Aston University Climbs to 21st Place in the 2025 Guardian University Guide
Aston University has been ranked 21st in The Guardian’s annual league table of 122 UK universities, up from 25th last year.
The University now ranks second in the West Midlands behind the University of Warwick in the 2025 Guardian University Guide. The latest ranking continues Aston University’s rapid climb. In the 2021 Guide, the University ranked at 30th. It is the second top 25 finish for Aston University in the past week, having ranked at 24th in the 2025 Daily Mail University Guide, as well as being named University of the Year for Student Success.
Aston University ranks in the top ten in three subject areas – third in chemical engineering, fourth in anatomy and physiology and fourth in health professions, which includes optometry and audiology.
There are also several subjects in the Guardian’s top 20. International relations is ranked 11th, computer science is ranked 12th, mechanical engineering is also ranked 12th, biomedical sciences is 13th, politics is 14th, construction, surveying and planning is ranked 20th and biology is also ranked 20th.
The Guardian noted the strength of Aston University’s computer science courses, with its ranking “thanks in part to a strong value-added score, meaning that it’s doing a good job at getting students better grades than might have been expected.” Computer science has risen 28 places since the 2021 Guide, joining the likes of the Universities of Bath and Durham, which rank just above Aston University.
To compile the rankings, the Guardian assesses each university’s teaching subjects on eight measures of performance, including student:staff ratios, student satisfaction, spend per student and career prospects. These results are then aggregated to create the institutional rankings.
Aston University has achieved considerable success in league table results and quality ratings over the past 12 months. As well as its success in the 2025 Daily Mail University Guide, the University was also ranked eighth in the category ‘Best UK Universities for Job Prospects’ in the StudentCrowd awards, which are based on student reviews, while the 2024 Longitudinal Education Outcomes (LEO) data shows that employed Aston University graduates have the 19th largest median salary out of all higher education institutions five years after graduation at £35,400.
The 2025 QS World Rankings places Aston University inside the top 30% of 1,500 ranked institutions in the world and in the top 10% of all 5,663 institutions evaluated. The University was also awarded the prestigious ‘triple gold’, the highest possible rating, in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) ratings in September 2023.
Professor Aleks Subic, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of Aston University, said:
“Being placed at 21st in the Guardian University Guide is a wonderful achievement and testament to the hard work and dedication of all our colleagues here at Aston University. I am very proud of our work in ensuring that the University provides a great student experience and excellent employment outcomes that set them up for life.
“The Aston University 2030 strategy lays out our commitment to creating a learning organisation for the future, with an integrated portfolio of contemporary learning and development opportunities, supported by unique experiences and professional practice. This is the latest accolade in Aston University’s meteoric rise as we transform the lives of our staff, students and the communities we serve.”