New rankings reveal the UK’s most festive unis, and King’s College London has fallen far behind

It’s a not-so-merry Christmas for KCL students, as new rankings suggest campus isn’t quite matching the rest of London’s festive cheer this December.

According to a recent survey conducted by Unifresher, King’s College London ranks 60th most festive out of 125 UK universities assessed.

The rankings were based on a range of Christmassy criteria which scored universities on various location, schedule, and cultural aspects.

These included: Days off for Christmas break, local pubs per square mile, proximity to an ice-skating rink, snow likelihood in days per year, and distance to the North Pole in miles.

The universities were then scored across each category and ranked by their overall average using data collected in October 2025.

At first glance, most of these factors offer KCL a fighting chance at a decent festive score. However, I’m sure you can already see where our weaknesses might lie.

Starting off strong, King’s students have a 30-day Christmas break, the same number as top-ranking universities.

Our pub game is also unsurprisingly festive, reportedly having seven pubs per square mile for cosy Christmas roasts and mulled wine. 

When it comes to ice rinks, I think we have a strong contender with Somerset House Skating. Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, and practically on campus (0.31 miles away according to Unifresher), there’s no doubt our beloved festive rink boosted KCL’s score.

The remaining categories are where KCL’s slide into mediocrity really begins. London is only expected to see three days of snowfall, and to make matters worse, we sit a staggering 2,660.28 miles from the North Pole.

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KCL’s biggest rival, UCL managed to sneak into 58th place — just two spots above King’s, purely thanks to being slightly further north.

And honestly, we’re not sure what’s more upsetting: The ranking itself or the fact that UCL beat us by the tiniest margin possible. 

KCL’s total score of 119 was almost doubled by top runners, Abertay University and the University of Dundee, scoring 209 and 205 respectively.

A white Christmas might just be on the cards as their snowfall is bound to be high as both are located in the North of Scotland. 

They also happen to be 300 miles closer to the North Pole than any London university, an advantage us KCL students can unfortunately hardly control.

It’s clear that universities in the north have an unfair advantage. They benefit greatly from a national geographic edge, as we see all the bottom-ranked universities being some of the most southern: Falmouth, Plymouth, Exeter, and Winchester. 

To shed some Christmas lights on the situation, KCL students should not be discouraged by this ranking. In fact, given our geographically challenged status, we did well to place as high as we did.

We have everything including Christmas Market pop-ups, Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland, St Paul’s Carols, and Oxford Street Christmas Lights (which are worth a view if you can stand the crowds).

If that wasn’t enough, KCL itself offers so many Christmas activities. From campus crafting to society winter balls: You’ll never want to go ho-ho-home for the holidays.

Whilst a Christmas up north is bound to be pretty special, a Londoner always insists that this is the place to be, and after some questionable scoring criteria, we students will be doubling down and rocking around that Somerset House Christmas tree.

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