Consensus world view of TOP 5/6 UK University Rankings (Prestige/Research)

[Anonymous]

Is clearing available for international students that dont get acceptance to any of their UCAS choices? Can someone here explain how clearing works?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Did anyone apply to Edinburg early, say in October? Just curious how quickly you hear back from them. (DC is a junior and planning to apply next year).

My Dc applied to Edinburg in October and got an unconditional offer by Thanksgiving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did anyone apply to Edinburg early, say in October? Just curious how quickly you hear back from them. (DC is a junior and planning to apply next year).

My Dc applied to Edinburg in October and got an unconditional offer by Thanksgiving.

Which programme if you dont mind sharing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did anyone apply to Edinburg early, say in October? Just curious how quickly you hear back from them. (DC is a junior and planning to apply next year).

My Dc applied to Edinburg in October and got an unconditional offer by Thanksgiving.

Which programme if you dont mind sharing?

You know, I don't even know! Some brand of social science I think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Did anyone apply to Edinburg early, say in October? Just curious how quickly you hear back from them. (DC is a junior and planning to apply next year).

My Dc applied to Edinburg in October and got an unconditional offer by Thanksgiving.

Thank you, this is super useful to know! DC is thinking of applying to the PPE program.

[Anonymous]

With most of the top schools (besides Oxbridge) the earlier you apply as an international the better. Some like Edinburgh, while they will make offers early, like to wait until the Jan 29 deadline for internationals before they start offering the vast majority of the spots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
My husband and I get tons of questions about this from our American friends. Now that our two younger kids are about to go through the process, we’ve been following this forum closely, and we’ve noticed these questions come up frequently. Hopefully, this helps!

This perspective is specifically for non-UK students/residents, as many of us in the UK unfortunately still rely heavily on our League Tables. These rankings take student satisfaction into account but tend to undervalue research output and overall research quality. This has its pros and cons but sometimes leads to results where universities like Loughborough, Bath, or St Andrews rank ahead of institutions that are considered more prestigious on an international scale.

After moving away from the UK after university and graduate school, spending seven years in Southeast Asia, 14 years in the US, and additional time in South America and Europe before returning to the US, I’ve come to realize that there is a fairly consistent global consensus (outside the UK) on which UK universities are the most prestigious—regardless of what our domestic League Tables might suggest.

To be clear, this doesn’t mean that universities outside this top group aren’t excellent. There are fantastic programs at Bath, Warwick, Bristol, St Andrews, etc. However, outside the UK, these six universities tend to be viewed by major employers and top universities as the most impressive and prestigious, with significantly stronger alumni networks:

1. Oxford/Cambridge
2. Imperial
3. UCL
4. Edinburgh/King’s

This ranking aligns well with global university rankings that factor in research output. I didn’t include LSE because it has such a narrow academic focus, but within those fields, it is, of course, world renowned.

My husband and I attended three of these six universities, plus one outside the list, and our experiences living all over the world have reinforced this perspective. In the US, St Andrews might be viewed positively in certain regions, but overall, the top 5–6 universities have remained consistent over time. Bristol is also well-regarded internationally and is often perceived as a step above St Andrews due to its broader research strength.

I frequently get questions from American friends about Warwick, Bristol, Bath, Exeter, and Lancaster for their kids. While these are great universities, some of which are particularly strong in specific subjects, outside the UK they generally don’t carry the same level of prestige as the six mentioned above. And based on what I’ve seen here on DCUM, prestige seems to matter a lot to many people in the US.

That said, students at these universities outside of the top 5-6 will still receive an excellent education. If the alternative is a T50–T75 US school, attending one of these top 10/12 UK universities outside the top 5 could still be a great option, especially for independent students who know exactly what they want to study.

Hope this helps!

Good summary OP. I wonder if we will see an increase in applications to these top 10 UK schools in the data for 2025 and 2026.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is clearing available for international students that dont get acceptance to any of their UCAS choices? Can someone here explain how clearing works?

Yes, it is available. I know kids that got in from here through clearing.

Details here: https://www.ucas.com/applying/after-you-apply/clearing-and-results-day/what-clearing

[Anonymous]

For those of you whose kids applied to both US and UK schools:
1) What happens when the UK school doesnt respond until after May 1st? they have until May 14 this yr. Do you just send deposit to your top US choice and wait on the UK decision?

2) We were told by a couple we know (not well) that their kid was accepted to UCL and asked for a deferral (Gap year) and it was granted. He then enrolled at a US university as he wanted a way out in case he didnt like his yr 1 experience as he was going to the east coast from the west coast.

After his 1st year, he decided he didnt fit in, so instead of transferring to another US school he simply started at UCL as a 1st yr. Didn’t even try to transfer any course. He is now graduating this yr.

Is this even legal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those of you whose kids applied to both US and UK schools:
1) What happens when the UK school doesnt respond until after May 1st? they have until May 14 this yr. Do you just send deposit to your top US choice and wait on the UK decision? Yes, that is what we did

2) We were told by a couple we know (not well) that their kid was accepted to UCL and asked for a deferral (Gap year) and it was granted. He then enrolled at a US university as he wanted a way out in case he didnt like his yr 1 experience as he was going to the east coast from the west coast.

After his 1st year, he decided he didnt fit in, so instead of transferring to another US school he simply started at UCL as a 1st yr. Didn’t even try to transfer any course. He is now graduating this yr.

Is this even legal?

Yes, this is legal. Students transfer schools or drop out after their freshman year all the time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you whose kids applied to both US and UK schools:
1) What happens when the UK school doesnt respond until after May 1st? they have until May 14 this yr. Do you just send deposit to your top US choice and wait on the UK decision? Yes, that is what we did

2) We were told by a couple we know (not well) that their kid was accepted to UCL and asked for a deferral (Gap year) and it was granted. He then enrolled at a US university as he wanted a way out in case he didnt like his yr 1 experience as he was going to the east coast from the west coast.

After his 1st year, he decided he didnt fit in, so instead of transferring to another US school he simply started at UCL as a 1st yr. Didn’t even try to transfer any course. He is now graduating this yr.

Is this even legal?

Yes, this is legal. Students transfer schools or drop out after their freshman year all the time.

I totally messed up the formatting so responding again. Question 1: Yes, that is what you do. It's the same thing a student would do if he/she got off a waitlist. Question 2: Yes, this is permitted. Students are permitted to transfer after their freshman year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you whose kids applied to both US and UK schools:
1) What happens when the UK school doesnt respond until after May 1st? they have until May 14 this yr. Do you just send deposit to your top US choice and wait on the UK decision? Yes, that is what we did

2) We were told by a couple we know (not well) that their kid was accepted to UCL and asked for a deferral (Gap year) and it was granted. He then enrolled at a US university as he wanted a way out in case he didnt like his yr 1 experience as he was going to the east coast from the west coast.

After his 1st year, he decided he didnt fit in, so instead of transferring to another US school he simply started at UCL as a 1st yr. Didn’t even try to transfer any course. He is now graduating this yr.

Is this even legal?

Yes, this is legal. Students transfer schools or drop out after their freshman year all the time.

I totally messed up the formatting so responding again. Question 1: Yes, that is what you do. It's the same thing a student would do if he/she got off a waitlist. Question 2: Yes, this is permitted. Students are permitted to transfer after their freshman year.

Thank you . But It wasn’t really a transfer. The student simply deferred admission at UCL and started at a US school to try it out. He didnt transfer any classes since he was taking GenEd classes, so nothing to transfer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you whose kids applied to both US and UK schools:
1) What happens when the UK school doesnt respond until after May 1st? they have until May 14 this yr. Do you just send deposit to your top US choice and wait on the UK decision? Yes, that is what we did

2) We were told by a couple we know (not well) that their kid was accepted to UCL and asked for a deferral (Gap year) and it was granted. He then enrolled at a US university as he wanted a way out in case he didnt like his yr 1 experience as he was going to the east coast from the west coast.

After his 1st year, he decided he didnt fit in, so instead of transferring to another US school he simply started at UCL as a 1st yr. Didn’t even try to transfer any course. He is now graduating this yr.

Is this even legal?

Yes, this is legal. Students transfer schools or drop out after their freshman year all the time.

I totally messed up the formatting so responding again. Question 1: Yes, that is what you do. It's the same thing a student would do if he/she got off a waitlist. Question 2: Yes, this is permitted. Students are permitted to transfer after their freshman year.

Thank you . But It wasn’t really a transfer. The student simply deferred admission at UCL and started at a US school to try it out. He didnt transfer any classes since he was taking GenEd classes, so nothing to transfer.

How could it be illegal? What would the enforcement mechanism be? If there was a jail for people who changed their minds about something it would be full very quickly.

It may be slightly unethical, but even that is arguable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those of you whose kids applied to both US and UK schools:
1) What happens when the UK school doesnt respond until after May 1st? they have until May 14 this yr. Do you just send deposit to your top US choice and wait on the UK decision?

2) We were told by a couple we know (not well) that their kid was accepted to UCL and asked for a deferral (Gap year) and it was granted. He then enrolled at a US university as he wanted a way out in case he didnt like his yr 1 experience as he was going to the east coast from the west coast.

After his 1st year, he decided he didnt fit in, so instead of transferring to another US school he simply started at UCL as a 1st yr. Didn’t even try to transfer any course. He is now graduating this yr.

Is this even legal?

If you apply in good time you should hear from them all way before mid-May. They don’t wait till the last minute. However, you may get a conditional offer. But then there is always clearing if you don’t make it. I suggest deciding in advance if you want to study in the UK or US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, thanks for posting. Currently tossing up potential choices for DS if a conditional offer for economics from Edinburgh comes through (already has offer from Durham).

Similar spot here. Son has offers from Bristol and Exeter. Waiting on Edinburgh and St Andrews.
Is your son leaning Edinburgh if everything comes through?

My DD got unconditional offers at St. Andrews and Edinburgh in November, but has heard nothing from the LSE.

Anyone hear anything from there?

Is she really planning on attending one of the three? As of now, is she leaning STA or UofE?

I'm hoping she'll choose a US option! I don't like the idea of her so far. But the choice is hers. I will discourage anything that isn't unconditional -- I don't want that hanging over her head in June and July.

It’s OK takes up an offer from an American university and a conditional offer from a UK university. It’s sort of like staying on the waitlist of the school.

That is what my son did. He had a ED offer from USC last year and a conditional from LSE. He met the conditional and is now finishing up his 1st year in London.

How does this work exactly if USC was an ED (contractual obligation) offer?