University of Galway

W100 Representative
Aoife FlanaganAdvisor to the President on Reputation Strategy
Aoife Flanagan is responsible for Reputation Strategy at the University of Galway. With over 15 years’ experience in Higher Education, Aoife has held a number senior roles as Head of Planning and Institutional Research at both RCSI and University of Galway. Prior to this Aoife worked in a number of senior Business Intelligence roles in both Irish and international organisations.

Queen’s College Galway was founded in 1845. Following the construction of the iconic Quadrangle building, the University opened its doors four years later to the first cohort of just 68 students.
University of Galway has grown massively in size and reputation over the past 175 years, with a student population today of over 18,000. According to QS World University Rankings, we are ranked 259 in the world and have been increasing our global reach and reputation over the past decade.
The Latest from University of Galway
Introducing the BA in Mathematics and Education at University of Galway — a four-year honours degree that combines advanced mathematics with teacher training and practical classroom experience.
Minister for Health @CarrollJennifer today formally launched a €4million charitable funding investment by National Breast Cancer Research Institute @BCResearchIre for research into life-changing advancements in patient care and outcomes at University of Galway. @roinnslainte
Minister for Health @CarrollJennifer MacNeill T.D. will today formally announce a €4m charitable funding investment by National Breast Cancer Research Institute @BCResearchIre (NBCRI) for research into life-changing advancements in patient care and outcomes at University of…
Listen back: Professors Derek O’Keeffe @Physicianeer and Cornelia Connolly introduce Ray D’Arcy to Deckard, the humanoid robot developed by the @HIVE_LAB at University of Galway. Deckard’s purpose is to help spark conversations around improving human mental and physical health.…
Introducing the BSc in Biopharmaceutical Chemistry at University of Galway — a multidisciplinary programme that brings together chemistry and biology to explore biomolecules and their applications in therapeutic medicine.
We are pleased to announce our nomination as a finalist for the 'Law School of the Year' category at the Leap @IrishLawAwards 2025.
More info: https://www.universityofgalway.ie/business-public-policy-law/school-of-law/news/university-of-galway-school-of-law-celebrates-multiple-finalists-in-leap-irish-law-awards-2025-1.html
@uniofgalway @StudyInGalway @GalwayAlumni
#UniversityOfGalway #GalwayLaw
The @uniofgalway sports campus Dangan was the heart of sport for the west of Ireland today. We had our @parkrun , Galway juvenile athletics championships, @Connachtwomen training , Ultimate Frisbee , @ugarcheryclub , Rowing , Muaythai , @ConnachtHockey u18 @unigalwaysport
Summer colours on campus @uniofgalway
The @RyanInstitute has launched its Policy Brief Series and in the first issue Dr Audrey Morley, School of Geography, Archaeology and Irish Studies, with colleagues in @MetEireann and @MaynoothUni, discuss Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) research in Ireland.
University of Galway is the largest and oldest university in the west of Ireland
The University has had four different names. In 1849, it was called Queen's College Galway. it was changed in 1908 to University College Galway, or UCG for short. Then in 1997, it was changed again to National University of Ireland Galway, or NUI Galway for short. In 2022, it was renamed to University of Galway
University of Galway was The Sunday Times University of the Year 2022
A distinct and vibrant region,
deeply connected internationally
Inspired by the unique qualities of the region, including its rich culture and traditions, and history of diversity and trade, University of Galway reaches outwards to the world, through a global network of partnerships, collaborations, and alumni, as well as a globally connected faculty.
University of Galway is firmly committed to investing in the social, economic, and intellectual development of the entire region.
By building on the strengths of its local communities and resources, the University is inspired to leave its mark on the rest of the world and its international reach provides a firm platform for its future development.
Values
#PurposePeoplePlace
5
Research institutes
96%
Of graduates are employed or in further study 6 months after graduating
University of Galway is a globally focused research-led university. It recognises that research areas are neither standalone nor static and that the problems of the world are not and cannot be solved from just one perspective. With that in mind research at University of Galway incorporates the university’s knowledge of global challenges, national needs, and regional necessities so that its research areas enable an interdisciplinarity approach and impact.
The University’s approach to research is focused on the following three words: Purpose, People, Place. The purpose of research and innovation at University of Galway is to benefit humanity, society, and the economy, in other words, to create impact. Its people are creative in their thinking and collaborative in their approach and it’s place is distinct—a vibrant region on the edge of Europe—connected globally.
Engaging with its partners locally, nationally, and worldwide, the university invites ambition in research that underpins the following areas:
Enriching creativity and culture
Improving health and wellbeing
Realising potential through data and enabling technologies
Sustaining our planet and people
The University of Galway’s research displays breadth, depth, and interdisciplinarity of its expertise, both fundamental and applied, across the sciences, social sciences, and humanities. This is key to its success and ability to drive impact and respond to emerging fields of research.
Become a Member
The World 100 Reputation Network is a group of the best universities in the world, delivering research that enhances reputation and offering leaders the chance to develop their own careers on a global stage. Members benefit from events and study tours, training, monthly media monitoring, and unique reputation research to provide institutional advantage.
RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

W100 Representative
Abi Kelly
Director of International Engagement and External Relations
Abi Kelly joined RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences in 2020 as Director of International Engagement and External Relations with responsibility for the Office for Institutional Research and Planning.
Her role is to support the University’s reputation raising strategy and build its brand among key stakeholders. A key ambition for RCSI is to be recognised in the Top 200 of universities in the world.
Prior to her role with RCSI, Abi spent 8 years at Newcastle University (UK) where she was Executive Director of Corporate Affairs managing the external profile of this Russell Group university. She also led communications for the N8 Research Partnership, a collaborative mission group of the eight research-intensive universities in the North of England.
She has spent 28 years working in the Public Relations industry in the UK, including roles in local and regional government, and as a PR Consultant for private-sector clients including Whitbread and Nissan.

Founded as the national training body for surgery in Ireland, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences has been at the forefront of healthcare education since its establishment in 1784. As an independent, not-for-profit institution, we chart our own course in the pursuit of excellence in human healthcare.
Today we are an innovative, world-leading international health sciences education and research institution with undergraduate and postgraduate schools and faculties across the health sciences spectrum. We are home to numerous healthcare institutes as well as leading research centres driving pioneering breakthroughs in human health.
A deep professional responsibility to enhance human health through endeavour, innovation and collaboration in education, research and service inform all that we do. We welcome students and researchers into programmes of academic excellence and a lifelong community of colleagues that is clinically led, nurturing and supportive to enable them to realise their potential to serve our global patient community.
The Latest from RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences
We're looking forward to celebrating our RCSI School of Medicine #Classof2025 at today’s #RCSIconferring ceremony!
Join us live at 14:00 (GMT+1): https://www.rcsi.com/dublin
Five artists have been shortlisted for the 2025 RCSI Art Award.
The shortlisted pieces are Bedlam by Taffina Flood, No Promised Land by Bernadette Kiely, Slope by Vera Klute, The Men/Na Fir by Ally Nolan and With Tomorrow by Francis O’Toole.
More ➡️ https://www.rcsi.com/dublin/news-and-events/news/news-article/2025/05/five-artists-shortlisted-for-2025-rcsi-art-award
RCSI was pleased to award an Honorary Doctorate to former Minister of State for Higher Education, Mary Mitchell O’Connor at our Higher Degree conferring ceremony.
#RCSIConferring
Welcome to all those attending the @CHI_Ireland Research and Innovation Day in RCSI today.
RCSI is leading a @COSTprogramme Action to advance patient safety in ICUs across Europe.
The network will focus on three nurse-sensitive outcomes in the ICU - pressure ulcers, healthcare-associated infections and delirium.
Learn more 🔗
#RCSIdiscover

RCSI to lead new EU-funded COST Action tackling ICU patient safety outcomes
A new EU-funded research network led by RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences will work to advance patie...
www.rcsi.com
Congratulations to the RCSI graduates who received degrees of MSc, MPharm, MCh, MD and PhD at our #RCSIConferring yesterday!
We were delighted to commemorate this momentous day with you.
Read more ➡️ https://www.rcsi.com/dublin/news-and-events/news/news-article/2025/05/higher-degree-conferring-ceremony-celebrates-the-class-of-2025
Professor Annette Byrne, Professor of Physiology at RCSI and head of the RCSI Precision Cancer Medicine Group has been elected as a Member of @RIAdawson, Ireland’s foremost body of experts in sciences and humanities.
🔗 https://tinyurl.com/4yx2auwx
#RCSIdiscover
The RCSI Summer Conferrings begin today with our Higher Degree Conferring ceremony! 🎓
Family and friends can join us live at 12:00 (GMT +1): https://www.rcsi.com/dublin
#RCSIConferring
Congratulations to Prof Robert Byrne @RCSIPharmBioMol on being appointed Editor-in-Chief of the @PCRonline -EAPCI Textbook.
He will lead its evolution as a respected educational tool in interventional cardiology for clinicians worldwide.
🔗
#RCSIeducate

The PCR-EAPCI Textbook is pleased to announce a new Editor-in-Chief!
A formal handover took place on Wednesday, 21 May, in Paris during EuroPCR 2025, marking the transition from Steph...
www.pcronline.com
In 1813 the first Chair of Medicine, Professor John Cheyne, is appointed and medical teaching begins on St Stephen's Green
1916 Easter Rising: Insurgents occupied the College under the command of Michael Mallin and Countess Markievicz. RCSI surgeons worked to treat the injured.
In 1990 David Bouchier-Hayes, RCSI Professor of Surgery, performed the first keyhole gall bladder removal in Ireland
Developing students to
become ‘world citizens’
RCSI has extensive international partnerships including:
Clinical/research elective agreements and Erasmus partnerships with an extensive list of international institutions including Johns Hopkins University, McMaster University and University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Joint undergraduate Pharmacy programme with Soochow University, China
Transnational education operations/partnerships in Bahrain (RCSI Bahrain), Malaysia (RCSI UCD Malaysia Campus (RUMC) and PU-RCSI School of Medicine) and Dubai (RCSI Dubai)
5% of research output produced through international collaboration with 1,758 institutions worldwide (Source: SciVal 2013-2017 accessed February 2019)
Mission and vision
- To educate, nurture and discover for the benefit of human health
- Respect
- Collaboration
- Scholarship
- Innovation
At the global forefront of pioneering medical research
18,000
alumni, practicing in 97 countries
€35.1m
Research grant income 2018
The mission of RCSI’s research strategy is to improve human health through translational research: clinical, laboratory-based and health service research informed by bedside problems, and societal and global health challenges. We promote innovative research that leads to improved diagnostics, therapeutics and devices; tackles important healthcare delivery issues; informs policy and clinical practice and enhances the quality of education of healthcare professionals.
RCSI is developing research centres in areas of excellence and critical mass, focused on clinical and patient-centred research:
- Cancer
- Regenerative Medicine
- Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders
- Surgical Science and Practice
- Population Health and Health Services
- Vascular Biology
Become a Member
The World 100 Reputation Network is a group of the best universities in the world, delivering research that enhances reputation and offering leaders the chance to develop their own careers on a global stage. Members benefit from events and study tours, training, monthly media monitoring, and unique reputation research to provide institutional advantage.
University College Dublin

W100 Representative
Eilis O’Brien
Director of Communication
Eilis is Director of communication at University College Dublin. Previously she held a similar role at Dublin City University. In addition to her marketing experience in brand identity and corporate reputation, Eilis has extensive strategic and operational experience in running media and corporate public relations operations with a high degree of crisis management.
Prior to her current role, she was director of communication, education & training during the start-up phase of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland. Eilis was public relations manager with Bank of Ireland for eight years and with Bord Gais Eireann, the national natural gas operator in Ireland, for five years.
Eilis has held a number of senior communication and marketing roles in a variety of sectors including finance, natural gas, food safety, health and higher education. Her experience covers the public and private sectors.
In addition to her marketing experience in brand identity and corporate reputation, she has extensive strategic and operational experience in running media and corporate public relations operations with a high degree of crisis management.
Within the realm of public affairs she has worked on clean air designation, tobacco control, food safety enforcement and Government funding.

Founded in 185 Year by John Henry Newman, University College Dublin is one of Europe’s leading research-intensive universities. UCD is Ireland’s largest and most diverse university. It actively promotes university life as a journey of intellectual and personal discovery through its highly innovative and flexible UCD Horizons undergraduate curriculum and is the most popular destination for Irish school-leavers.
The University places great emphasis on the internationalisation of the Irish student experience – preparing all UCD students for future employment and life that crosses borders, boundaries and cultures.
The Latest from University College Dublin
💀✨ Trouble brewing in the National Folklore Collection! UCD MA in Creative Writing graduate Dave Rudden returns with Conn of the Dead, the first spooktacular instalment in his Tales of the Darkisle series.
☣️ When mischievous 11-year-old Conn explores through the halls of the…
👩🎓🇮🇪 Warmest congratulations to UCD alumna Jenny Melia on her appointment as CEO of Enterprise Ireland.
Holding both a BSc and a PhD in Chemistry from University College Dublin, Jenny brings nearly 30 years of experience at the agency to the role.
Her leadership will be…
🧑🎓🏆 @declanwalsh: "I had been in Sudan weeks before this current war broke out. I felt an urgent need to describe to our readers how the war was being financed...what was the role of these foreign countries that had taken sides in the war?"
Words from UCD alum Declan Walsh,…

Reporting that wins a Pulitzer doesn’t come easy. It takes time, trust and a relentless pursuit of the truth.
Pulitzer Portraits features the journalists behind this year’s four Pulitzer-winning stories. Watch the full series: https://www.nytco.com/press/pulitzer-portraits-2025/
👩⚕️🪞 Reflections: We asked some of our recent healthcare graduates to look back on their journey, how they plan to make a difference, the most surprising thing they learned, and who they’ll miss most.
From unexpected kidney transplant facts to unforgettable lecturers, their…
Congrats to @sophie_callanan and Dr Helena Bartels for #PhD @ucddublin #UCDGraduation2025 @UCDPerinatal @_TheNMH 🎉🎉🎉
🚲📹 Primary pupils at Harold’s Cross Educate Together NS are taking part in a UCD-led pilot study that encourages children to record their daily commutes on GoPro cameras mounted on bikes, scooters, and backpacks.
Their footage of real-life hazards like speeding cars and…
Congratulations to @BhatnagarRini who was conferred with PhD ⭐️⭐️@hrbireland funded. @CFRegistryIE @CysticIreland
Weaver of the stories, Lorna Donlon, created a strong and vibrant work that was both moving and alive, and UCD Research should be very proud of the legacy that their support generates.
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Wishing the 'Cut from the Same Cloth' exhibition - a beautiful show of fabric, weaving, cloth and shared stories of over 100 women - the best of luck as it leaves Limerick's Hunt Museum and moves to its new home as part of its national tour.
https://cutfromthesamecloth.org/
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University College Dublin has 8,428 international students on their main campus, with 136 nationalities within the student body
The university has 167, 177 Square meters of science, engineering and innovation-related facilities and 133 hectares making up the woodland campus
The University of Toronto has over 606,876 alumni around the world as of Fall 2019
Successful engagement with Irish society on
every level and across every sphere of activity
UCD’s world extends beyond its campus, city and borders. UCD students and worldwide network of 279,000 alumni benefit from a UCD education that enables them to thrive and contribute in an increasingly global community. As the number one ‘university of destination’ for international students coming to Ireland, UCD’s 8,428 international students make up 29% of the student body, while international academics make up 30% of UCD’s faculty.
As Ireland’s Global University we value global research, teaching, exchange, and collaborative programmes. University College Dublin has an extensive global network of partner institutions, comprised of over 400 institutions across more than 89 countries.
UCD has established the first Beijing-based awarding institution and the first Confucius Institute for Ireland. We have a comprehensive network of mobility, study abroad and joint awarding partners across the globe, ensuring opportunities for UCD staff and students to partake in overseas study.
UCD Global seeks to foster and develop links by supporting a variety of University-wide and College-level collaborations.
UCD is a member of several international networks and collaborations within research and education, such as Universitas 21 (U21), Tempus, Erasmus, Erasmus Mundus Action 1 and Action 2. Being a part of international networks and programmes offers exceptional opportunities for student and staff mobility, scholarships as well as research and teaching collaboration. In addition to our network of university partners we have a number of other strategic relationships with government ministries, sponsors and funding bodies.
Mission and vision
- To contribute to the flourishing of Dublin, Ireland, Europe and the world through:
- The excellence and impact of our research and scholarship
- The quality of our graduates
- Our global engagement; providing a supportive community in which every member of the University is enabled to achieve their full potential
Ranked within the top 1% of higher education institutions worldwide
1,611+
PhD Students
€153m
in research grants
Research and innovation are essential drivers of a dynamic economy, an informed society and a vibrant culture. The spectrum of research and innovation at UCD encompasses individual scholars, research groups, start-up companies and large-scale collaborations with industry and other partners. Research is conducted within each of the University’s extensive range of disciplines, and in multidisciplinary research programmes addressing challenges of global scale.
UCD expertise is recognised worldwide, with international accreditations for UCD degrees from the world’s leading professional organisations in Veterinary Medicine, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Regional and Urban Planning, and Engineering.
In 2018/19 UCD researchers secured €153 million in research grants from national and international funding agencies, companies and foundations. Since 2009/10 UCD researchers have secured over €1 billion in such grants. Their research underpins national research and technology institutes and centres. UCD has had nationally-leading success in many of the most prestigious European awards, including European Research Council and Marie Sklodowska-Curie schemes.
Over the last decade UCD researchers have increased their annual number of papers in the international literature by 40% and have authored more than 31,000 papers in total. 54% of the papers were co-authored with researchers from more than 130 countries. These papers are cited by other researchers at a rate that is 71% above the world average.
As Ireland’s leader in innovation, technology transfer and commercialisation, UCD’s commitment to innovation and entrepreneurship recognises the importance of active participation and collaboration to exploit leading-edge research and development outputs. Supports for innovation include NovaUCD – the Centre for New Ventures and Entrepreneurs and NexusUCD – the Industry Partnership Centre. Since 2003 UCD has provided support to over 360 companies and early-stage ventures through the services and supports provided across the university, through NovaUCD, and through business support programmes run and managed by NovaUCD.
Become a Member
The World 100 Reputation Network is a group of the best universities in the world, delivering research that enhances reputation and offering leaders the chance to develop their own careers on a global stage. Members benefit from events and study tours, training, monthly media monitoring, and unique reputation research to provide institutional advantage.