Royal Holloway, University of London, has risen five places to become a top 20 UK university in The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020.
At position 19 in the national rankings, Royal Holloway has also been shortlisted for University of the Year 2020. Alastair McCall, editor of The Sunday Times Good University Guide, describes Royal Holloway as “…ambitious for the future, ambitious for its students and delivering on all fronts.”
The rankings, which will be published on Sunday, 22 September, provide a comprehensive overview of higher education in Britain. The ratings include the performance of universities in the 2019 National Student Survey (NSS), and statistics on degree results, employment prospects and course completion rates.
Through a series of investments to improve the student experience, including a £57m library and student services centre, Royal Holloway’s position has risen in a number of league tables over the last few years, including in the Complete University Guide 2020 where the university sits at 23rd in the UK. In the 2019 NSS results, Royal Holloway’s score for overall student satisfaction rose to 88%, which exceeded the sector average. The NSS is an independent student survey carried out by the Office for Students on behalf of the UK higher education funding and regulatory bodies.
Professor Paul Layzell, Principal at Royal Holloway, said: “We are delighted to be recognised as a top 20 UK university in this prestigious league table. Rising five places this year and being shortlisted for University of the Year reflects our commitment to our students and the quality of the education we offer here at Royal Holloway.
“The distinguishing features of our university are our strong sense of community, and the academic experience we offer to students delivered through high quality teaching and world-class research. By bringing these elements together, our goal is to be a source of inspiration for our students who strive to achieve excellence. This ranking, and our shortlisted position, are a clear endorsement of our approach and are a testament to the outstanding contribution and achievements of our students and staff.
“We seek to continue our programme of improvements, helping our students and staff to succeed and make a significant positive impact in our society. We recently opened our new world-class superconducting nanofabrication facility, SuperFab, as well as a new state-of-the-art science building, the Beatrice Shilling Building. Shortly we will start work on an Enterprise Centre which will provide an opportunity to create a regional centre of excellence to support businesses in the fields of cyber security and data analytics.”
Alastair McCall, editor of The Sunday Times Good University Guide, said: “Royal Holloway has moved stealthily back into our elite top 20 institutions after three successive rises in our rankings. This university has a happy band of students who buck the trend of poor scores for student satisfaction that afflicts many London institutions.
“Heavy recent investment on campus sets up the university well for the future. A new science building which opened last year aims to attract more women into these subjects, an appropriate ambition for an institution that was once women-only. Today’s institution is ambitious for the future, ambitious for its students and delivering on all fronts.”
