The universities and colleges in the United Kingdom are known for a very high education standard and therefore, often rank highly on the international rankings. Some of the best universities of the UK include Oxford, Cambridge, University College London, London School of Economics etc. However, since there are over hundred universities and colleges in the UK, it becomes important to know their ranking before making an investment in education.
Although, there is no official ranking for the UK, there are a few ranking systems, which can be used to compare universities on the national and international standards.
Top UK universities rank
The universities in UK are ranked by the Mayfield University Consultants, London who prepared the University League Table from 2007 onwards, which ranks all universities of the nation on the basis of 9 quality factors, such as entry standards, students’ satisfaction, research assessment, graduate prospects and overall scores. According to this list, the top ten universities of the UK in the year 2011 and 2012 are as follows:
Rank 2011 Institutions Rank 2012 Institutions
1 Oxford 1 Cambridge
2 Cambridge 2 Oxford
3 Warwick 3 Imperial College
4 St Andrews 4 London School of Economics
5 UCL 5 Durham
6 Lancaster 6 St Andrews
7 Imperial College 7 UCL
8 London School of Economics 8 Warwick
9 Loughborough 9 Lancaster
9 York 10 Bath
Source: 1, 2
World ranks of UK Universities
The Times Higher Education group has ranked universities worldwide 2011-2012.
World Rank Institution
4 University of Oxford
6 University of Cambridge
8 Imperial College London
17 University College London
36 University of Edinburgh
47 London School of Economics and Political Science
48 University of Manchester
66 University of Bristol
83 Durham University
85 University of St Andrews
99 University of Sussex
101 University of Sheffield
102 University of Glasgow
107 Royal Holloway, University of London
121 University of York
127 Queen Mary, University of London
127 University of Southampton
131 Lancaster University
133 University of Leeds
140 University of Nottingham
145 University of East Anglia
146 Newcastle University
148 University of Birmingham
149 Birkbeck, University of London
151 University of Aberdeen
156 University of Exeter
157 University of Warwick
164 University of Reading
181 University of Liverpool
197 University of Leicester
Source: 1
Most of these rankings vary with time and also for different disciplines. While it may be important to check an overall university ranking, for higher studies it is also critical to look into the specialization of different schools and departments which play an important role in shaping future career options.
Subject wise ranking
The subject wise ranks of UK universities in top 50 universities of the world are as follows:
Year Subject Rank Institutions
2011-2012 Engineering and Technology 6 University of Cambridge
2011-2012 Engineering and Technology 7 University of Oxford
2011-2012 Engineering and Technology 10 Imperial College London
2011-2012 Engineering and Technology 26 University of Manchester
2011-2012 Engineering and Technology 27 University College London
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 6 University of Cambridge
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 7 University of Oxford
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 8 University College London
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 11 University of Edinburgh
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 24 University of St Andrews
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 34 University of Manchester
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 39 King’s College London
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 44 Lancaster University
2011-2012 Arts and Humanities 48 University of Leeds
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 1 University College London
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 3 King’s College London
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 4 University of Edinburgh
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 7 University College London
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 22 King’s College London
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 25 University of Edinburgh
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre-clinical and Health 43 University of Manchester
2011-2012 Clinical, Pre 45 University of Glasgow
2011-2012 Life Sciences 3 University of Cambridge
2011-2012 Life Sciences 4 University of Oxford
2011-2012 Life Sciences 9 Imperial College London
2011-2012 Life Sciences 11 University College London
2011-2012 Life Sciences 23 University of Edinburgh
2011-2012 Life Sciences 37 University of Sheffield
2011-2012 Life Sciences 43 University of Glasgow
2011-2012 Life Sciences 45 King’s College London
2011-2012 Life Sciences 49 University of Bristol
2010-2011 Physical Sciences 8 University of Cambridge
2010-2011 Physical Sciences 10 University of Oxford
2010-2011 Physical Sciences 13 Imperial College London
2010-2011 Physical Sciences 27 University of Edinburgh
2010-2011 Physical Sciences 37 University of Sussex
2010-2011 Physical Sciences 40 Royal Holloway, University of London
2010-2011 Social Sciences 7 University of Oxford
2010-2011 Social Sciences 8 University of Cambridge
2010-2011 Social Sciences 13 London School of Economics and Political Science
2010-2011 Social Sciences 14 University College London
2010-2011 Social Sciences 31 King’s College London
2010-2011 Social Sciences 35 University of York
2010-2011 Social Sciences 39 University of Edinburgh
2010-2011 Social Sciences 49 Durham University
2010-2011 Social Sciences 50 University of Bristol
Source: 1
Want to find a most suitable university in UK
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Ranking of UK universities