These 11 UK universities just got recognised as some of the best on the planet

Okay so, your very mid Russell Group uni might just squeeze into the top 20 of the best universities in the UK, but where does it stand against the unis in the rest of the world?

The Times Higher Education World University Ranking 2024 ranks 1,904 universities across 108 countries and regions. The rankings are based on teaching, international outlook, industry, research environment and research quality.

Based on these factors, only 11 UK universities make the cut for the top 100 universities in the world. The UK has three universities in the top 10, seven in the top 50, 11 in the top 100 and 25 in the top 200. The only country with more universities in the top 200 is the United States with 56.

Here are the UK universities that make the top 100 in the Times Higher Education World Rankings 2024:

97. University of Southampton

Just making it in to the top 100 at 97th is The University of Southampton. It ranked at 108th last year and was named the 17th best UK uni in the Times’ recent Good University Guide 2024.

87. University of Glasgow

One of two Scottish universities in the top 100, The University of Glasgow is the 87th best university in the world. It came 82nd in the 2023 rankings and 86th in 2022. At Glasgow, there are 13 students per every five staff.

81. University of Bristol

The University of Bristol is the 81st best university worldwide. It came 76th in last years ranking, moving up five spaces this year. In total, 31 per cent of Bristol students are international students and the ratio of female to male students is 56:44.

51. University of Manchester

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Just missing out on the top 50, The University of Manchester is at 51st. Manchester recently came 23rd in the UK in this year’s Times Good University Guide.

46. London School of Economics

The lowest London uni in the top 100, LSE is the 46th best university in the world, according to The Times Higher Education World Ranking. It is also ranked 10th for economics and econometrics.

38. King’s College London

Tied with LMU Munich in Germany at 38th, King’s College London has moved down three spaces from last year. King’s is in the top 20 for quite a few subjects including 10th for medicine.

30. University of Edinburgh

The highest Scottish university on the list, Edinburgh is the 30th best university worldwide. Edinburgh also ranked 13th in the UK in this year’s Times Good University Guide and came ninth in the world rankings for architecture.

22. University College London

At 22nd, University College London has stayed in the same spot as last year. Ranking just below The University of Toronto in Canada, UCL has nearly 36,000 students who come from over 150 countries worldwide, making up more than a third of the entire student population.

8. Imperial College London

With a big jump up the league tables from UCL, Imperial has risen two places from last year at eighth. Imperial has a ratio of 42:58 of female to male students and international students make up 61 per cent of the university. It ranked highly in a number of subjects including fourth for medicine and 13th for physical sciences.

5. University of Cambridge

Shoved out of the top three by three American universities, at number five is The University of Cambridge. Cambridge was third in the 2023 rankings but has been pushed down by Stanford, Harvard and The Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It ranks highly in many subjects including third in the world for law.

1. University of Oxford

And making Oxford students more insufferable than they already are, The University of Oxford is officially the best university in the world, according to The Times Higher Education World Rankings 2024. Oxford is top for the eighth year in a row something which Vice Chancellor Professor Irene Tracey says “is a testament to the impactful research that tackles some of the grand challenges facing people and the planet.”

Oxford was just beat to the top spot of The Times Good University Guide a few weeks ago and is now laughing because at 193rd, St Andrews didn’t even make the top 100.

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