University of Cambridge third best in UK university rankings
It's claimed the top sport in East Anglia
Last updated 15th Sep 2023
The University of Cambridge has been named the 3rd best in the UK and best in East Anglia.
The rankings by, The Good University Guide, published by The Times, looks at things like the quality of teaching, job prospects and student satisfaction.
The rest of the country
Nationally, the University of St Andrews has taken the top spot, beating Oxford and Cambridge.
It's only the second time in the 30-year history of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide that St Andrews has been placed higher than the elite Oxbridge institutions.
The rankings show that Oxford fell from first to second place with Cambridge remaining in third place.
The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 said St Andrews won due to improved results in graduate prospects and its student-to-staff ratio (11.9 to one).
The university's high proportion of students gaining first and 2:1 degrees, as well as high Ucas entry standards, also helped it top the league table.
University of the year
University College London (UCL) won the guide's University of the Year 2024 award having moved up to sixth place in the league table this year.
The guide said its performance has improved in many measures in the past year - including graduate prospects and honours degrees awarded.
"Never been tougher"
Helen Davies, editor of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide, said: "The higher education landscape has never been tougher.
"It is more competitive to get a place at many of our top institutions; the cost of attending university has soared, leaving graduates with extraordinary debt; and in many cases campus life still bears the scars of the pandemic. Meanwhile lecturers are on strike and the marking crisis is a running scandal.
"It means any prospective student, parent or carer needs to think hard about whether university is the right choice, and then where to study and what subject."