57th in world for positive impact on society
The University is 57th worldwide in the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2021, which recognise social and economic impact under the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
Our rankings for 2022
Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide (UK) - 20
Guardian University League Table (UK) - 20
Complete University Guide (UK) - 38
Times Higher Education (UK/World) - 22 / 158
QS World Rankings (UK/World) - 28 / 205
Facts & Figures
Top 20
Ranked 20th in the UK in the Guardian University Guide and Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022
Top 160
Ranked 158th in the world in the Times Higher Education Ranking 2022
Top 5
Ranked 5th in the UK for overall student satisfaction (National Student Survey 2021)
75%
Three quarters of research classified as world leading in the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2014)
Fast Facts
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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide (UK) | 44 | 45 | 44 | 40 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 20 |
| Guardian University League Table (UK) | 41 | 41 | 36 | 46 | 51 | 34 | 20 | 20 |
| Complete University Guide (UK) | 44 | 40 | 42 | 40 | 28 | 29 | 26 | 38 |
| Times Higher Education (UK) | 26 | 29 | 30 | 28 | 22 | 25 | 25 | 22 |
| Times Higher Education (World) | 178 | 172 | 188 | 185 | 158 | 168 | 178 | 158 |
| QS World Rankings (UK) | 24 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 27 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
| QS World Rankings (World) | 137 | 137 | 141 | 158 | 172 | 194 | 207 | 205 |
| Shanghai Rankings (UK) | =22 | =22 | =21 | =22 | =22 | =21 | - | - |
| Shanghai Rankings (World) | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | - | - |
Subject Rankings
- The Complete University Guide 2022
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Drama, Dance & Cinematics 1st Linguistics 3rd Sports Science 3rd Geography & Environmental Science 6th Biomedical Sciences 7th Chemical Engineering 7th Medicine 7th Theology & Religious Studies 9th Anthropology 10th Education 10th History of Art 11th Business & Management Studies 12th General Engineering 12th Mechanical Engineering 12th Civil Engineering 13th Computer Science 13th Music 13th Accounting & Finance 14th Law 14th Philosophy 14th Psychology 14th Sociology 16th Geology 17th Archaeology 18th Iberian Languages 18th Mathematics 20th French 21st Chemistry 22nd Electrical & Electronic Engineering 24th Biological Sciences 25th History 25th - The Times & Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022
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Linguistics 1st Anatomy and Physiology 3rd Sports Science 3rd Chemistry 7th Anthropology 8th Geology 8th History of Art 8th Chemical Engineering 9th Geography and Environmental Science 9th Iberian Languages 9th Accounting and Finance 10th Mechanical Engineering 10th Medicine 10th General Engineering 11th Law 11th French 13th Archaeology and Forensic Science 14th Computing Science 14th Civil Engineering 15th Psychology 15th Business Studies 16th English 16th Music 16th Sociology 16th Education 17th History 17th Philosophy 19th Physics and Astronomy 20th Pharmacology and Pharmacy 21st Biological Sciences 22nd Politics 25th - Guardian University League Table 2022
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Medicine 2nd Dentistry 4th Computer Science & Information Systems 4th Anthropology 5th Physics 6th Sports Science 6th Sociology 10th Anatomy & Physiology 11th Engineering: General 12th Law 12th Music 12th Chemistry 15th Earth & Marine Sciences 15th Engineering: Chemical 15th Modern Languages & Linguistics 15th Politics 19th Accounting & Finance 21st Economics 23rd - Leiden Rankings 2020
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The Leiden University Rankings use bibliometric indicators to measure the performance of universities across the world.
Scientific Impact
Ranked 29th in the UK for the scientific impact of its research.
Research Collaboration
The University is ranked 8th in the UK and 1st in Scotland for collaborative research that takes place with partners across the world.
Open Access Publishing
The University is ranked 49th in the world for the number of Open Access publications. 78.5% of publications by University of Aberdeen researchers are Open Access.
Research Gender Diversity
This year, the university is ranked 8th in the UK for gender diversity. The University has consistently been ranked highly in the UK for the gender diversity of its researchers.