VILNIUS, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Vilnius University has the highest ranking among Lithuania's state universities as a higher-education institution, showing the best results of scientific and other activities, Lithuanian Reitingai (Rankings) magazine's study showed on Wednesday.
According to Reitingai, Vilnius University, one of the oldest universities in the Baltic States and the largest in Lithuania, stood first among the state universities with 68.27 points out of 100, based on 56 different parameters.
Kaunas University of Technology and Vytautas Magnus University, both based in Lithuania's second largest city Kaunas, ranked second and third with 59.91 and 54.1 points respectively.
The ranking is based on the schools' results from 2015 and 2016.
"Conditions at Lithuanian higher-education institutions have significantly improved in many respects, including better infrastructure and becoming more global," Gintaras Sarafinas, editor in chief of Reitingai magazine, was quoted as saying by local media at a press conference.
In the words of Sarafinas, despite the positive trend of improved studying conditions, a wrong message is being spread in Lithuania's public space as regards supposedly low level of teaching and studying in Lithuania which encourage local students to choose studies abroad.
"In other words, emigration is being encouraged," Sarafinas underscored.
"On the contrary to politicians' claims that higher education in Lithuania is valueless, this is not true," said Romualdas Kliukas, vice-rector of Vilnius Gediminas Technical University.
"We would always lose if we compared ourselves to Cambridge and Oxford, however, the added value is also created by those universities which accept students with moderate abilities and manage to prepare good specialists," Kliukas added.
ISM University of Management and Economics, LCC International University and European Humanities University ranked as top three schools among private higher-education institutions in Lithuania, Reitingai stated.
There are 13 state and five private universities and academies in Lithuania.
