Three Scots universities in top 10 for millionaires

THREE Scottish universities are among the most successful in the UK when it comes to producing millionaires, a new study has found.

Edinburgh, Glasgow and St Andrews were named in a top ten list of institutions that count the highest numbers of millionaires among their graduates.

The list was dominated by institutions belonging to the elite Russell Group of universities, with St Andrews and Birmingham’s Aston University the only entrants in the top ten not part of the group.

The study, carried out by the investment firm Skandia, combined results from two waves of research on British-based millionaires.

Overall, it ranked the University of London first, with almost one in ten millionaires gaining a degree or higher from one of its colleges. Oxford came second, with one in 13 millionaires, while Cambridge took third spot, with one in 20.

While the main poll included those who had gone to either private or state schools, both Glasgow and Edinburgh scored better when those graduates who had studied privately were removed from the results.

When private and state-educated students were included, Edinburgh came sixth, St Andrews seventh and Glasgow eighth. However, when the results excluded those who went to private school, Glasgow moved up to second and Edinburgh fifth. St Andrews slipped into 11th spot.

Graham Bentley, Skandia UK’s head of investment strategy, said: “Having a private school education seems to have been influential in gaining a place at the Oxbridge universities according to this research, with almost half of the millionaires who gained a degree from Oxford or Cambridge having attended private schools.

“However, what’s really interesting is the overall number who have gained places at top universities from the state school system and gone on to have successful careers that have enabled them to earn a fortune.

“With so much focus on the cost of getting a degree, it’s worth noting that having a degree can be a valuable tool in achieving financial success.”

Last week, a Times Higher Education table of the world’s top 100 institutions based on reputation saw UK universities losing ground to those in Asia, with Edinburgh slipping from 45th place to 49th.