Welcome to Queen Mary University: where current and prospective students can discuss everything from being the only campus university in London and sleeping to the lullaby of sirens.
I'm confused. Queen Mary has foundations stretching back centuries, it received top rankings in many subjects in the 2001 RAE, it has some of the best facilities and sponsorships in the country and is in a fantastic central london location.
Some of the academic staff here are far more worth their weight in gold than those from other newer universities that generally rank higher i.e. loughborough, leicester (no offense)
Having experienced Queen Mary myself and another University that required 3 A's to get into. I cannot believe that the entry standards for this university are so low. The courses are amazing. The tutors are so passionate and friendly. It's just a brilliant all round institution, and certainly deserves a place within the top 25 of universities, rather than bordering on 40 in the recent Sunday Times University Guide.
It is set to better it's research performance in the 2008 RAE, so we're looking at a number of subjects achieving highest marks.
Can someone tell me why this university ranks so low overall in many different tables, and why people generally have never heard of, or will never apply to Queen Mary, for want of a 'better, red-brick institution'
Location: North Somerset (like a big vat of cider))
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Re: Why does Queen Mary rank so low?
How old it is doesn't make too much difference; Aberdeen isn't exactly top of the rankings either. There are lots of very good universities in Britain and they can't all be the best
It ranks 'low' in the overall tables, but seems to have a few outstanding departments. I think English (my course) was 8th in the Guardian's and 15th or something in the Times this year. I think medicine and physics also does really well, im not sure though.
So it's obviously everyone else letting the side down.
And the difference between a top 25 place and a top 40 place seems quite flexible according to the University League Tables so I wouldn't lose too much sleep over things like that.
Its all a vicious circle. The jist of it is that the league tables are largely dependent on a university's entry requirements. More than half of the categories could be said to be linked to the entry requirements. % of good degrees is dependent on the calibre of the students coming in. The calibre of the students coming in can be rated by the A-Level grades they achieve. The kind of students getting entry is dependent on the entry requirements and the kind of students applying is dependent on the league tables. I wrote a big explanation of all this over in this thread. At the end of the day, league tables have very little effect on you. You're personal chances are not higher at getting a 1st are not really significantly higher at a "top" university versus a "bottom" university. Pretty much all of the universities in the UK are deemed as very respectable throughout the international community - its your grade that counts. Work hard and get a good degree result, *that*'s what matters.
does the UoL count for much nowadays? not sure how about its rep internationally..but everyone in this country knows the strengths of the individual institutions...e.g.kings,ucl, lse,qm, goldsmiths etc
Other than when talking about MAs, people in other countries largely judge universities in terms of their academic (research) reputation. Queen Mary is very well respected in this regard. When it comes to academics in different countries, they will judge universities largely by their research in their own highly specific field of research.
I'd like to be able to agree with Spanky Deluxe, I have 3 A's at A level, far more than the average Queen Mary student, and I hope to get a 1st or a 2.1. And I would like to think that because Queen Mary scores low overall, that it won't matter, because employers see beyond that, and value your personal choice of university. But I don't care about that, Queen Mary deserves a better reputation and for it to stand out to the masses. Because in the academic circle, it clearly does.
Dunno, just goes to show you don't always need to go to Russell Group, etc to have a good time and a good education. Also shows that league tables are a load of tosh.
Of all the UofL colleges I'd put QMUL 4th, after UCL, LSE, KCL...which is a very respectful position all the same!
I'd like to be able to agree with Spanky Deluxe, I have 3 A's at A level, far more than the average Queen Mary student, and I hope to get a 1st or a 2.1. And I would like to think that because Queen Mary scores low overall, that it won't matter, because employers see beyond that, and value your personal choice of university. But I don't care about that, Queen Mary deserves a better reputation and for it to stand out to the masses. Because in the academic circle, it clearly does.
Good job on the A-Levels. Just make sure you start working hard right now, from the first year (I'm assuming you're a first year). It can be easier for students with top A-Level grades to take the first year easy because they've done better than the rest in the past. Aim for the same mark in your first year that you want to get in your last year. In most courses the later year's content is built up on the first year. Don't worry though, if you get a good grade, that's what will matter.
QMUL is actually a strange university in that it doesn't fall into any of the other university 'groups'. I.e. its not an ex-poly, its not an ancient and its not a red brick.
Dunno, just goes to show you don't always need to go to Russell Group, etc to have a good time and a good education. Also shows that league tables are a load of tosh.
Of all the UofL colleges I'd put QMUL 4th, after UCL, LSE, KCL...which is a very respectful position all the same!
QMUL I think will always be like this, but that's what sets it apart from others, the perfect balance between everything a University with a good reputation should be.
I don't know really; maybe like someone above posted that QM doesn't fall into any particular category. But the history department is excellent and scores well in the league tables as well as numerous other subjects
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Why does Queen Mary rank so low?
