rock statues highfield campus

Rankings and reputation

Our reputation and rankings are based on a range of criteria, including entry standards, student satisfaction, staff and student ratio, expenditure on facilities and resources, research quality, and reputation among employers and academics from other institutions. We are also a founding member of the Russell Group, an organisation of 24 top UK universities committed to maintaining the highest research and teaching standards. Membership of the Russell Group is widely considered an indicator of quality university education. They attract the best academics working on the most innovative research projects, thanks to the greater funding, facilities, and support that they offer. 

UK league table rankings

International league table rankings

  • 87th in the world and 14th in the UK according to QS World University Rankings (2026)
  • Three subjects in the global top 50, according to QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025: Nursing (13); Archaeology (36); Earth and Marine Sciences (40)
  • Twelve subjects in the top 100 globally: Geology (51-100 band); Geophysics (51-100 band); Philosophy (51-100 band); Statistics & Operational Research (51-100 band); Physics & Astronomy (75); Medicine (81); Electrical and Electronic Engineering (83); Mechanical, Aeronautical & Manufacturing Engineering (93); Accounting & Finance (97).
  • 115th in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2025 and 14th among UK universities listed. Explore the full World University Rankings and UK Best Universities
  • 11th in Times Higher Education's (THE) 'Golden Age' universities 2020 - the top 200 institutions founded as universities between 1945 and 1967. Southampton is second among the UK universities featured. Learn more at timeshighereducation.com

Student satisfaction

The National Student Survey (NSS) gathers feedback from mainly final-year undergraduates about their time in UK universities. Highlights from our NSS 2024 results include:

  • 90% of students responded that teaching staff were good at explaining things
  • 87% of students responded that their course was intellectually stimulating
  • 87% of students were positive about learning resources provided by the University
  • 85% of students were positive about the teaching on their course

Research and innovation excellence

We are a research-intensive university, with continued substantial growth in research funding and seventh in the UK for the total value of The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) grants. We are also a founding partner of SETsquared, the university business incubator ranked number one in the world by UBI Global.

According to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021:

  • 92 per cent of our research is world leading or internationally excellent, which assessed the quality of research in UK higher education institutions
  • we are in the top 10 per cent of UK universities and fourth in the Russell Group for impact demonstrating the real-world benefit of our research
  • over 97 per cent of our research environment is world-leading or internationally excellent

Honours and awards

Southampton is one of the first universities in the UK to be named an Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Education (ACE-CSE). The Gold Award complements the University's existing status as a Centre of Excellence for Cyber Security Research, which it first obtained in 2012.

  • Top 17 UK University

    The complete university guide 2024

  • Global #1 business incubator

    Ranked by UBI Global

  • No. 8 in UK for research intensity

    Research Excellence Framework 2014

  • Global top 100 university

    QS World University Rankings 2025