Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

London remains 'best city in the world' to be a university student in new rankings

London remains 'best city in the world' to be a university student in new rankings

AN international ranking of higher education centres across the world has placed London as the best city in the world to be a university student, reported the Guardian.

Current students studying in London rated the British capital very highly for ‘outstanding cultural, economic, and educational opportunities', it added.


The city rankings created by the education analysts QS Quacquarelli Symonds are based on its own league tables as well as surveys of 85,000 current and prospective students around the world.

It covered cities with a population of at least 250,000 and two or more universities placed in the QS world university rankings.

The capital retained the top spot for the third year running despite low marks for affordability, according to the report.

The presence of world-leading institutions such as Imperial College and King’s College London, and high ratings for its openness to international students and graduate career opportunities have helped the city to remain on top.

Munich came second, while Tokyo and Seoul were tied for third place ahead of Berlin, Melbourne, Zurich and Sydney. Paris, Montreal and Boston tied for ninth place.

However, London was only rated 15th – below Auckland and Montreal – for desirability among prospective students.

Ben Sowter, QS’s director of research, said: “With two of the world’s 10 best universities situated in the city, London remains a world-leading educational hub. However, increasing Covid cases and lingering Brexit effects may serve to undermine London’s privileged position.”

Elsewhere in the UK, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Manchester made the top 30 out of the 115 eligible cities. Coventry did extremely well for “student mix”, ranked second only to Melbourne for the proportion of domestic and international students in the local population, as well as tolerance and inclusion.

The highest-ranked US centre was Boston, thanks to the proximity of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard. But US cities suffered from high affordability, with Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco the worst overall based on the cost of living, tuition fees and the Economist’s “Big Mac” index, which uses the local cost of the hamburger as a proxy for relative costs.

QS also noted that US cities “are suffering from a systemic decline” in their desirability ratings, which includes metrics such as pollution, crime, safety and corruption as well as a student survey.

The most desirable city in which to study was Tokyo, followed by Toronto and Zurich.  Monterrey in Mexico and Almaty in Kazakhstan were rated as the least desirable places to study, the report said.

The most affordable centre was the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, ahead of Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan in Russia.

More For You

Baiju Bhatt

At 40, Bhatt is the only person of Indian origin in this group, which includes figures such as Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. (Photo: Getty Images)

Baiju Bhatt named among youngest billionaires in US by Forbes

INDIAN-AMERICAN entrepreneur Baiju Bhatt, co-founder of the commission-free trading platform Robinhood, has been named among the 10 youngest billionaires in the United States in the 2025 Forbes 400 list.

At 40, Bhatt is the only person of Indian origin in this group, which includes figures such as Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. Forbes estimates his net worth at around USD 6–7 billion (£4.4–5.1 billion), primarily from his roughly 6 per cent ownership in Robinhood.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mandelson-Getty

Starmer dismissed Mandelson on Thursday after reading emails published by Bloomberg in which Mandelson defended Jeffrey Epstein following his 2008 conviction. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Minister says Mandelson should never have been appointed

A CABINET minister has said Peter Mandelson should not have been made UK ambassador to the US, as criticism mounted over prime minister Keir Starmer’s judgment in appointing him.

Douglas Alexander, the Scotland secretary, told the BBC that Mandelson’s appointment was seen as “high-risk, high-reward” but that newly revealed emails changed the situation.

Keep ReadingShow less
Shivani Raja MP leads fight to save Leicester Diwali celebrations

Shivani Raja MP

Shivani Raja MP leads fight to save Leicester Diwali celebrations

TWO Conservative MPs have launched a petition to stop Leicester City Council cutting back this year's Diwali celebrations.

Shivani Raja, MP for Leicester East, and Neil O'Brien, who represents nearby Harborough, Oadby and Wigston, started the Change.org petition on Wednesday (10) after the council announced plans to remove key elements from the October 20 event.

Keep ReadingShow less
Indian American hotel employee beheaded in Dallas

Chandra Nagamallaiah (R) was stabbed and beheaded on duty; Yordanis Cobos-Martinez was arrested and charged for the killing.

Indian American hotel employee beheaded in Dallas

A STAFF MEMBER at Downtown Suites Dallas, US, was killed on Wednesday (10) morning. Chandra Nagamallaiah, 50, was stabbed and beheaded on duty in front of his wife and son, according to reports.

Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, 37, was arrested and charged in the killing, which reportedly stemmed from an argument over a broken washing machine, media reports said, citing the Dallas Police Department.

Keep ReadingShow less
Deadly Pakistan floods force over two million to flee their homes

Residents sit in a rescue boat as they evacuate following monsoon rains and rising water levels in the Chenab River, in Basti Khan Bela, on the outskirts of Jalalpur Pirwala, Punjab province, Pakistan, September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Quratulain Asim

Deadly Pakistan floods force over two million to flee their homes

OVER two million people have been forced to leave their homes as devastating floods continue to sweep across Pakistan's eastern regions, authorities announced.

The worst-hit area is Punjab province, where more than two million residents have been evacuated. An additional 150,000 people have fled Sindh province, according to national disaster management chief Inam Haider Malik, who warned that the "number may rise over the coming days".

Keep ReadingShow less