XJTLU adds Economics and Business to its ESI top 1% fields

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) has entered Clarivate’s Essential Science Indicators (ESI) top 1% in Economics and Business for the first time, according to data Clarivate released in September.

This means that the number of XJTLU’s citations in Economics and Business, as ESI defines the field, is in the top 1% globally compared to institutions also publishing in this field from January 2015 through June 2025.

XJTLU entered the ESI top 1% in four other fields previously: Environment/Ecology; Engineering; Computer Science; and Social Science, General.

ESI is an analytical tool from Clarivate that surveys more than 11,000 journals from around the world across 22 broad fields of research. ESI assesses the research performance of institutions, countries, journals, authors, and papers using metrics including the number of papers published, citations received, and citations per paper.

XJTLU's ESI discipline data in the InCites Essential Science Indicators database

In the Economics and Business field, XJTLU has published 696 papers over the past decade and accumulated 7,459 citations.

According to Professor Lixian Qian, Associate Dean for Research at XJTLU’s International Business School Suzhou (IBSS), this achievement is the result of efforts from academic staff across various XJTLU schools, including IBSS, the School of Intelligent Finance and Business at XJTLU Entrepreneur College (Taicang), and the College of Industry-Entrepreneurs.

At IBSS, the number of academic staff has grown rapidly in the past 10 years.  More importantly, Professor Qian says, the quality of research has significantly improved, as evidenced by more papers published in influential publications and national-level project approvals.

“We actively encourage our academic staff to engage in research, collaborating with both graduate and undergraduate students to transform their work into high-quality academic achievements,” Professor Qian says. “At the same time, we are committed to strengthening our partnerships with industry and government, hoping that our research outcomes contribute to industrial advancement and inform government decision-making,” he continues. “By fostering cross-departmental and cross-disciplinary collaborations, we aim to maximise the practical application of our research findings.”

Achieving a position in the ESI top 1% shows that a discipline meets the highest international standards, Professor Qian says.

“This accomplishment is crucial for boosting our recognition and influence within the academic community, attracting top-tier international faculty, and training outstanding students, particularly PhD candidates,” he says.

By Luyun Shi and the Research Management Office
Translated by Xueqi Wang
Edited by Tamara Kaup