The Guardian University Guide 2026 tells us lots about which unis are thriving right now, and which are best avoided. Quite a few UK unis ranked way, way lower in this year’s league table than they did in last year’s. I’m taking this as evidence that these unis are now worse than they used to be, and are in their flop eras.
The University of Cambridge also ranked much lower in the Guardian’s league table than it normally does. Plenty of Russell Group unis aren’t as high-ranking as they used to be. But 30 UK unis managed to rank at least ten whole places lower on the Guardian’s new league table than they did last year. Surely, this is a good indication of which UK uni are declining the most dramatically?
So, here are the 30 UK unis that fell down the most places in the Guardian University Guide 2026, plus some reasons why these unis didn’t score as well as they used to:
University of Glasgow – down ten places
The uni fell from 14th to 24th. Glasgow students were less satisfied with their feedback than students at other Russell Group unis were.
University of Roehampton – down ten places
The uni went down from 110th to 120th, making it the fourth worst of all the UK unis, according to the Guardian.
University of Stirling – down ten places
I’m afraid Stirling’s rank is now triple digits. The uni fell from 94th to 104th place.
At least Stirling students have a castle on campus
(Credit: University of Stirling)
Birmingham City University – down 11 places
The uni went from a measly 102nd place to 113rd place.
University of the Creative Arts – down 11 places
The uni is now 100th instead of 89th in the Guardian’s league table.
University of West London – down 11 places
This uni went from 30th to 41st. Fewer grads found jobs than students from other similar unis did.
Sheffield Hallam University – down 13 places
The uni went from 75th to 88nd. I’m sure Sheffield Hallam students aren’t impressed. But hey, it could be worse!
University of York – down 13 places
York was the 25th best uni in the UK last year, but now it’s only 38th. York students aren’t buzzing about their feedback and assessments.
Oxford Brookes – down 17 places
Brookes students might not be sober enough to notice their uni’s rank has gone down, tbh
Oops, Brookes went from 38th place to 55th. Fewer students found grad jobs than the year before.
St Mary’s University – down 18 places
This London uni dropped from 75th to 93rd spot.
London South Bank University – down 18 places
2024 was a great year for London South Bank, as it made it to 59th place in the Guardian’s ranking. But it fell to 77th this year, which is closer to where it usually ranks.
Newcastle University – down 18 places
Newcastle managed to go from 63rd last year, to 81st this year. Newcastle University has officially replaced Queen Mary University of London as the worst Russell Group uni in the Guardian’s ranking. Well, maybe that’s an achievement in itself?
York St John University – down 19 places
The students now outnumber the staff 19.4 to one. This dragged the uni down from 96th place to 115th place.
University of Kent – down 20 places
Kent’s value added score – which compares students’ degree results to their school results – is lower than it used to be. This year, Kent came 80th instead of 60th.
University of Greater Manchester – down 21 places
At least students in Manchester have clubs where they can drown their sorrows
It was called the University of Bolton until last year. The uni spent less money on each student this year than it did the year before. This led to it falling from 32nd to 53rd place.
University of Brighton – down 22 places
Brighton is now in joint 108th place instead of 86th place. Sorry, everyone.
University of Hull – down 23 places
Hull is spending a lot less money on each student than it used to, and now ranks 98th instead of 75th.
University of Staffordshire – down 24 places
Staffordshire Uni fell from 58th spot to 82nd in the Guardian’s rankings.
Chester University – down 25 places
The uni actually got better feedback from students this year, but the dropout rates got worse. Ergo, it fell from 46th to 71st place.
Aston University – down 27 places
Brum unis did not have a great year in the Guardian’s university guide
(Credit: Johand2222)
This uni is ranked in a perfectly respectable 48th place. This is just rather a lot lower than last year, when Aston University managed to come 21st.
University of Huddersfield – down 27 places
The uni is now letting in freshers with fewer UCAS points than they used to. This is great news for sixth-formers, but not great use for the uni’s rank. It went from 68th to 95th place.
Royal Holloway University – down 27 places
This uni spends quite a bit less on each student than most other UK unis do. This probably didn’t help Royal Holloway’s overall score. It dropped from 52nd to 79th.
SOAS University of London – down 27 places
That’s the School of Oriental and African Studies. It came 117th this year, instead of 90th.
Ulster University – down 27 places
This uni has quite a high ratio of students to staff. There are 18.2 members of teaching staff for every Ulster student. This dragged Ulster down from 24th to 51st position.
Coventry University – down 28 places
The uni went from 42nd to 70th. Dropout rates rose, and the proportion of grads who found high-skilled jobs or further study fell.
Reading University – down 30 places
Reading’s rank might be worse, but hey, at least the campus has a lake!
(Credit: Chris Wood)
Reading students were much less impressed with their feedback from teachers in the most recent survey. This contributed to Reading’s dramatic drop from 35th to 65th place.
University of East Anglia (UEA) – down 30 places
Um, so two years ago, the Guardian considered UEA to be the 33rd best uni in the UK. But it dropped to 45th, then again to 75th.
Birmingham Newman University – down 42 places
The uni fell from 71st to 108th place. Oops. Freshers had fewer UCAS points than the previous cohort did. Plus, students were less satisfied with their teaching.
City St George’s, University of London – down 48 places
This looks super dramatic. But the sudden change in rank isn’t because the uni has suddenly gone to the dogs, or something. City, University of London recently merged with the medical school St George’s, University of London to become the even wordier institution City St George’s, University of London. City, University of London came 38th last year. But now data from St George’s has been thrown in, the newly-named uni ranks 86th place.
Glasgow Caledonian University – down 59 places
Er, surely this is some kind of record? In just one year, Glasgow Caledonian plummeted from 46th to 105th place. Yikes. Glasgow Caledonian fell down more places in the Guardian’s ranking than all the other UK unis did.
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Featured image of the University of Stirling campus by Andrew Shiva.
