The University of Oxford – the oldest university in the English-speaking world – has come top in a global education ranking for the first time.

Oxford dethroned the leader for the last five years, California Institute of Technology, into second place in the Times Higher Education’s global league table, which also saw Chinese universities climb rapidly, Reuters reports.

Oxford, which educated four of the last six British prime ministers, ousted its U.S. rival after its research funding rose 10 percent and overall funding rose to 1.4 billion pounds ($1.83 billion), while the impact of its research increased, said Phil Baty, editor of the rankings.

The news comes with warnings that the vote to leave the European Union could destabilise UK higher education and hinder work with academics abroad.

According to Baty, Britain’s exit from the European Union “is a serious risk to our success” by making it harder to attract top academic staff and plug them into research projects.

Brexit risks driving away students, staff and funding, Oxford’s vice-chancellor, Professor Louise Richardson, told BBC radio.

The Times Higher tables rank universities worldwide on measures including teaching, research and international outlook – for example, numbers of overseas students and staff.

See The Top 100 Here