Best Universities in Northern Ireland 2025

Here is a ranking of the best universities in Northern Ireland. What the country lacks in quantity of universities, it more than makes up for in quality of courses, teaching and more.

Northern Ireland University Rankings

Northern Ireland has become one of the most popular countries to study in, in the UK. Northern Ireland education works a little differently from the rest of the UK and, as a result, Northern Ireland has the highest GCSE and A Level results in the UK.

Unlike Scotland, there are Northern Ireland university fees, even for Northern Ireland nationals, however, most fees are usually smaller for Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland students. This isn't just a list of the Best Northern Ireland universities, it is also a chance for you to see which universities are ranked best g...

Top Northern Ireland Universities 2025

Scroll right to see all our ranking criteria

UNIVERSITY 2025 OVERALL
ACCOM
COURSES
SOCIAL
CAREERS
RECC
Ulster Uni View All Courses

1st

3.91 3.98 3.86 3.95 3.85 100%
Queen's Uni View All Courses

2nd

3.68 3.68 3.58 3.74 3.71 96%
Stranmillis College View All Courses

3rd

2.80 2.70 2.97 2.31 3.22 75%
Belfast Met View All Courses

4th

2.54 2.73 2.59 2.97 1.87 100%

Our rankings only include universities that have reached our threshold of submitted student reviews. To find out more, please visit our rankings about page.

University Rankings 2025

Uni Compare Top 100

Taken from 131,500+ different data points and are from students who have attended university to help the future generation of students.

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Explore regional university rankings

We break down our university rankings into regional areas so you can compare the best universities in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

England

England

See which universities in England rank highest.

Wales

Wales

See which Welsh universities are best for students.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

See which universities rank top in Northern Ireland.

Scotland

Scotland

See which universities rank highest in Scotland.

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20,000+ verified reviews

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Start year
Students share the start date of their studies in case course names have changed over time.
All study types
We receive in-depth reviews from undergraduate and postgraduate students.
Ranking breakdowns
We ask students to breakdown their review into accommodation, course quality, and many more.
Rate out of five
Students rate four areas of their experience which helps create the universities overall rank.
Recommended universities
We ask all students if they would recommend their university, this helps determine success.
100,000+ data points
Our 2025 university rankings are created from 131,500+ data points from more than 20,000 students.

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