Both the University of Bristol and UWE climb in the Complete University Guide rankings

It’s that time of the year again… the Complete University Guide has released their full 2026 rankings, and the parents’ Facebook group chats are being flooded with speculations and ‘back in my day…’s that make you wish you’d skipped applying to uni to be a full-time cat-sitter.

Luckily for us, it’s good news for the South West – the University of Bristol has moved up one place to 15th, and the University of the West of England has moved up a whopping 13 places to 62nd.

To absolutely no one’s surprise, the bigwig universities of the UK haven’t strayed from their previous positions, with the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, and the London School of Economics taking the top three. Shocking for everyone, I know. Someone has to tell them to be exciting and mix it up a little.

The University of St Andrews has also maintained its position as fourth on the list, reminding everyone that universities outside the Russell Group are equally as prestigious and impressive, despite lacking that ‘red brick university’ title.

This year, the University of Bristol has reclaimed its spot (and its bragging rights) in the top 15, having moved to 15th place with an overall score of 78 per cent. 15th is up one place from 2024 and 2025, when UoB had previously been in 16th position, and the statistics show this uptick follows a similar improvement in entry standards and graduate prospects.

The University of Bristol is ranked first in its course in general engineering, as well as having 26 other subjects ranked in their respective top 10s, including veterinary medicine, music, and law.

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Even more impressive is the rise through the ranks of the University of the West of England (or UWE), who take the 62nd spot, having moved up a whopping 13 places from last year. This impressive leap puts it level with Falmouth University and SOAS University of London, with an overall score of 58 per cent.

Entry standards, continuation, and their academic services spend have all increased dramatically from the previous year, which will only serve as fuel to the fire in the never-ending ‘our uni is way better than yours’ dispute between Bristol universities.

However, in terms of student satisfaction, the universities in Bristol leave a lot to be desired, with UoB ranking 116th alongside the University of Brighton. UWE does marginally better, coming in at 99th alongside Exeter and Kent.

Notable changes in the top 20 include University College London moving down by four places to number 13, the University of Edinburgh losing three places to end up in 18th, and the University of York gaining five places to finish 12th (although I personally believe York should move up another place this year if they manage to restore their statue of Long Boi…RIP )