University of Hertfordshire’s national league table success continues
The University of Hertfordshire has continued its streak of good results in the national league tables after rising 12 places in The Times’ Good University Guide for 2025 released today (Friday, 20 September).
Based on an analysis of students’ graduate prospects, as well as their satisfaction with their university’s teaching quality, entry standards and research quality, Herts was ranked the 11th best university in the southeast and 83rd overall. See the full rankings.
Areas the University performed particularly well in included for teaching quality, with 83.6% of students expressing satisfaction with their learning opportunities and academic support; and student experience, with 80.1% of students reporting a positive experience with the overall management and resources provided by the University.
Herts also rose 26 places to 60th in the guide’s research quality index, linked to analysis of the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021). It highlighted that the University achieved the best results in allied health subjects; computer science; and psychology and that 78 per cent of the University’s submission was rated world-leading or internationally excellent.
The University also rose eight places in the Graduate Outcomes survey and was commended for being one of the UK’s more socially inclusive universities, up nine places to 27th.
Top subject rankings then included being placed 5th out 31 for Food Science, 7th out of 74 for Social Work, 14th out of 25 for Radiography and 21st out of 76 for Nursing.
The news comes just after Herts also celebrated strong rises in The Guardian and The Daily Mail national league tables published last week. In the Guardian University Guide 2025, the University rose to 75th place – an increase of 12 places from last year, while the Daily Mail University Guide 2025 placed Herts at number 54 overall – an increase of eight places from 2024.
The University was also ranked first for overall student positivity in the East of England in the National Student Survey (NSS) 2024 and top five overall in the in the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) 2024, both for the second year running.
Professor Quintin McKellar CBE, Vice Chancellor at the University of Hertfordshire, said:
“It is again extremely pleasing that all the hard work taking place behind the scenes is paying off, and we are achieving such promising results in the national league tables.
“If you take into account that these have been published at a time when the higher education landscape has never been more challenging, it is particularly encouraging to see such strong results for our teaching quality and student experience.
“Our top priority continues to be to deliver high quality, career-focused education and work experiences that provide our graduates with both an enriching university experience, and the skills, training and confidence to go out into the world, secure good quality employment and have long, successful and fulfilling careers. These results will only help us to focus further on areas requiring improvement and continue to maintain standards where we are strong to achieve even more. Thank you again to every member of Herts who is helping us to achieve our goals.”
Helen Davies, editor of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide, said:
“The best universities — whether they were founded in the 15th century or 2005 — are local and global powerhouses of intellectual thought and creativity, from the arts to science, that can power economic regeneration and lead the way to a better life. While the higher education sector is facing unprecedented challenges from debates on free speech to financial stability, it is important to remember the force for good that going to university can be.”
Read the full Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2025, or find out more about studying at Herts.