The TEF UK University Ranking – All You Need To Know About The New University Ranking System

Some of the most prestigious educational institutions in Britain have been dealt with an unexpected blow in their rankings. In a radical shake-up of the UK university rating system, the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) declared its results awarding 295 colleges and universities gold, silver and bronze according to the quality of their teaching. A few of them are ranked ‘provisional’ which indicates that there is insufficient data to make a full assessment.

London School of Economics (LSE) and Studies of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) that have long been considered as the gold standard for British higher education are among the 56 that have received the lowest rank of a bronze. Some others in the category include London Metropolitan University, Goldsmiths and Southampton.

Learn about TEF Ranking in details:

What is The Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) Ranking System?

TEF, established by the previous government, set out to overhaul the ranking system in order to allow students to make an informed choice in higher education. League table rankings traditionally focus heavily on research and to redress the balance the government decided to evaluate universities based on the quality of their teaching.

The TEF UK university ranking system tries to address the issue raised by a growing number of students concerned about the quality of education dispensed by degree providers, with courses often costing as much as £9000.

How does TEF Ranking work?

The statistics that were used to arrive at the current results are:

  • Students’ views on the quality of teaching; assessment and feedback; and how much academic support they receive from staff will be taken from the National Student Survey (NSS)
  • Dropout rates from data supplied by the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
  • The annual destinations of leavers from the higher education survey supplies the last two metrics: one on whether graduates have moved on to jobs or further study six months after graduation, and the other on whether they are doing graduate-level – that is, highly skilled – work.

Institutions that provided “consistently outstanding teaching, learning and outcomes for its students” make up the top of the list those are awarded Gold, while the silver award was given for consistently exceeding “rigorous national quality requirements for UK higher education” and bronze was awarded to those that met these national requirements.

Most significantly for students, all institutions that participated in the ranking can now raise their tuition fees in line with the rate of inflation in the academic year 2018-2019.

Critics point out that although the awards could help students decide the best institution suitable for their needs, it should also be read with a note of caution. Firstly, one should bear in mind that the awards are based on data and not inspection of actual lectures. Secondly, it can be fairly difficult to quantify a field as intangible as education in a neat numerical order, not least because the true value gained by students in a course can be highly subjective. In addition to this, the range of courses offered by a university can vary considerably in its structure and employability, for instance a vocational course such as nursing could differ considerably from a course in literature; the ranking system considers the university as a whole and does not have the provision to take into account the diversity within each university.


Full List of TEF University Rankings

All Gold, Silver, Bronze & Provisional Ranking Universities

Higher Education Institution TEF Ranking
ABI College Limited Provisional
Abingdon and Witney College Silver
Access to Music Limited Provisional
Accrington and Rossendale College Bronze
Activate Learning Silver
ALRA Provisional
Amersham & Wycombe College Bronze
Anglia Ruskin University Silver
Anglo-European College of Chiropractic Silver
Architectural Association (Incorporated) Provisional
Askham Bryan College Bronze
Assemblies of God Incorporated Provisional
Aston University Gold
Aylesbury College Bronze
Bangor University Gold
Bath Spa University Silver
BIMM Limited Provisional
Birkbeck College Silver
Birmingham City University Silver
Bishop Burton College Bronze
Bishop Grosseteste University Gold
Blackburn College Bronze
Blackpool and the Fylde College Gold
BMC (Brooksby Melton College) Bronze
Bournemouth University Silver
Bournville College Provisional
BPP University Limited Bronze
Bradford College Bronze
Bristol Baptist College Provisional
Brit College Limited Provisional
Brunel University London Silver
Buckinghamshire New University Bronze
Calderdale College Silver
Cambridge Regional College Bronze
Canterbury Christ Church University Silver
Canterbury College Silver
Cardiff Metropolitan University Silver
Cardiff University Silver
Cardinal Newman College Provisional
Chichester College Silver
Cirencester College Provisional
City and Guilds of London Art School Limited Provisional
City College Plymouth Gold
City of Bristol College Silver
City, University of London Silver
Cleveland College of Art and Design Gold
Colchester Institute Silver
Cornwall College Silver
Courtauld Institute of Art Silver
Coventry University Gold
Croydon College Provisional
CWR Provisional
Darlington College Silver
De Montfort University Gold
Doncaster College Bronze
Ealing, Hammersmith & West London College Provisional
East Durham College Silver
East End Computing & Business College Limited Provisional
East Kent College Provisional
East Riding College Bronze
Edge Hill University Gold
Exeter College Gold
Fairfield School of Business Ltd Provisional
Falmouth University Gold
Fareham College Provisional
Farnborough College of Technology Bronze
Furness College Silver
Futureworks Training Limited Provisional
Gateshead College Silver
Goldsmiths College Bronze
Grafton College Limited Provisional
Greater Brighton Metropolitan College Silver
Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education Bronze
Guildhall School of Music & Drama Silver
Hadlow College Bronze
Halesowen College Silver
Harper Adams University Gold
Hartlepool College of Further Education Silver
Hartpury College Gold
Heart of Worcestershire College Silver
Hereford College of Arts Silver
Heriot-Watt University Silver
Hertford Regional College Silver
Highbury College Portsmouth Bronze
Holy Cross College Provisional
Hopwood Hall College Bronze
Hugh Baird College Gold
Hull College Bronze
Hy Education Limited Provisional
ICMP Management Limited Provisional
Imperial College London Gold
Kaplan Open Learning (Essex) Limited Silver
Kensington Education Foundation Limited Provisional
King’s College London Silver
Kingston College Silver
Kingston Maurward College Bronze
Kingston University Bronze
Kirklees College Silver
KLC Limited Provisional
Leeds Beckett University Silver
Leeds City College Bronze
Leeds College of Art Silver
Leeds Trinity University Silver
Leicester College Gold
Lincoln College Silver
Liverpool Hope University Gold
Liverpool John Moores University Silver
London Bridge Business Academy Limited Provisional
London College of Creative Media Limited Provisional
London Metropolitan University Bronze
London School of Business and Management Limited Provisional
London School of Management Education Limited Provisional
London School of Science & Technology Limited Provisional
London School of Theology Provisional
London South Bank University Silver
London Studio Centre Limited Silver
Loughborough College Silver
Loughborough University Gold
LTE Group Silver
Luther King House Educational Trust Provisional
Macclesfield College Provisional
Manchester Metropolitan University Silver
Met Film School Limited Provisional
Middlesbrough College Gold
Middlesex University Silver
Milton Keynes College Bronze
Moorlands College Provisional
Myerscough College Silver
Nazarene Theological College Provisional
NCG Silver
Neath Port Talbot College Silver
Nelson College London Limited Provisional
New College Durham Bronze
New College Stamford Silver
Newbury College Provisional
Newham College of Further Education Provisional
Newman University Silver
Norland College Limited Provisional
North East Surrey College of Technology Bronze
North Hertfordshire College Silver
North Lindsey College Silver
North West Regional College Provisional
Northampton College Silver
Northern College of Acupuncture Provisional
Northumberland College Bronze
Norwich University of the Arts Gold
Nottingham Trent University Gold
Oaklands College Silver
Oxford Brookes University Silver
Oxford Business College UK Limited Provisional
Pearson College Limited Provisional
Petroc Silver
Plumpton College Bronze
Plymouth College of Art Bronze
Point Blank Limited Provisional
Preston College Bronze
Queen Mary University of London Silver
Ravensbourne Silver
Reaseheath College Bronze
Redcar & Cleveland College Silver
RNN Group Silver
Roehampton University Bronze
Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance Gold
Royal College of Music Gold
Royal Holloway, University of London Silver
Royal Northern College of Music Gold
RTC Education Ltd Provisional
SAE Education Limited Provisional
Salford City College Bronze
Selby College Silver
Sheffield Hallam University Silver
Solihull College and University Centre Gold
South & City College Birmingham Silver
South Devon College Gold
South Tyneside College Silver
South West College Provisional
Southampton Solent University Bronze
Southport College Bronze
Sparsholt College Silver
Spurgeon’s College Provisional
St Mary’s University, Twickenham Silver
St. George’s, University of London Bronze
Staffordshire University Silver
Stockton Riverside College Silver
Stratford College London Limited Provisional
Strode College Silver
Sunderland College Silver
Sussex Coast College Hastings Provisional
Sussex Downs College Silver
Swansea University Silver
Teesside University Silver
Tertiary Education Services Limited Provisional
The Academy of Contemporary Music Limited Provisional
The Arts University Bournemouth Gold
The British School of Osteopathy Bronze
The Chicken Shed Theatre Trust Silver
The City of Liverpool College Gold
The Conservatoire for Dance and Drama Gold
The Edward James Foundation Limited Provisional
The Kingham Hill Trust Provisional
The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts Gold
The London Institute of Banking & Finance Provisional
The London School of Economics and Political Science Bronze
The Queen’s Foundation for Ecumenical Theological Education Provisional
The Robert Gordon University Gold
The Royal Academy of Music Gold
The Royal Agricultural University Silver
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama Gold
The Royal Veterinary College Gold
The Salvation Army Provisional
The School of Oriental and African Studies Bronze
The University of Bath Gold
The University of Birmingham Gold
The University of Bolton Silver
The University of Bradford Silver
The University of Buckingham Gold
The University of Chichester Silver
The University of Cumbria Bronze
The University of East Anglia Silver
The University of Essex Gold
The University of Huddersfield Gold
The University of Hull Silver
The University of Kent Gold
The University of Lancaster Gold
The University of Law Limited Gold
The University of Leeds Gold
The University of Leicester Silver
The University of Liverpool Bronze
The University of Manchester Silver
The University of Northampton Gold
The University of Nottingham Gold
The University of Reading Silver
The University of Salford Bronze
The University of Sheffield Silver
The University of Surrey Gold
The University of Warwick Silver
The University of West London Silver
The University of Westminster Bronze
Tresham College of Further and Higher Education Provisional
Trinity College (Bristol) Limited Provisional
Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance Bronze
Truro and Penwith College Gold
Tyne Metropolitan College Bronze
UCK Limited Provisional
UK College of Business and Computing Ltd Provisional
University College Birmingham Silver
University College London Silver
University College of Estate Management Provisional
University for the Creative Arts Silver
University of Abertay Dundee Silver
University of Bedfordshire Silver
University of Brighton Silver
University of Bristol Silver
University of Cambridge Gold
University of Central Lancashire Silver
University of Chester Silver
University of Derby Gold
University of Dundee Gold
University of Durham Silver
University of East London Bronze
University of Exeter Gold
University of Gloucestershire Silver
University of Greenwich Silver
University of Hertfordshire Silver
University of Keele Gold
University of Lincoln Gold
University of Newcastle upon Tyne Gold
University of Northumbria at Newcastle Silver
University of Oxford Gold
University of Plymouth Bronze
University of Portsmouth Gold
University of Southampton Bronze
University of St Andrews Gold
University of St Mark & St John Silver
University of Suffolk Bronze
University of Sunderland Silver
University of Sussex Silver
University of the Arts, London Silver
University of the West of England, Bristol Silver
University of Wales Trinity Saint David Bronze
University of Winchester Silver
University of Wolverhampton Bronze
University of Worcester Silver
University of York Silver
Wakefield College Silver
Warwickshire College Bronze
West Herts College Gold
West Kent and Ashford College Silver
Weston College of Further and Higher Education Gold
Wigan and Leigh College Silver
Wiltshire College Bronze
Wrexham Glyndwr University Silver
Writtle University College Bronze
York College Silver
York St John University Bronze

List of TEF Gold Ranking Universities

Aston University Gold
Bangor University Gold
Bishop Grosseteste University Gold
Blackpool and the Fylde College Gold
City College Plymouth Gold
Cleveland College of Art and Design Gold
Coventry University Gold
De Montfort University Gold
Edge Hill University Gold
Exeter College Gold
Falmouth University Gold
Harper Adams University Gold
Hartpury College Gold
Hugh Baird College Gold
Imperial College London Gold
Leicester College Gold
Liverpool Hope University Gold
Loughborough University Gold
Middlesbrough College Gold
Norwich University of the Arts Gold
Nottingham Trent University Gold
Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance Gold
Royal College of Music Gold
Royal Northern College of Music Gold
Solihull College and University Centre Gold
South Devon College Gold
The Arts University Bournemouth Gold
The City of Liverpool College Gold
The Conservatoire for Dance and Drama Gold
The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts Gold
The Robert Gordon University Gold
The Royal Academy of Music Gold
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama Gold
The Royal Veterinary College Gold
The University of Bath Gold
The University of Birmingham Gold
The University of Buckingham Gold
The University of Essex Gold
The University of Huddersfield Gold
The University of Kent Gold
The University of Lancaster Gold
The University of Law Limited Gold
The University of Leeds Gold
The University of Northampton Gold
The University of Nottingham Gold
The University of Surrey Gold
Truro and Penwith College Gold
University of Cambridge Gold
University of Derby Gold
University of Dundee Gold
University of Exeter Gold
University of Keele Gold
University of Lincoln Gold
University of Newcastle upon Tyne Gold
University of Oxford Gold
University of Portsmouth Gold
University of St Andrews Gold
West Herts College Gold
Weston College of Further and Higher Education Gold

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