Launched in December 2016, King’s Research Strategy sets out our vision to better enable informative and innovative research.

By delivering world-leading and outward-looking research focused on meeting societal need, King’s will make the world a better place. We have focused our efforts around five pillars:

1. Retaining, developing and recruiting world-class talent
2. Providing the best environment and systems to deliver world-leading research
3. Broadening the research base whilst increasing quality
4. Increasing impact and expanding research partnerships
5. Delivering research-enhanced education

The Research Strategy has been designed to enable and complement the work of our faculties. Most importantly, it has been developed around our people – our researchers, current and future, our professional services staff and our students. The strategy is designed to provide the support, development, infrastructure and environment they need to succeed.

The Research Strategy is supplemented with an action plan which details the specific objectives, the measures of success and the accountability for delivery. Click here to access (internal only).

Academic Research Strategy 2020-21

We have recently launched an addition to the Strategy in the form of the Academic Research Strategy 2020-21, which focuses on the actions we need to prioritise in the next 18-24 months, in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

One of the world's top research institutions

• King’s is one of the top 25 universities in the world, 2016-17 QS international world rankings

Outstanding REF 2021 Results

• Ranked King's 6th in the UK for 4* (world-leading) research
• King's ranked 3^rd amongst multi-faculty universities for research Impact
• 55% of the overall work submitted was considered world leading (4*)

Click here to find out more about our REF 2021 results.

12 Nobel Prize Laureates

Twelve people who have worked or studied at King's and its constituent institutions have been awarded the Nobel Prize including the Most Reverend Desmond Tutu, Professor Peter Higgs, Mario Vargas Llosa and Sir James Black.

Athena SWAN

As part of King’s commitment to advancing gender equality, we’ve been held a bronze Athena SWAN award since 2016, and hold 20 silver and bronze awards across our nine faculties.

HR Excellence in Research Award

King's is delighted to have retained the European Commission’s HR Excellence in Research Award at the four year stage.The award is made in recognition of a demonstrated commitment to the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers.

The Concordat outlines a set of key principles which underpin the working conditions and career development opportunities that should be offered to research staff and define responsibilities of researchers in achieving their own potential.