Research, ranking, and university branding: Investment for excellence in health professions' education

Research is known to serve society and optimise educational institutions' reputation, hand in hand with knowledge; this applies to all disciplines, including those related to health professions education, such as pharmacy and medicine. Institutional reputation attracts high-quality students and instructors, which will, in turn, enhance productivity and lead to a further better reputation. Reputation relies on branding strategies, encompassing research excellence as an intrinsic value and institutional ranking as an external recognition; additionally, institutional and programme accreditations both include quality standards related to research. However, in educational institutions, the research-education nexus faces many challenges, including lack of time due to education overloading and administrative duties, in addition to insufficient human and financial resources. Administrators need to facilitate an optimal research culture and an adequate context for cutting-edge research to be implemented in higher education institutions.