Preston’s university slips down latest Times guide rankings

UCLan has been investing heavily in its city centre campus in recent years Pic: Paul Melling

Preston’s university has taken a slide down a national higher education ranking table.

University of Central Lancashire dropped four places to be ranked 111th in the UK in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024. Last year the university was placed 107th.

The guide ranks 135 institutions in its tables and UCLan also dropped out of the North West’s top 10 as University of Bolton took tenth spot in the North West.

A University of Central Lancashire spokesperson said: “This year the Sunday Times Complete University Guide has decided not to include the latest National Student Survey results but used last year’s results instead, so the guide is therefore not representative of our latest performance.

“We are rated third in the North West for student positivity and 34th in the UK and we focus on the NSS results to demonstrate our strong progress based on the most recent and relevant student feedback.”

Helen Davies, editor of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide, said: “The higher education landscape has never been tougher. It is more competitive to get a place at many of our top institutions; the cost of attending university has soared, leaving graduates with extraordinary debt; and in many cases campus life still bears the scars of the pandemic. Meanwhile lecturers are on strike and the marking crisis is a running scandal.

“It means any prospective student, parent or carer needs to think hard about whether university is the right choice, and then where to study and what subject.

“It’s where this guide — our 30th edition — is here to help. Our online version has so much more on how the universities compare subject by subject, a guide on campus life, and what scholarships and bursaries may be on offer.

“We are here to champion the ambitious work of our first-class universities, and the aspirations of any student of any age who wants to keep on learning.”

Top 10 universities in the North West of England

Lancaster University
University of Manchester
University of Liverpool
Manchester Metropolitan University
Edge Hill University
Liverpool John Moores University
Liverpool Hope University
University of Salford
University of Chester
University of Bolton
University of Central Lancashire
University of Cumbria

The full Times and Sunday Times university guide can be explored via their dedicated online rankings and tables, which can also be filtered by subject and other criteria.