Ranked: These are officially the hardest Russell Group unis to get an offer from

In what will come as a shock to nobody, Oxford and Cambridge are the hardest Russell Group unis to get an offer for.

That’s according to UCAS stats showing the offer rates for each Russell Group uni in 2019 – the most recent year available.

Beyond the obvious Oxbridge and London candidates, Edinburgh don’t just let anyone in, with just over half of applications ending in success.

Meanwhile, York and Exeter seem like they’ll take anyone – with Exeter rejecting fewer than one in 10 applicants.

The ranking shows how likely you are to get an offer if you apply in the first place. Selectiveness is the big factor behind an offer rate – which explains why you’ll see Oxford, Cambridge, and LSE right up there at the top with the lowest offer rates.

Durham’s relatively high offer rate – which might surprise you given its high entry standards – could be explained by the fact it’s a backup for lots of Oxbridge-standard applicants.

Equally, a more selective uni could have a higher offer rate because people self-select out, not wanting to apply if they know they’ll get rejected.

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