The whitest universities: The Russell Groups with the fewest ethnic minority students

The Times Good University Guide was released at the weekend and it ranks UK universities on a number of things including how hard it is to get in, teaching quality and student satisfaction.

But it also ranks UK universities on social inclusion. This includes things like the number of private school students at each uni and every university’s percentage of ethnic minority students.

Topping the list with the highest percentage of ethnic minority students is Queen Mary University of London with 75.5 per cent closely followed by the rest of the London-based Russell Group universities.

Russell Group Universities ranked by the percentage of students from ethnic minority backgrounds:

24. Queen Mary University of London – 75.5 per cent

With 75.5 per cent of students from an ethnic minority background, Queen Mary University of London is the most ethnically diverse Russell Group university.

23. London School of Economics – 63.6 per cent

At London School of Economics, 63.6 of students are from an ethnic minority background, making it the second highest percentage of all the Russell Groups.

22. King’s College London – 62.1 per cent

Another London university, of all King’s College London students, 62.1 per cent are from an ethnic minority background. This is a slight decrease from last year’s percentage of 66.5 per cent.

21. Imperial College London – 60 per cent

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At Imperial College London, 60 per cent of students come from an ethnic minority background. Imperial was named the fifth best university in the UK in the overall rankings.

20. University College London – 56 per cent

The lowest out of all London Russell Groups, 56 per cent of University College London students are from an ethnic minority background. UCL was also named the Times University of the Year and was called a “powerhouse of British higher education”.

19. University of Warwick – 45.6 per cent

45.6 per cent of students at The University of Warwick come from an ethnic minority background. It is also 94th in the overall social inclusion ranking.

18. University of Birmingham – 43.5 per cent

At the University of Birmingham, 43.5 per cent of students are from an ethnic minority background. This is one of the largest increases of all Russell Groups with a 9.4 per cent increase since last year.

17. University of Nottingham – 34.5 per cent

At 32nd in the overall uni rankings, 34.5 per cent of Nottingham students come from an ethnic minority background.This is a 4.1 per cent increase from last year’s intake.

16. University of Southampton – 33.4 per cent

33.4 per cent of all Southampton students have an ethnic minority background. This is around a third of Southampton’s total intake of students.

15. University of Manchester – 32.8 per cent

With an overall social inclusion ranking of 98th, 32.8 per cent of Manchester students are from ethnic minority backgrounds. This is just under a third of all students.

14. University of Cambridge – 30.8 per cent

With the percentage rising from 29.1 per cent in last year’s rankings, 30.8 per cent of Cambridge students are from ethnic minority backgrounds. It also has the fifth-narrowest black awarding gap which is, in part, due to the effect of the Stormzy scholarship which has supported 32 black students at Cambridge.

13. University of Oxford – 24.6 per cent

A ranking that Oxford is not at the top of, 24.6 per cent of students are from an ethnic minority background, making it the Russell Group’s 13th whitest university.

12. University of Sheffield – 23.3 per cent

At Sheffield, 23.3 per cent of students are from an ethnic minority background. Sheffield ranks at 87th for The Times’ overall social inclusion ranking.

11. University of Leeds – 22.5 per cent

24th in the overall university rankings, 22.5 per cent of Leeds students are from an ethnic minority background. This is a slight increase from last year’s percentage of 21.9 per cent.

10. University of Bristol – 20 per cent

With 20 per cent of ethnic minority students, The University of Bristol is the 1oth whitest Russell Group university. This is down 0.1 per cent from last year.

9. Cardiff University – 19 per cent

At 99th in the overall social inclusion rankings and with 19 per cent ethnic minority students, Cardiff University is the ninth whitest Russell Group uni.

8. University of Liverpool – 18.8 per cent

The University of Liverpool is 29th in the overall UK rankings but out of all of its students, 18.8 per cent are from an ethnic minority background. This is an from last year’s percentage of 16.4.

7. Newcastle University – 15.6 per cent

At Newcastle University, 15.6 per cent of all of its students are from ethnic minority backgrounds, according to The Times Good University Guide 2024.

6. University of Durham – 15 per cent

The University of Durham is the worst university in the UK for social inclusion. 15 per cent of its students are from ethnic minority backgrounds and it has the second highest percentage of private school students in the UK.

5. University of Edinburgh – 14.3 per cent

14.3 per cent of all students at The University of Edinburgh are from an ethnic minority background. Edinburgh has also ranked poorly in student satisfaction at 112th.

4. University of York – 13.1 per cent

York is third in overall social inclusion out of all the Russell Group universities, but with 13.1 per cent of ethnic minority students, it is the fourth whitest Russell Group university.

3. University of Exeter – 13 per cent

At the University of Exeter, 13 per cent of students are from an ethnic minority background. This is a slight increase from last year, where ethnic minority students only made up 10.6 per cent of all students.

2. Glasgow University – 12.3 per cent

12.3 per cent of all Glasgow students are from an ethnic minority background. This makes it the second most whitest Russell Group university. This percentage is the exact same percentage as last year’s rankings.

1. Queen’s University Belfast – 4.2 per cent

As the whitest Russell Group university, only 4.2 per cent of Queen’s University Belfast students come from an ethnic minority background. This is actually a 0.1 decrease from last year.  Most Queen’s students come from Northern Ireland, with two-thirds from grammar schools. Overall, it ranks 31st in social inclusion.

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