Our research

Imperial College Business School is renowned for its strong commitment to world-class research

Imperial College London has the highest proportion of world-leading and internationally excellent research of any UK university: 96.75 per cent of College research activity has been judged as world-leading or internationally excellent (namely the proportion of research activity rated 4* or 3* in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework). 

This success is replicated within Imperial College Business School:  

  • 97 per cent of the School’s research assessed by peer review in the REF was classed as "world-leading" (4*) or "internationally excellent" (3*) 
  • 70 per cent of our research was assessed as 4* 

We are second in the UK for proportion of world-leading research in business and management studies and first for research environment. This is a rise of three places on the 2014 assessment, reflecting the exceptional quality of our academics and their work, and confirming our position as a leading business school for research in the UK and internationally. 

Research Impact

Research impact

Developing new insights and methodologies is a core purpose of our research. By engaging with international firms, SMEs and policymakers around the world we are addressing key challenges for modern business
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"Imperial is the best place in the UK for academics to pursue their research, and these REF results show that. We have created an environment that supports our researchers in tackling some of science’s deepest questions and some of society’s most urgent problems. Our research is stronger because of our collaborations – whether that’s across academic disciplines, institutions or international borders: we will always be a global institution."
Ian Walmsley
Provost, Imperial College London

Contact us

For more information about our research please contact us. 

David Wilson

David Wilson

Head of Research Support