Extra Curriculars
Social Scene
Some universities have a better social scenes than others, with more bars and clubs, and more societies and volunteering opportunities. In our Universities Guides we list the number of sports clubs and societies each university boasts, and a general rule is that those with a bigger student population will have more to offer. If you are going to university in order to enjoy a “university experience” the quality of the social scene will be really important to you.
The Times Higher Education published the result of the a National Student Survey (NSS) every year, and these are the top twenty universities of 2020:
| Ranking | University | Ranking | University |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bright and Sussex Medical School | 11 | University Of Aberty Dundee |
| 2 | University of St Andrews | 12 | Swansea University |
| 3 | Conservatoire for Dance and Music | 13 | Royal Academy of Music |
| 4 | Writtle University College | 14 | Loughborough University |
| 5 | The University of Law | 15 | University of Bath |
| 6 | Stranmillis University College | 16 | University of London Institute in Paris |
| 7 | Harper Adams University | 17 | University West of England |
| 8 | Robert Gordon University | 18 | Royal Veterinary College |
| 9 | Aberystwyth University | 19 | University of Buckingham |
| 10 | Guildhall School of Music and Drama | 20 | Arts University Bournemouth |
Sport
If you are looking to play sport, either competitively, or for fun, relaxation or fitness, universities boast some of the best sports facilities in the UK. There are no facts about which university has the best facilities. However, certain universities have better facilities for certain sports so if you know which sports you’d like to play you can check whether your university has the facilities you need.
If you are looking to play sport competitively, UK universities regularly play one another in leagues - last year's rankings (2018-2019. The 2019-2020 season was obviously cut short!) are as follows:
| Ranking | University | Ranking | University |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Loughborough University | 11 | The University of Stirling |
| 2 | University of Nottingham | 12 | The University of Oxford |
| 3 | University of Durham | 13 | Nottingham Trent University |
| 4 | University of Edinburgh | 14 | Cardiff University |
| 5 | University of Exeter | 15 | Leeds Beckett University |
| 6 | University of Bath | 16 | Cardiff Metropolitan University |
| 7 | University of Birmingham | 17 | The University of Sheffield |
| 8 | The University of Bristol | 18 | Swansea University |
| 9 | Newcastle University | 19 | University of Leeds |
| 10 | University of Northumbria at Newcastle | 20 | The University of Cambridge |
