University rankings aren’t just bragging rights. They can signal shared values, create belonging, and open pathways for you to enhance your own wellbeing.
Universities love being ranked.
Although, my guess is they love it most when they rank highly.
There are many different ways to measure the performance of a modern university. It could be by quality of teaching, research, impact, reputation, sustainability and lots more. These rankings get marketed, and that makes sense. They help students decide where to study and give universities bragging rights (see Flinders’ impact rankings).
But here’s a hypothesis of mine: some of these positive rankings can signal a potential pathway for individual wellbeing.
A personal example
Action on climate change matters to me. Definitely in my top 5 of things likely to keep me up at night.
So when I see Flinders performing well in sustainability rankings, it signals to me that the university takes this seriously. That’s values concordance. It feels good when the groups we belong to share and act on the things that matter to us.
Years ago, I read a journal article (a real intellectual here!). It argued that wellbeing is influenced by the degree of concordance between an individual’s values and their culture. When that alignment is high, wellbeing is higher. When there’s conflict, wellbeing tends to suffer. That notion of ‘cultural fit’ sat well with me and helps explain why I feel happy when I see the broader culture moving in a direction consistent with my values and sad when it doesn’t.
So when Flinders recently celebrated Sustainability Week, it wasn’t only a showcase of their green credentials, it was a chance for those to whom this topic is important, to get involved. I was able to write about it. Students were able to get involved in a number of activities that week. And students wanting to know about future opportunities could (and still can) email sustainability@flinders.edu.au to learn more.
And it is that getting involved part that is the pathway to wellbeing benefits. For example, we know that getting involved with climate action groups is a key part of managing climate anxiety (that is what I wrote about).
The wellbeing connection
The same logic applies directly to wellbeing itself. Flinders has ranked highly in wellbeing-related indexes recently, and I know (being someone behind the scenes) that there are many people at Flinders, working hard on staff and student wellbeing. If wellbeing and mental health are topics that are important to you, then there are ways to get involved and we know that getting involved in supporting other people’s wellbeing supports our own.
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Contributing content to BetterU.
Why it matters
When we share values with the collectives we’re part of, it increases our sense of belonging. And when those collectives invite us into action, it creates a tangible wellbeing pathway.
So next time you see Flinders celebrating a new ranking (and they certainly will), don’t just scroll past. Ask yourself:
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Is this an area that matters to me?
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Are there ways I can get involved?
If the answer is yes, you’ve potentially stumbled on a potent wellbeing pathway. 