10 This month of August, the fall of the University of the Balearic Islands from the top 1,000 positions of the 2026 world university ranking by the Shanghai Ranking Consultancy (ARWU) was made public. It is, obviously, painful for all of us who love the institution, and especially for those of us who dedicate our professional lives to it. That the UIB disappears from a showcase of the global academic elite after having been there since 2017 is surprising, and even more so when 30 other universities from the State appear there. A primary external factor that explains this is the accelerated entry of Chinese universities, which displaces institutions from all over the world regardless of how the research they conduct has evolved. It is part of the cause.

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