University of Sheffield is the best university in the North of England, say new rankings

The University of Sheffield is the best university in the North of England, and 10th nationwide, according to the Daily Mail’s new rankings for 2025.

The university’s high ranking means the University of Sheffield has been shortlisted for the Daily Mail University of the Year award.

The university was ranked top for a number of subjects, including law, as well as the fourth best nationwide for student experience, making it the best Russell Group uni in that category. The University of Sheffield had been ranked top in the country last year.

The rankings offer further credence to Sheffield’s reputation for engineering excellence, as it ranked it highest for various engineering subjects, such as civil engineering and mechanical engineering. On the other hand, there were some subjects for which the University of Sheffield was given a poor ranking, namely a placing of 75th out of 83 in nursing.

Sheffield Hallam, which placed 68th in this year’s league table, did well in the subject rankings, being in the top 10 for several subjects, including a fifth placed ranking for architecture and a placing of seventh for history.

Across the other categories that the Daily Mail rates universities, Sheffield Hallam did less well. Across all categories, the highest ranking was 28th, for their proportion of first generation students. Their next best category was 62nd for high skill jobs among graduates. The university’s worst category was student experience, for which they came 99th.

This comes after 2024 has been a difficult year for Sheffield Hallam, with staff voting for strike action earlier this summer, and extensive financial troubles.

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The new league table is one of the most recent in a series of rankings that have been published over the summer. The past few months have seen the release of a number of similar university league tables and rankings, painting a mixed and often contradictory picture.

The University of Sheffield was ranked first for the second year running in the National Student Survey, and was also ranked second nationwide in the Studentcrowd awards, both of which are based on the views of students.

However, in May, the university fell out of the world’s top 100 universities for the first time, according to the QS World University Rankings.

Professor Mary Vincent, vice-president for education at the University of Sheffield, said: “It is very rewarding to see Sheffield being rated so highly again for providing a fantastic student experience. This is a testament to our dedicated staff and outstanding Students’ Union who all work so hard to ensure our students have a rewarding experience at Sheffield.”

“Students are the life and soul of our university – we wouldn’t be a university without them – and we are determined to provide them with the very best student experience and help them get the most out of their time with us. Receiving another award for this shows our efforts are paying off, but we will keep working hard to improve further over the coming year. We are excited to start the new academic year and welcome students, new and returning, back to the city.”

This year is the second year that the Daily Mail has published its own university rankings.

Alastair McCall, editor of the Daily Mail University Guide, said: “For the second successive year, Sheffield is the top university in northern England in the Daily Mail university ranking. It achieves this with success across a swathe of measures in the UK’s most broadly based league table.”

“Sheffield is the top university in the Russell Group for both student experience and student support, and behind only Oxbridge when it comes to student assessment of the quality of their teaching – outstanding results.”

He added: “Facilities for students are equally outstanding and graduate outcomes strong. It is one of the leading research institutions in the country, ranking 15th in the UK for the quality and quantity of research and 13th for the amount of research income it attracts, evidence of a focus on real-world, business-relevant research endeavours.”

“For its all-round strength, successful outcomes for students both while they are at university and beyond, and a relentless focus on delivering a first-class student experience, Sheffield is shortlisted for the Daily Mail University of the Year 2025.”

Featured image via @steelcitysnaps on X before edits.

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•University of Sheffield ranked second in new student led rankings