Highlights

Guides and rankings

Guide Year Ranking Institutions ranked Location
The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022 9 135 National
The Guardian University Guide 2022 8 121 National
The Complete University Guide 2023 8 130 National
Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2020 46 131 National
QS World University Rankings 2023 179 1,422 International
Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2022 201-250 over 1,600 International
Leiden Ranking 2021 134 1,225 International

National rankings

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022 places us 9th out of 135 institutions.

We're also ranked 7th for graduate prospects.

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022 ranks 17 of our subjects in the top ten, including:

  • 1st for Architecture and Criminology
  • 2nd for Psychology, Sociology, and Sports Science
  • 3rd for Civil Engineering and Mechanical Engineering

The Guardian University Guide

We are 8th in the Guardian University Guide 2022, with 13 subjects in the top ten, including ranking 2nd for Mechanical Engineering, Psychology, and Sports Science.

The guide also places us 5th for career, with 91% of graduates in graduate-level jobs or further study at professional or HE level after 15 months.

The guide ranks universities in nine key areas, including course satisfaction, student-to-staff ratio, and graduate prospects.

Complete University Guide

We are ranked 8th out of 130 UK universities in the Complete University Guide 2023.

We are ranked 6th for graduate prospects.

We've also ranked the number one university in the South West for seven years in a row.

The guide uses ten factors to score each university. It also publishes individual subject rankings based on:

  • student satisfaction
  • research quality
  • entry standards
  • graduate prospects

The Complete University guide ranks 26 of our subjects in the top ten. We are ranked as the number one place to study Marketing and Architecture in the UK.

Whatuni Student Choice Awards

We're ranked 15th for Graduate prospects and 11th for Societies and Sports, in the Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2020.

These awards are based on reviews submitted by more than 41,000 students across the UK.

International rankings

QS World University Rankings

In the QS World University Rankings 2023 we have an overall ranking of 179 out of 1,422 universities around the world.

We're also ranked 8th in the world for Sports-related subjects in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022.

Times Higher Education

In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2022 we have an overall ranking of 201-250 out of over 1,600 universities across 99 countries and territories.

Leiden Ranking

In the 2021 Leiden Ranking, we are 134th in the world for the proportion of our publications that were in the top 10% most frequently cited, compared with other publications in the same field and year.

The Leiden Ranking measures the scientific performance of 1,225 universities worldwide. Using a sophisticated set of bibliometric indicators, the ranking aims to provide highly accurate measurements of the scientific impact of universities and their involvement in scientific collaboration.

The ranking is based on over 25 years' bibliometric experience at the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) of Leiden University.

Awards and ratings

QS Graduate Employability Rankings

We are placed in the Top 100 of the QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2022. Placing 93rd in the ranking marks us out as one of the best places to study globally in terms of students’ onward prospects.

The University of Bath was rated particularly strongly in terms of its partnerships and its reputation among employers, with a graduate employment rate of 95.6% 12 months after graduation.

National Student Survey

Our students continue to be among the most satisfied in the UK, according to the 2021 National Student Survey (NSS). Our overall student satisfaction rate is 86%. This means we're ranked 1st in England and 2nd in the UK when comparing institutions listed in the Guardian University Guide.

Six of our courses received satisfaction ratings of 100% with a further 20 receiving satisfaction ratings of 90% or above.

Our courses that scored 100% were:

  • BA (Hons) Sport & Social Sciences
  • BSc (Hons) Chemistry with Industrial Placement
  • BSc (Hons) Social Sciences with Year long work placement
  • MEng (Hons) Civil and Architectural Engineering with Year long work placement
  • MEng (Hons) Mechanical Engineering
  • MPharmacol (Hons) Pharmacology with Year-long work placement

Our departments that scored over 90% for student satisfaction were:

  • Architecture & Civil Engineering
  • Biology & Biochemistry
  • Chemistry
  • Education
  • Health
  • Pharmacy & Pharmacology

Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey

We are ranked 4th in the UK in The Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey 2018.

Around 330,000 students took part in the survey. Survey questions covered all areas of academic life, including the quality of teaching, feedback on work, and learning resources.

Research Excellence Framework (REF)

The results of the REF 2021 confirm the excellence of the research carried out at Bath.

92% of University of Bath research submitted to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 achieved the two highest classifications of ‘world leading’ or ‘internationally excellent'.

Find out about the research behind our REF 2021 submission.

Queen’s Anniversary Prizes

We have been awarded two Queen's Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education. This is the country's most prestigious national recognition for a UK academic or vocational institution.

In 2011, we received the Queen's award for our Department of Social & Policy Sciences' 'Influential research into child poverty and support for vulnerable people'.

We were also awarded the prize in 2000 to recognise the 'invaluable services to industrial and scientific communities' of the Centre for Power Transmission & Motion Control.