kingdom (UK) 1.94 0.45 4 -78.1%
78 British Geological Survey (BGS), United Kingdom (UK) 0.86 0.37 4 -59.3%
79 University of Ulster (UU), United Kingdom (UK) 1.59 0.37 2 -78.2%
80 Brunel University London, United Kingdom (UK) 0.59 0.35 97 -43.4%
81 MIP Diagnostics Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.14 0.30 1 98.6%
81 Royal Veterinary College, University of London (RVC), United Kingdom (UK) 0.91 0.30 1 -68.9%
82 Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), United Kingdom (UK) 0.29 4 N/A
83 Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust, United Kingdom (UK) 0.29 4 N/A
83 Salford Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), United Kingdom (UK) 0.29 4 N/A
83 Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom (UK) 0.29 4 N/A
84 University of Brighton, United Kingdom (UK) 0.24 0.27 2 8.2%
85 Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust, United Kingdom (UK) 0.27 3 N/A
86 Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, United Kingdom (UK) 0.26 2 N/A
87 University of Wolverhampton, United Kingdom (UK) 0.09 0.26 3 179.7%
88 Iota Sciences Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.25 1 N/A
89 University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH), United Kingdom (UK) 0.09 0.25 3 156.7%
90 University of Salford, United Kingdom (UK) 0.37 0.23 2 -41.0%
91 Johnson Matthey (JM), United Kingdom (UK) 0.96 0.23 6 -77.7%
92 Natural History Museum, United Kingdom (UK) 0.34 0.22 2 -38.6%
93 University of Essex, United Kingdom (UK) 0.10 0.20 1 89.1%
93 University of London - Goldsmiths, United Kingdom (UK) 0.20 1 N/A
94 GlaxoSmithKline plc. (GSK), United Kingdom (UK) 0.20 0.19 1 -8.1%
95 NHS Lothian, United Kingdom (UK) 0.19 4 N/A
96 NERC National Oceanography Centre (NOC), United Kingdom (UK) 0.65 0.18 3 -73.6%
97 Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), United Kingdom (UK) 0.40 0.17 1 -60.6%
97 Oxford Nanopore Technologies Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.25 0.17 1 -37.0%
97 BAE Systems, United Kingdom (UK) 0.68 0.17 1 -76.9%
97 UltraVision CLPL, United Kingdom (UK) 0.17 1 N/A
97 London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), United Kingdom (UK) 0.17 1 N/A
97 Telespazio Vega U.K. Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.17 1 N/A
97 University of Derby, United Kingdom (UK) 0.17 1 N/A
97 MediSieve Limited, United Kingdom (UK) 0.17 1 N/A
97 iQur Ltd., United Kingdom (UK) 0.17 1 N/A
98 Nanoforce Technology Limited, United Kingdom (UK) 0.33 0.15 1 -58.3%
99 Meggitt PLC, United Kingdom (UK) 0.25 0.14 1 -46.0%
100 Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom (UK) 0.13 2 N/A

Footnote

Each year, the Nature Index publishes tables based on counts of high-quality research outputs in the previous calendar year. Users please note:

  1. The data behind the tables are based on a relatively small proportion of total research papers, they cover the natural sciences only and outputs are non-normalized (that is, they don’t reflect the size of the country or institution, or its overall research output).
  2. The Nature Index is one indicator of institutional research performance. The metrics of Count and Share used to order Nature Index listings are based on an institution’s or country’s publication output in 82 natural-science journals through 2022, in 2023 64 health-science journals were added to the Index. The 146 journals in the Nature Index were selected on reputation by an independent panel of leading scientists in their fields.
  3. Nature Index recognizes that many other factors must be taken into account when considering research quality and institutional performance; Nature Index metrics alone should not be used to assess institutions or individuals.
  4. Nature Index data and methods are transparent and available under a creative commons licence at nature.com/nature-index/.
  5. Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

The Nature Index database undergoes regular updating, corrections, adjustment of institutional hierarchies, and removal of retracted papers and thus the live website can differ from the frozen annual tables.

*The change in adjusted Share accounts for the small annual variation in the total number of articles in Nature Index journals. Share values have been adjusted to 2022 levels to calculate the percentage change. For more information on the adjustment, please see the Adjusted metric explainer.