Same with the Times Rankings….They are actually pretty close. |
It helps one understand potential biases in their ranking approach. |
Heriot-Watt in Scotland is completely unheralded in the UK. It is known in Silicon Valley, however, for the strength of its graduates in Electronics and Semiconductor Design. |
It is somewhat bizarre to take the employment practices of the largest players in a dying empire as your frame of reference here. For those of us expecting kids to attend university outside the US—partly because it can be part of a long-term path out of the US, period—this is very useful information. |
But where are you going to go? Job market overseas isn't great. |
Wonder how much these shift on an annual basis? My guess is the top 5 is what it is with minor movements here and there. |
That is just one subject. Heriot-Watt has always been a low ranking dumping ground for kids who aren't academic enough for the other Scottish universities (or the English ones). |
Oxbridge are always there 1-3 with the occasional 4 since St Andrews has climbed the rankings in the last 15 years or so. For the last 10 years, these 5 have been the top 5 in some order. So no changes there. Then after that, UCL/Durham/Bath seen to always bee in the 5-8 spot and from 9 to 15 it always changes. Warwick/Bristol/Exeter/Kings seem to always be in those spots (Kings noticeably missing this time around). |
It really depends on course. Top 5 engineering courses are Oxbridge, Imperial, UCL and Manchester. https://www.timeshighereducation.com/student/...gineering-degrees-uk Top 5 economics are Oxbridge, LSE, StA and Warwick. https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/...s/rankings/economics Top 5 politics are Oxbridge, St Andrews, LSE and Kings. https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/...es/rankings/politics Top 5 physics and astronomy are Oxbridge, Durham, Manchester and Birmingham. https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/...hysics-and-astronomy Top 5 biological sciences are Oxbridge, UCL, Imperial and Durham. https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/.../biological-sciences |
As I said originally, completely unheralded in the UK. And yet, for digital logic, Silicon Valley likes it so. |
It seems completely reasonable to me. Attending a British university instead of an American (or even Canadian) institution is a sizable logistical & paperwork hassle. If you’re going to go through that, you usually want to end up with a name on your resume that sounds somewhat distinguished. I would guess plenty of people in the US and abroad avoid Rice, Ball State, Slippery Rock, & Tufts for similar reasons. |
Paperwork hassle? Let me introduce you to UCAS. You fill in one form and you pay 28 pounds and you've applied to 5 colleges. Everything goes through them, sometimes the colleges ask for AP certificates / SAT score transcripts. They may want the 1 recommendation letter required to go on letter head. |
I dont think the PP was a talking about paperwork as in applications….clearly PP doesnt know what it takes, but yes there is more than just applying. Living abroad for 3-4 years for most Americans is not as easy as moving to another state. It is for us since my husband is Italian, we have family all over the world, kids grew up flying everywhere spending time everywhere and have two passports. This is not the case for most Americans. SO i understand. Insurance, logistics, etc. I agree it is worth it. But I understand the commentary about not wanting a perceived “weird name”on your resume by your “limited” social circles…. |
One of these 3, I think the Complete U Guide league tables will be released end of the month for 2026….will be interesting to see if there are any changes…. |
Complete university guide 2026 is out:
https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings |