University of Birmingham named Daily Mail University of the Year 2027
Birmingham should be “part of any university conversation in homes across the country” says the Daily Mail.
The University of Birmingham has been named Daily Mail University of the Year 2027, recognising its excellence in student outcomes and experience, educational innovation, and investment in the future.
Alongside being named its University of the Year, Birmingham has risen seven places in the Daily Mail University Guide to 13th nationally out of the 128 universities ranked, its highest ever position.
Alastair McCall, Editor of the Daily Mail University Guide praised Birmingham's graduate employment record, saying: “A place to study at the University of Birmingham is rightly highly prized. In a period where graduate jobs are becoming harder to find, Birmingham graduates remain highly sought after.”
Noting the trailblazing efforts to broaden the range of its intake through its Pathways to Birmingham fair access scheme, Mr McCall summed up Birmingham’s wide appeal: “The combination of a strong research pedigree, high-quality teaching and outstanding academic, sporting and social facilities on an attractive campus should make Birmingham part of any university conversation in homes across the country.”
Our focus on skills, employability and student success is helping students thrive during university and beyond. The award recognises Birmingham as a forward-thinking university committed to creating opportunities, advancing knowledge, and making a positive difference locally, nationally, and globally.
Professor Adam Tickell, Vice-Chancellor & Principal, said: “This accolade reflects the University of Birmingham’s distinctive approach to education, combining academic excellence with employability, wellbeing, belonging, and personal development.
“Our focus on skills, employability and student success is helping students thrive during university and beyond. The award recognises Birmingham as a forward-thinking university committed to creating opportunities, advancing knowledge, and making a positive difference locally, nationally, and globally.”
In July, the University ranked first in the Russell Group in the National Student Survey, achieving its highest ever student satisfaction score, while continuing to deliver strong graduate outcomes and employer recognition.
Thanks to its growing global reputation and outstanding research strengths, Birmingham has improved its standing among the world's best universities for the fourth successive year. It has risen eight places to 68 in this year’s QS World University Rankings, climbing 23 places since 2023.
Ranked joint 10th in the UK, the University has achieved its highest-ever national position. It has, over the last five years, risen more - and more consistently - than any other British institution ranked in the elite top 100 universities in the world.
Earlier this year, Birmingham was again named one of the top two UK universities most targeted by the country’s leading graduate employers, according to ‘The Graduate Market in 2026’. The report affirms the University’s reputation as a destination of choice for those seeking a top-flight career in many areas.
Curriculum and skills
Birmingham is reimagining education for the future through its new Ad Alta pathway, which integrates the core curriculum with professional skills, digital competencies, and the development of practical wisdom.
A dedicated three-week programme in the Summer Term gives students the opportunity to work with employers, engage with research beyond their core subject, and develop the breadth of skills that top graduate recruiters are looking for.
Pioneering intercalated years - including in Computer Science, AI and Data Science, and Environmental Sustainability - allow students from any discipline to broaden their skills in a completely different field.
Professor Deborah Longworth, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education) at the University of Birmingham, said: “This award reflects Birmingham's commitment to the academic, professional, and personal success of our students. We are building a genuinely distinctive model of education at Birmingham - one that combines academic rigour with the deliberate development of the knowledge, skills, character, and judgement our students need to thrive both in their field of study and in their futures beyond university.
“Our ongoing success reflects the growing recognition that higher education must be more than transactional learning. In an increasingly AI-shaped world, it is uniquely human skills like empathy, ethical reasoning, and complex judgement that employers are crying out for.”
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Notes for editors
Notes for editors
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About the University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is ranked amongst the world’s top 100 institutions. Its work brings people from across the world to Birmingham, including researchers, teachers and more than 40,000 students from over 150 countries.
England’s first civic university, the University of Birmingham is proud to be rooted in one of the most dynamic and diverse cities in the country. A member of the Russell Group and a founding member of the Universitas 21 global network of research universities, the University of Birmingham has been changing the way the world works for more than a century.
Birmingham’s success builds on its performance earlier this year in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, with seven subjects placing in the Top 50 of the latest QS World University Rankings by Subject. Dentistry, Education, English, Theology, Anatomy & Physiology, and Linguistics all ranked in the Top 50, with Sport keeping its place in the Top 10 globally. A further 16 subjects at Birmingham are in the Top 100, including Medicine, Physics, Chemical Engineering, Psychology, and Biosciences.
The Complete University Guide 2027 league table rankings have seen the University of Birmingham continue its upward momentum, rising two places, from 14th to 12th, placing it firmly as one of the best universities in the UK. Each year, the Guide league tables rank the best universities in the UK, overall and in 74 subject areas.
Students choosing Birmingham join a university that prides itself on exceptional links to a wide variety of leading industries and employers. Recent graduate employment data showed that more 2024 Birmingham graduates got highly skilled jobs than the 2023 cohort. Just over 80% of the University’s students were in graduate-level jobs or further training 15 months after graduation (HESA Graduate Outcomes 2023/24 - June 2026).
In the 2026 National Student Survey, the University of Birmingham achieved its highest ever results and largest ever response rate, placing first in the Russell Group and in the top ten nationally for overall student satisfaction. This represents a rise of 60 places in the national sector ranking and six places in the Russell Group ranking since 2021, reflecting sustained institution-wide focus on teaching quality, assessment and feedback, and the student experience. At subject level, Birmingham ranked first in the Russell Group for the average of all questions in Artificial Intelligence, Astronomy, and Materials Science. The University ranked first in the Russell Group for percentage positivity across the average of all questions in Chemistry, Classics, Computer Science, Development Studies, English, History of Art, Law, Mathematics, Physics, Software Engineering and Urban Planning, among others.
The University of Birmingham was named among the world’s top 250 institutions for producing the most employable graduates by the Global Employability University Ranking & Survey 2026 (GEURS). Birmingham is one of only 16 UK universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, listed in the ranking which surveys major international employers to identify which universities they believe best prepare students for the workplace.