The University of Adelaide (Adelaide Uni)

Australia

At the University of Adelaide, we unite and serve those striving to change the world—and themselves—for the better.

Established in 1874, we’re home to over 29,000 students and 3,000 staff, all working to create progress. For our community. For all. Ours is a university of outstanding quality—ranked among the top 1% globally—in the heart of Australia’s most liveable city¹.

Relentlessly progressive

Adelaide was Australia’s first university to welcome female students. The first to offer science and business degrees. The first with a conservatorium of music.

Among those who’ve studied, taught, or conducted research here are Australia’s first female prime minister; the first Australian astronaut to walk in space; our country’s first Indigenous Rhodes Scholar; Australia’s first female Supreme Court judge; and five Nobel Prize winners.

Exceptional education and research

Our bold spirit continues to drive us to excel. In education, we’re recognised among the top 100 universities globally in 23 different subject areas². In nine we’re inside the top 50; in two we’re number one in Australia.

In research, as a member of Australia’s prestigious Group of Eight research-intensive universities, we’re rising to global challenges in a huge range of fields, with work rated ‘well above world standard’ in 41 distinct areas³.

The 2020 Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers list recognised 14 of our current academics for the scale of their global influence—three in multiple fields. Times Higher Education in 2021 ranked us 62 in the world for research citations, and number two nationally.

Since 2001 our academics have received 13 coveted Australian Research Council Federation and Australian Laureate Fellowships. And in recent years we’ve twice had a researcher recognised in MIT Technology Review’s prestigious Innovators Under 35 list⁴. In 2020, we were the only Australian university represented; in 2019 we were one of just two.

¹Economist Intelligence Unit, 2021. ²Total unique entries across QS World University Rankings by Subject, and Academic Ranking of World Universities by Subject, 2021. ³Excellence in Research Australia, 2018 (the most recent assessment date). ⁴Asia Pacific region.

1 May 2020 - 1 April 2021

Region: Global
Subject/journal group: All

The table to the right includes counts of all research outputs for The University of Adelaide (Adelaide Uni) published between 1 May 2020 - 1 April 2021 which are tracked by the Nature Index.

Hover over the donut graph to view the FC output for each subject. Below, the same research outputs are grouped by subject. Click on the subject to drill-down into a list of articles organized by journal, and then by title.

Note: Articles may be assigned to more than one subject area.

Count	Share
257	41.25

Outputs by subject (Share)

Subject	Count	Share
Physical Sciences	111	10.20
Life Sciences	91	9.76
Earth & Environmental Sciences	41	8.55
Chemistry	37	16.52

Highlight of the month

GABA helps plants endure droughts

The molecule GABA enables plants to endure droughts longer since it initiates a previously unknown water-saving mechanism.

Gamma-aminobutyric acid, better known as GABA, is a non-protein amino acid that is part of a key signalling pathway in both plants and animals. Plants accumulate GABA when stressed, but the protein’s precise mode of operation in plants had been unclear.

Now, a team led by researchers at the University of Adelaide in South Australia has shown how the accumulation of GABA in water-stressed plants causes them to narrow the pores in their leaves, resulting in reduced loss of water through the pores.

The discovery could help scientists to make crops and plants more resilient to drought, which are expected to become more common due to climate change.

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