{"id":435644,"date":"2025-09-19T08:32:13","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T08:32:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/435644\/"},"modified":"2025-09-19T08:32:13","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T08:32:13","slug":"queens-university-belfast-named-as-the-best-in-northern-ireland-in-the-sunday-times-good-university-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/435644\/","title":{"rendered":"Queen&#8217;s University Belfast named as the best in Northern Ireland in The Sunday Times &#8216;Good University Guide&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The university has climbed five places to 21st in the national league table<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/0_Queens-University-Belfast-07_JK.jpg\" alt=\"Queen's University Belfast\" loading=\"eager\"  \/>Queen&#8217;s University Belfast(Image: Justin Kernoghan\/Belfast Live)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">Queen\u2019s University Belfast is once again crowned the best university in Northern Ireland, according to The Times and The Sunday Times &#8216;Good University Guide&#8217; 2026.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">The university has climbed five places to 21st in the national league table and has also been awarded the title of <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/all-about\/education\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">University of the Year<\/a> in Northern Ireland 2026.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\"><a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/all-about\/ulster-university\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">Ulster University<\/a> was named the second-best university in <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/all-about\/northern-ireland\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Northern IrelandLink opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">Northern Ireland<\/a> and reached number 49 on the UK-wide list, falling four places from last year.<\/p>\n<p>READ MORE: <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/news\/belfast-news\/make-most-your-opportunity-queens-32464895\" data-tmdatatrack=\"read-more\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"32464895\" data-tmdatatrack-source=\"editorial\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">&#8216;Make the most of your opportunity&#8217;: Queen&#8217;s Students&#8217; Union President message as new term begins<\/a>READ MORE: <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/news\/belfast-news\/queens-university-belfast-reopens-body-32345471\" data-tmdatatrack=\"read-more\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"32345471\" data-tmdatatrack-source=\"editorial\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Queen&#8217;s University Belfast reopens Body Donation Programme<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">For the first time in the guide&#8217;s 32-year history, both the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge have dropped out of the top three in the national rankings and are joint fourth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is the No. 1 university for the second year in a row, while the University of St Andrews retains its spot in second place.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\"><a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/uk-university-rankings\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026<\/a> provides the definitive rankings for UK universities and the most comprehensive overview of higher education in Britain, making use of the latest data. It features everything you need to know about applying to university and detailed online profiles for 133 universities, covering research reputation, campus facilities, scholarships and bursaries, and nightlife.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">NORTHERN IRELAND UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2026:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">Northern Ireland ranking<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">National ranking<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">University<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">1<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">21<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">Queen&#8217;s University Belfast<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">2<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">49<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">Ulster University<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">Helen Davies, the editor of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide, said: &#8220;Competition to get a place at our top-ranked institutions continues to grow, leaving some lower-tariff universities with recruitment challenges. It is exciting to see universities across the UK working to deliver extraordinary medical and technical breakthroughs, lead economic regeneration and inspire.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">&#8220;New degrees are launching to meet the interests of today\u2019s students and equip the next generation to power industry and progress positive change, such as programmes in electrical and electronic engineering with robotics, and AI and public policy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">\u201cMany more undergraduates are choosing to stay at home and commute. It is why this year we have an award for the top university in each region and the best for scholarships and bursaries.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\">To read the full Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026, see <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes.co.uk\/uk-university-rankings\" target=\"_self\" aria-label=\"\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh \" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\" publication=\"belfastlive\"><strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\">For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage<\/strong> <strong class=\"Strong_strong__e2x35\"><a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"hereLink opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a> and <a class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.belfastlive.co.uk\/newsletter-preference-centre\/?view=Solus&amp;mailingListId=1342b3be-3db3-461a-a6b4-c60bfcaa13da&amp;utm_source=solusarticle\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"sign up to our daily newsletterLink opens in a new tab.\" tabindex=\"0\" rel=\"noopener\">sign up to our daily newsletter<\/a> here.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The university has climbed five places to 21st in the national league tableQueen&#8217;s University Belfast(Image: Justin Kernoghan\/Belfast Live)&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":435645,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5011],"tags":[1144,41386,16,96245,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-435644","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-northern-ireland","8":"tag-northern-ireland","9":"tag-queens-university","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-ulster-university","12":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115230038208899359","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=435644"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/435644\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/435645"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=435644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=435644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=435644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}