Three in a row

For the third time this year, the University of St Andrews has been named top university in Scotland by a national league table.

The new Times Good University Guide published today (Thursday 16 August 2007) places St Andrews 5th in the UK.  The placing represents a leap of thirteen places from the University’s position at 18 in 2006.

Out of 113 institutions rated, the top five universities are listed as Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College, London School of Economics and St Andrews.

Universities were rated on student satisfaction, quality of research, staff-student ratio, completion rates and spend per student on services and facilities. They also looked at entry standards, the percentage of students gaining good honours and graduate prospects.

St Andrews was ranked joint top in the UK for student satisfaction and top in Scotland for research, completion rates and students gaining the best honours.

The University is also ranked in the top five UK subject listings for Iberian Languages (3rd), Psychology (3rd) and Physics & Astronomy (5th).

The Times table follows the recent publication of the new online Good University Guide and The Guardian University Guide which placed St Andrews 5th and 4th in the UK respectively.

Principal and Vice-Chancellor Dr Brian Lang said, “League tables are now a permanent feature of the HE landscape and while we should always take them and their methodologies with a generous pinch of salt, they have, whether we like it or not, become one of the major factors that influence student choice.

“We can I think all be proud of the fact that a Scottish university has figured repeatedly in the top five of this year’s crop of UK tables, more so given the significant financial and planning advantages which are now afforded to English universities by dint of tuition fees.”

A full version of the guide is published today at www.timesonline.co.uk/gooduniversityguide

ENDS

Issued by the Press Office, University of St Andrews
Contact Gayle Cook, Press Officer on 01334 467227 / 462529, mobile 07900 050 103, or email [email protected]
Ref:  Times Good University Guide 160807
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