University of Leeds ranked as one of the top universities in the world in Times Higher Education rankings 2021

The Russell Group university bagged the 160th spot on the Times Higher Education (THE) international league table for 2021.

This is a drop of five places since last year, when it came in 155th.

The University of Leeds was not the only Yorkshire institution to feature on the list.

The University of Sheffield bagged the 121th spot, having been in 117th place in the previous year.

The University of York came in 133th in the world.

Last year, it came in 128th.

Only three English universities made the top 20 list.

University of Oxford came in first place for the fifth year in a row.

The University of Cambridge dropped three places and was ranked at sixth in the world.

Imperial College London came in at number 11 and University College London came in at 16th.

Overall, the UK has 29 universities in the top 200, up slightly from 28 last year.

Of these, more than half (15 institutions) have dropped by at least one place in the past 12 months.

The annual list rates more than 1,500 universities from 93 countries and regions in five areas: teaching, research, citations, international outlook and industry income.

Stanford University in the United States, took second place.

US universities dominated the top 10 in the rankings, claiming a record eight places.

Rounding out the latest top five are three other US institutions – Harvard University, California Institute of Technology and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Phil Baty, THE chief knowledge officer, said: “Over the past five years we’ve seen a steady decline in performance of UK universities at large. Before we even see the impact of Covid-19 and Brexit trickle down to our data the UK stands at an all-time low of just two universities in the global top 10.

“These gathering forces could create the perfect storm for British universities. Coronavirus delivers the joint challenges of attracting international students, whose fees many universities are reliant on, and global academic talent, vital to having world-leading teaching and research.

“The Government’s response to the pandemic could also be seen to damage attractiveness.”

He added: “If a hard Brexit follows the economic pain of Covid-19, our universities could become increasingly vulnerable, as we see ever increasing funding challenges that are unlikely to be able to be covered by the public purse.

“If this happens, Britain runs the very real risk of losing its status as a higher education superpower.”

Also making it into the top 50 alongside Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial are: University College London (16th), the London School of Economics and Political Science (27th), Edinburgh University (30th), and King’s College London (35th).

Professor Louise Richardson, vice-chancellor of Oxford University, said: “We are delighted to have consolidated our position at the top of the THE World University Rankings this year.

“The international standing of British higher education is a testament to generations of investment in education as well as to our extraordinarily talented staff and students.

“The Covid-19 pandemic, which has posed such a threat to higher education around the world, has also demonstrated the critical role universities play in addressing global challenges.”

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Thank you

Laura Collins