Queen's Anniversary Prize 2021 - the highest national Honour awarded in UK further and higher education.
University of Aberdeen was awarded the Queen's Anniversary Prize in 2021 for research and teaching in soil science.
Our latest rankings
Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide (UK) - 19
Guardian University League Table (UK) - 12
Complete University Guide (UK) - 35
Times Higher Education (UK/World) - 25 / 192
QS World Rankings (UK/World) - 29 / 208
Facts & Figures
2nd
2nd in Scotland, Wales and N Ireland for student satisfaction in The National Student Survey 2023
Top 20
Ranked 12th in the UK in the Guardian University Guide 2024 and 19th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024.
Top 200
Ranked 192nd in the world in the Times Higher Education Ranking 2023
2021
Awarded the Queen's Anniversary Prize for research and teaching in Soil Science
Fast Facts
Queen's Anniversary Prize 2017 - the highest national Honour awarded in UK further and higher education.
University of Aberdeen was awarded the Queen's Anniversary Prize in 2017 for sustained excellence in health services research over the last 40 years.
Supporting the Gaelic language and culture
Gaelic has been taught as a subject at the University since the eighteenth century. Many distinguished Gaelic scholars have passed through as students or staff.
On Campus
Historic League Tables
The national and global league tables are calculated using different criteria and weighting but all include; student satisfaction, student to staff ratio, graduate prospects, and entry grades.
| League Table | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide (UK) | 44 | 45 | 44 | 40 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 20 | 19 | 19 |
| Guardian University League Table (UK) | 41 | 41 | 36 | 46 | 51 | 34 | 20 | 20 | 13 | 12 |
| Complete University Guide (UK) | 44 | 40 | 42 | 40 | 28 | 29 | 26 | 38 | 37 | 35 |
| Times Higher Education (UK) | 26 | 29 | 30 | 28 | 22 | 25 | 25 | 22 | 25 | 26 |
| Times Higher Education (World) | 178 | 172 | 188 | 185 | 158 | 168 | 178 | 158 | 192 | 201-250 |
| QS World Rankings (UK) | 24 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 29 |
| QS World Rankings (World) | 137 | 137 | 141 | 158 | 172 | 194 | 207 | 205 | 220 | 208 |
| Shanghai Rankings (UK) | =22 | =22 | =21 | =22 | =22 | =21 | =21 | =22 | =21 | |
| Shanghai Rankings (World) | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 |
Subject Rankings
- Guardian University Guide 2024
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Medicine 1st Anthropology and archaeology 4th Physics 6th Accounting & Finance 7th International Relations 7th Pharmacy & Pharmacology 8th Politics 9th Sports Science 9th Chemical Engineering 10th Business and Management 11th Zoology 11th Languages & Linguistics 12th Earth & Marine Sciences 13th Chemistry 13th Sociology & Social Policy 14th English 16th Law 16th Psychology 20th Economics 21st Music 22nd History 33rd Geography 44th - The Times & Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024
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Anatomy and Physiology 1st Anthropology 7th Medicine 7th Sports Science 7th English 8th Geology 8th Law 9th Chemical Engineering 12th Pharmacology and Pharmacy 12th Sociology 13th General Engineering 14th Geography and Environmental Science 14th French 15th Iberian Languages 15th Philosophy 15th Education 17th Music 18th Business, management and marketing 19th History 19th Accounting and Finance 20th Politics 20th Mechanical Engineering 21st Electrical and Electronic Engineering 25th Psychology 25th - The Complete University Guide 2024
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Theology & Religious Studies 3rd Biomedical Sciences 5th Drama, Dance & Cinematics 6th Linguistics 6th Anthropology 10th General Engineering 12th Sports Science 12th Creative Writing 13th Geology 15th Medicine 18th Philosophy 18th Law 19th Archaeology 20th Education 21st Geography & Environmental Science 21st Chemical Engineering 22rd English 22nd Accounting & Finance 24th Sociology 24th - Leiden Rankings 2022
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The Leiden University Rankings use bibliometric indicators to measure the performance of universities across the world.
Scientific Impact
Ranked 43rd in the UK for the scientific impact of its research.
Research Collaboration
The University is ranked 19th in the UK for collaborative research that takes place with partners across the world.
Open Access Publishing
The University is ranked 56th in the world for the number of Open Access publications. 84% of publications by University of Aberdeen researchers are Open Access.
Research Gender Diversity
This year, the university is ranked 13th in the UK for gender diversity. The University has consistently been ranked highly in the UK for the gender diversity of its researchers.