Global academic rankings and institutional research offices

a study in Brazilian public universities

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-57652025v30id288195

Keywords:

higher education, academic rankings, institutional research

Abstract

The rise in academic rankings has created a growing demand for performance data in Brazilian public universities. In response, some institutions have established research offices, emulating typical American higher education structures and procedures. This study investigates the impact of academic rankings on the institutional research offices of three Brazilian universities, utilizing qualitative methods such as interviews with academic leaders and analysis of official documents. Findings reveal that while rankings played a pivotal role in establishing these offices, their dominant influence may constrain the strategic functions of institutional research within university administration.

Author Biographies

  • André Dutra Martins, Universidade de São Paulo

    André Martins is a Ph.D. candidate in education at the University of São Paulo. In his master’s dissertation, he studied the birth of a neoliberal policy agenda in economics of education. In his PhD dissertation, entitled “Academic Rankings in Brazil and United States: Local Boundaries of a Global Experience”, he studies how academic rankings have shaped higher education in Brazil and United States, stressing the mechanisms by which rankings have been institutionalized in both countries.

  • Gladys Beatriz Barreyro, Universidade de São Paulo

    Gladys Barreyro is an associate professor in the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities at the University of São Paulo. She did her master’s in social sciences at Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales – Argentina, and her PhD in education at the University of São Paulo. Dr. Barreyro was a visiting scholar in the Center for International Higher Education at Boston College. Her research interests include higher education policies in Brazil and higher education evaluation at local, regional and global levels. She currently studies the influence of global academic rankings in Brazilian universities.

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Published

2025-06-17

Issue

Vol. 30 (2025)

Section

Artigo

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Copyright (c) 2025 Avaliação: Revista da Avaliação da Educação Superior

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How to Cite

Global academic rankings and institutional research offices: a study in Brazilian public universities. Avaliação: Revista da Avaliação da Educação Superior, Campinas; Sorocaba, SP, v. 30, p. e025005, 2025. DOI: 10.1590/1982-57652025v30id288195. Disponível em: https://submission.scielo.br/index.php/aval/article/view/288195. Acesso em: 17 aug. 2025.