There is not long to go until this year’s university-bound school leavers leave behind the peace and freedom of the summer, and depart for their new lives on campus.
Some 400 thousand students found out that they had landed a spot in a UK university on the respective A Level and Scottish Qualification Authority results days last month, with four out of five immediately getting into their first choice university. Others have managed to make their university match via the Clearing process, connecting them up to tertiary institutions with open places across the country.
Many of these students are currently navigating moving away from home for what is likely the first time, with orientation weeks - sometimes fondly known as ‘Freshers’ week’ - at most UK universities set to kick off in late September. But not all universities are made equal, and many might be wondering how their school of choice stacks up with others they might have chosen this year.
Luckily, the Complete University Guide has created an in-depth league table for UK universities to shine some light on this, taking into account a wide range of factors. These include student satisfaction scores, average grades of students they have allowed in, and the quality of research and studies published by the university. They also consider some more practical features, like the ratio of students to staff, how much the university invests in support services like healthcare and sports facilities, and even graduate’s job prospects.
Here were the 21 universities from across the UK that came out on top:
1. University of Cambridge
Cambridge is well known as one of the most prestigious and selective universities worldwide. The institution is more than 800 years old, and is based in Cambridge, in the East of England. Cambridge was the only school to score a 100% overall score on the guide’s league table. A whopping 93.1% of its graduates go onto graduate-level jobs or further study, and it has 40 subjects ranked in the top 10 schools for that subject in the UK - including archaeology, linguistics, mathematics, music, theology, physics and astronomy. | Photo: Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)
2. University of Oxford
The similarly distinguished University of Oxford - thought to be the oldest in the English-speaking world - is in second place, with an overall score of 97%. It is based in the city of Oxford, in the South East. Together with Cambridge, the two highly-competitive schools are sometimes known as ‘Oxbridge’. However, about one in four of its students receive some kind of bursary to support their education. It has 38 subjects ranked in the top 10, including English, history, law, philosophy, and a whole host of languages and science subjects. | Photo: Carl Court/Getty Images
3. London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London
Part of the University of London, LSE is a world- leading social science specialist university. Its campus is based in Central London, in the Westminster and Camden boroughs. Its overall score was 95%, and it has 13 subjects in the top 10 - including social policy, anthropology, law, politics, and sociology. | Photo: Oli Scarff/Getty Images
4. University of St Andrews
St Andrews was Scotland’s very first university, and is headquartered in Fife. It has an overall score of 94% in the guide. St Andrews is known for being one of the most competitive universities in the whole of the UK, with new students who make it in having the highest average UCAS tariff score possible. It has 23 top ten subjects, including chemistry, mathematics, and philosophy. | Photo: Peter Thompson/Heritage Images/Getty Images