Thoughts on the quality of Scottish Universities

Well, Scotland is pretty much a third world country leached to England and that comes with budged friendly public education system They need the extra year to learn how to read before the actual degree starts

Remind us again which country in the UK has the most Ancient Universities? (Establishments founded before 1600ad). Seem to recollect we had 4 of them by 1578 before England even got their 3rd in 1832

Yes, the medieval schools of theology are are the backbone of modern education. How did the poor Americans even get their space program without a single zealots ran medieval dump of no consequence?

Of course because Medicine and Natural Philosophy (the type including Mathematics and Physics) weren’t degrees back then.

Assume you don’t do an essay based subject at uni with such a fantastic composition of your argument?

How an unrelated old building translate into the overall standard of education?
It does not.

I agree, but unfortunately the idea of “prestigiousness” attracts high calibre students and lecturers alike. That’s where the history becomes important, like a magnet so to speak.

Put it this way, which would you rather choose, Loughborough or Exeter? Location aside, probably Exeter (more prestigious) yet ranking better at Loughborough. It’s age and history that attracts calibre and in return academic challenge.

In same way. If you were lecturer, if same research funding, would you rather Cambridge or Warwick (location aside) ?

Most Unis are the same, there are very few known names that suppose to be better but apart of that it does not matter. Especially when it comes to professions. CS degree from DeMonfort usually comes with a job. CS degree from Cambridge usually comes with nothing. All the perceived prestigious disappear during the Tech element of job interview where you lose to a guy without a degree. This happens all the time.
Being taught by academics might have some value if you go after a degree in Neuroscience or Mathematics, or any other research heavy domain. But, if you go after something technical and want a decent job, you want to be taught exclusively by people from the industry because when it comes to the actual job/interview your pure math modules wont help much.

I think you’re right in what you say, and the evidence is all there to back it up. But might a DeMontfort CS student get a job over a Cambridge CS student because I would guess the DeMontfort one may have better communication/social/widerlife skills.

Something I’ve realised (which sort of aligns with what you’re saying) is that once you have your degree, employers don’t really care about it so long as you passed and are a good people person. I would imagine a Cambridge CS student would have their head in a book for most of their life without those social skills, but a DeMontfort student probably wouldn’t, thus making them a bit more personable and better at interviews/dealing with clients etc and hence getting a job