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Original post by Desertanium
Hi, can anyone give me the top 20 universities for English Literatures from The Times? Thanks :smile:


2 University College London 4.4 486 2.85 81.0 100.0
2 1 Oxford 4.3 504 3.00 78.0 99.8
3 3 Durham 4.3 497 2.80 76.0 98.8
4 4 Cambridge 4.2 529 2.95 70.0 98.6
5 6 York 4.0 490 3.15 74.0 98.5
6 5 Warwick 4.2 487 2.95 74.0 98.2
7 8 St Andrews 4.1 480 2.95 69.0 96.7
8 9 Exeter 4.2 459 3.00 67.0 96.4
9 7 Bristol 4.0 503 2.85 69.0 96.4
10 11 Nottingham 4.0 459 3.00 71.0 96.3
11 18 Sussex 4.4 415 2.70 70.0 95.1
12 15 Queen Mary 4.3 401 3.05 64.0 94.7
13 16 Leicester 4.3 416 2.70 68.0 94.5
14 21 Lancaster 4.1 425 2.70 69.0 94.2
15 11 Leeds 4.1 449 2.95 61.0 94.2
16 13 Edinburgh 3.9 438 3.05 62.0 93.9
17 17 Newcastle 4.1 444 2.90 61.0 93.8
18 19 Liverpool 4.1 425 2.90 62.0 93.7
19 25 Loughborough 4.4 398 2.50 68.0 93.7
20 20 Southampton
Reply 2221
Could someone explain why Goldsmiths is so low in university league tables? I'm not going there, a friend is, yet i'm really suprised that some have placed them around 50th. They have really good research standards, and it isn't easy to get a place....
Reply 2222
which were the founding members of the russell group?
Original post by Fields
Subject tables are more useful.


From a maths point of view at least newspaper subject tables are almost entirely useless.
Original post by fnm
which were the founding members of the russell group?


The Russell Group has an Orwellian view of history so this is very difficult information to find.

The earliest information on THES (Jan 1995) gives 15 members. Although the names aren't mentioned those of the current 20 which weren't in at the beginning were Warwick, LSE and Queen's. I don't know the other two.

However when the group was still secret, I believe it was smaller with, I think, only 11 members.
Reply 2225
In my opinion these are the top 10 universities in the UK in terms of academics and prestige. The UK 'Ivy league':
1.)Oxford
2.)Cambridge
3.)LSE
4.)Durham
5.)Imperial
6.)Warwick
7.)UCL
8.)St Andrews
9.)Bristol
10.)Edinburgh
Original post by alicatee
In my opinion these are the top 10 universities in the UK in terms of academics and prestige. The UK 'Ivy league':
1.)Oxford
2.)Cambridge
3.)LSE
4.)Durham
5.)Imperial
6.)Warwick
7.)UCL
8.)St Andrews
9.)Bristol
10.)Edinburgh


Your opinion is noted. Perhaps you would let us know why your opinion should be accorded respect. Are you an Ofsted inspector, a former vice-chancellor or the head of Universities UK; or perhaps you have made a lifetime's study of the subject? :smile:
Original post by nulli tertius
Your opinion is noted. Perhaps you would let us know why your opinion should be accorded respect. Are you an Ofsted inspector, a former vice-chancellor or the head of Universities UK; or perhaps you have made a lifetime's study of the subject? :smile:


You must get awfully bored of the adolescent teens on here who have claims to the accurate list of the UK's top 10 universities.

Original post by alicatee
In my opinion these are the top 10 universities in the UK in terms of academics and prestige. The UK 'Ivy league':
1.)Oxford
2.)Cambridge
3.)LSE
4.)Durham
5.)Imperial
6.)Warwick
7.)UCL
8.)St Andrews
9.)Bristol
10.)Edinburgh


Durham seems slightly inflated to me.. and suprise suprise you're a Durham firmer.:rolleyes: To be honest, after Oxford, Cambridge, and possibly LSE and Imperial, I don't think this would really make sense. Consider that in the US, a Princeton degree is generally more prestigious than a Columbia degree to the massess. Princeton would probably be percieved as slightly below Yale and Harvard, and slightly above Columbia. However even if your table is accurate I don't think a Durham degree (4) is generally any more prestigious then a Edinburgh degree, despite a difference in 6 places.
Original post by Tsunami2011
You must get awfully bored of the adolescent teens on here who have claims to the accurate list of the UK's top 10 universities.



Durham seems slightly inflated to me.. and suprise suprise you're a Durham firmer.:rolleyes: To be honest, after Oxford, Cambridge, and possibly LSE and Imperial, I don't think this would really make sense. Consider that in the US, a Princeton degree is generally more prestigious than a Columbia degree to the massess. Princeton would probably be percieved as slightly below Yale and Harvard, and slightly above Columbia. However even if your table is accurate I don't think a Durham degree (4) is generally any more prestigious then a Edinburgh degree, despite a difference in 6 places.


Im not going to argue either way here, I will point out that prestige is largelly irrelevant if you are looking at the top 10, research quality, teaching quality e.t.c these tangible quantities matter far more. I think people should treat universities less like a game of football with winners, loosers and rankings and more like academic power houses.

Of course I would never argue all universities are equal, oxbridge is obviously the best in the country. However this is not due to their prestige (though undoubtadely they have that), but due to their fantastic teaching and resarch quality and thus their ability to attract applicants of a higher standard.

Now I understand durham does alot better than edinburough in the terrestial legue tables, and worse on the international ones. It is intelectually lazy and very biased to dismiss one or the other out of hand, as so many people do. All university league tables will have some validity, and should be discussed in terms of their methology NOT in terms of a vague phantom comparison to perceived prestige which I fear is the trap we all fall into far too often.
Original post by Tsunami2011


Durham seems slightly inflated to me.. and suprise suprise you're a Durham firmer.:rolleyes: To be honest, after Oxford, Cambridge, and possibly LSE and Imperial, I don't think this would really make sense. Consider that in the US, a Princeton degree is generally more prestigious than a Columbia degree to the massess. Princeton would probably be percieved as slightly below Yale and Harvard, and slightly above Columbia. However even if your table is accurate I don't think a Durham degree (4) is generally any more prestigious then a Edinburgh degree, despite a difference in 6 places.


TSR and university insecurities again :wink:
LSE overtakes Oxford in latest university league table http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings

The end is nigh :gasp:
(edited 11 years ago)
http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings?

Top 10 are

1) Cambridge
2) LSE
3) Oxford
4) Imperial
5) Durham
6)Warwick
6) St Andrews
8) UCL
9) Lancaster
10) Bath.

Anybody else suprised by the large difference betwen the graduate prospects of LSE and Oxford?

UCL also seems strangely lower then usual..
surely all the russels group shud be in the top 10
Reply 2233
Original post by y.yousef
surely all the russels group shud be in the top 10


Do you even have any clue about what russell group is?

Anyway I think this new 2013 one is the worse I've seen so far from the complete university guide.

I mean who would go that far to rate Oxford economics higher than Cambridge's when Oxford don't even offer straight economics.
And I don't understand how LSE is ranked above Oxford overall?

Even the top 10 maths table is laughable. Oxford above Cambridge? St Andrews and Durham above Imperial?
(edited 11 years ago)
Original post by y.yousef
surely all the russels group shud be in the top 10


That would be quite difficult as there are over 10 members of the RG.

Or do you mean the full top ten should be 10 of the Russell Group? If so, you don't seem to know what the Russell Group is and how league tables work.

All ten are in the Russell or 1994 Group, but even if this weren't the cast, it doesn't make the Table false.
Original post by River85
That would be quite difficult as there are over 10 members of the RG.

Or do you mean the full top ten should be 10 of the Russell Group? If so, you don't seem to know what the Russell Group is and how league tables work.

All ten are in the Russell or 1994 Group, but even if this weren't the cast, it doesn't make the Table false.


Okay then, can you explain what Russel Group 'actually' is then? :smile:
Original post by *Hakz*
Do you even have any clue about what russell group is?

Anyway I think this new 2013 one is the worse I've seen so far from the complete university guide.

I mean who would go that far to rate Oxford economics higher than Cambridge's when Oxford don't even offer straight economics.
And I don't understand how LSE is ranked above Oxford overall?

Even the top 10 maths table is laughable. Oxford above Cambridge? St Andrews and Durham above Imperial?


lol yeah I lol'ed at St Andrews being above Imperial and Warwick for Maths :lol:
When do the Times/Sunday Times tables get updated?
Original post by Tsunami2011
lol yeah I lol'ed at St Andrews being above Imperial and Warwick for Maths :lol:

The table is made using actual measurements and not merely preconceived notions.

All of your comments have been based on your preconceived notions about x being over x. You have not provided any critique of the methodology used in the construction of the table.
(edited 11 years ago)
Lol every year these rankings get more and more peculiar. They are completely inconsistent across the board, and to be honest The Times/Sunday Times + world rankings are about all I think are reliable (given that rankings don't seem to change as dramatically every year). The Guardian is the most bizarre and The Complete University Guide is a close second - how can universities move 6-8 places every year? And how is LSE better than Oxford? As strong as it is I doubt anyone could disagree that Oxford and Cambridge still hold the crowns for best universities in the UK.

I also find it odd that despite all the new investment, excellent world rankings, and new membership of the Russell Group that Queen Mary has dropped 6 places in a year that has been marked by success. It has also just built the new ArtsTwo building and yet the History ranking also fell several places. I just find it a bit strange personally.
(edited 11 years ago)

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