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:
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17. University of York
Based in York, in North Yorkshire, this university also has an overall score of 79%. The University of York has 14 top-ten subjects, including French, English, history, psychology, and marketing. | English Heritage/Heritage Images/Getty Images
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18. University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield can be found a little further down, in South Yorkshire. It has an overall score of 78%. Sheffield has 17 top ten subjects, which include speech and language therapy; childhood and youth studies; Asian studies; dentistry; and media and communication studies. | Adobe Stock
19. University of Liverpool
Based in Liverpool in the North West, this university also has an overall score of 78%. However, its ranking in the Complete University Guide has consistently shot up over the past few years. Liverpool has seven top-ten subjects, including veterinary medicine, counselling and psychotherapy; physiotherapy; and marketing. | Photo: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
20. University of Southampton
This university is in Southampton, in the South East of England. It has an overall score of 78%, and a large amount of staff involved in high-level research projects. Southampton has 11 top-ten subjects, which include civil engineering; mechanical engineering; physiotherapy; and aerospace engineering. | Google