According to a recent investigation, London is once again the best city in the world for students.
It beat several attractive destinations, including prestigious universities in South Korea, Japan, USA, and Germany. Here, we look at what makes London such a great place to study.
The Top List in Full
- London came out on top with an overall score of 100
- Munich (Germany) came second with a score of 97.4
- Seoul (South Korea) and Tokyo (Japan) shared third spot with 96.1
- Berlin (Germany) 5th with a score of 96.1
Melbourne, Zurich, Sydney, Boston, and Montreal complete the top 10.
Three Years in A Row
This is the third time London has come out on top. With top institutions such as KCL and Imperial, it’s no wonder London is consistently up there. It attained continued high rating due to its large and vibrant international student base, and its openness for the same demographic.
It’s a system devised by an analytical company called QS Quacquarelli Symonds but also incorporates surveys from current students and those due to begin courses in the next academic year. Cities must have at least 250,000 people and two or more universities in their rankings.
Students Survey
Without students, there is no university, and it was this high praise in student feedback that helped London top the poll once again. Students rated London extremely high on a range of factors including outstanding cultural, economic, and educational opportunities. However, prospective students rated London a 15th for desirability. However, it the highest when ranked on student view – that was Berlin.
There was speculation over whether the handling of the pandemic and expected further Brexit disruption would impact the city in later years.
The most interesting aspect for US cities is their continued decline, mostly on grounds of affordability – the cost of living is high in the most attractive university cities in the US. Tuition fees for international students are prohibitive for all but the wealthiest.
Other Factors
Desirability: Tokyo came out on top, followed by Toronto and Zurich. The two least desirable universities were Monterrey in Mexico and Almaty in Kazakhstan, followed by Bogota in Columbia.
Affordability: We’ve already mentioned how US universities are dropping due to affordability. The most affordable was Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia. Kazan in Tatarstan in Russia came second while Novosibirsk in Russia came third. The USA made up all the bottom three: Los Angeles, New York, then San Francisco.
What Other UK Cities Did Well?
The top thirty list also included Glasgow and Edinburgh, and Manchester. On individual elements, Coventry placed second in the world for student mix behind Melbourne. This was the ranking for proportions international and domestic student numbers, but also examined issues such as inclusivity and tolerance.