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Should league table rankings be important for university choices?

I'll be applying for uni in September and over the last month and a bit I've been to various university open days. I think now my shortlist is (depending on results) Cambridge, Manchester, Imperial, Edinburgh, Sheffield, and Newcastle, with the possibility of visiting Leeds and Birmingham in September as I didn't manage to get to the summer open days.
I'm looking at chem eng and there are only about 30 or so unis which offer it so the league tables are quite condensed compared to other subjects. Should my where I apply be influenced by league tables? I liked the look of Edinburgh on the open day for example but, compared to the other universities I am looking at, it is low on the league table. I'm not sure exactly how much I should take rankings into consideration when choosing universities.
Rankings should only be used as a starting point, and also be sure to check the individual stats to see why a certain university is lower.

To be honest, once you're applying to all Russell Group universities, ranking doesn't really matter that much. Certainly no-one is going to hire a Leeds or Birmingham graduate over Edinburgh because they went to those universities. More important things might include industry contacts, contact time, the quality and price of accomodation, etc.
Original post by sarcastic-sal
I'll be applying for uni in September and over the last month and a bit I've been to various university open days. I think now my shortlist is (depending on results) Cambridge, Manchester, Imperial, Edinburgh, Sheffield, and Newcastle, with the possibility of visiting Leeds and Birmingham in September as I didn't manage to get to the summer open days.
I'm looking at chem eng and there are only about 30 or so unis which offer it so the league tables are quite condensed compared to other subjects. Should my where I apply be influenced by league tables? I liked the look of Edinburgh on the open day for example but, compared to the other universities I am looking at, it is low on the league table. I'm not sure exactly how much I should take rankings into consideration when choosing universities.


League tables mean nothing, I wouldn't bother with them. Doesn't take a league table to figure out that Imperial is better than, say, London Met, for engineering.
Reply 3
Avatar for Jamie76
Jamie76
Not in the slightest. There are fantastic universities that have incredibly talented lecturers and professors but the university has a lower league score. The numbers are a guideline. Base your decisions on the university, the course criteria, the sincerity and passion from the staff.

i chose Stafford because the opening day made the whole place feel like home instantly - there were good vibes about it. What really sold the university was the physical passion the staff displayed; they want to be there and they want to teach you to the best of their abilities. The rankings for Stafford are not fantastic but I didn't take that into consideration once.

Suss the uni out, find the ones you like and base your decision on how the experience makes you feel - forget about some boring statistic.
Reply 4
Avatar for jm925
jm925
10
I'd use them as a starting point as they do contain some useful information, but remember that the differences between rankings are tiny. Universities can go up or down by 5 places from one year to the next without changing hugely. Personally, I consider the general area of the table that they're in (because I think this generally represents reputation) and how they score on areas that are important to me, but would never make decisions based on X being 5th and Y being 6th.
I'd recommend thinking about the travel from...

A. your parents - too near and there's a risk they'll be popping in all the time, too far and it's an unnecessary pain getting home between terms.

B. prospective employers/placements.

start looking at league tables once you've some thoughts about where about in the country you want to be IMO
I'd say use a combination of league tables, the data you can get on unistats, the entry requirements (including if they're ok with getting lower than your offer) and what people say about living at the university. For example if one is a few lower but a higher proportion of grads go into a relevant field, it accepts ABB students and most people fall in love with the uni then it might better to go for that one.
League tables are handy for a reference point, but I tried not to get too caught up in them. I received offers from Sheffield who were ranked 3rd for engineering, and Swansea who were 21st or something like that. Of course it depends on which rankings you look at too.

I went for Swansea because I prefer the location, and I just plain got a better feeling from the place when I went to the open days.

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