Top Universities in London: UCL or Imperial?

As a city, London has plenty to offer - and so do its universities. However, when it comes to choosing the best university in England's capital, two London universities in particular stand out from the crowd.  

University College London (UCL) and Imperial College London are the two highest-ranked London universities in the QS World University Rankings® 2022, beating 18 other universities from the city and ranking in the top 10 in the world -- something both schools have managed consistently. 

This year, Imperial climbed one place to rank seventh in the world, while UCL rose two places to rank joint eighth.  

To get a better idea of whether you’d be best suited to UCL or Imperial, here’s a quick overview of the key similarities and differences: 

	UCL (University College London)	Imperial College London
QS World University Rankings® 2022	Ranked joint eighth in the world in 2022  Ranked 14th in the world by academics and 13th by employers  38th for faculty/student ratio  108th for research impact (citations per faculty member)  85th in the world for percentage of international faculty members, and 12th for international students	Ranked seventh in the world in 2022  Ranked 22nd in the world by academics and ninth by employers  27th for faculty/student ratio  64th for research impact (citations per faculty member)  47th in the world for percentage of international faculty members, and 10th for international students
Subject strengths*	12th in the world for arts & humanities  48th for engineering & technology  10thfor life sciences & medicine  Joint 57th for natural sciences  28th for social sciences & management	233rd in the world for arts & humanities  Eighth for engineering & technology  12th for life sciences & medicine  Ninth for natural sciences  Joint 60th for social sciences & management
Location	Main campus is located in Bloomsbury, central London	Main campus is in South Kensington, west London
Student community	Around 43,800 students in total  53 percent international students	Around 19,904 students  Of these, around 60 percent are international.
Tuition fees (2021/22)	UK undergraduates: £9,250 per year  International students: £23,300 to £31,200 annually for most undergraduate programmes.  Medicine: TBC (see UCL prospectus page for more information)	UK undergraduates: £9,250 per year  International students: £32,000 to £34,500 annually for most undergraduate programs  Medicine: £45,300 per year for international students

*Based on the broad subject areas in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021. 

QS World University Rankings® 2022 

As mentioned earlier, Imperial ranks slightly above UCL in the QS World University Rankings® 2022, with Imperial ranking seventh and UCL ranking joint eighth. 

Although both schools rank well across the majority of indicators, they clearly each have their strengths. UCL beats Imperial by eight positions in the academic reputation indicator; whereas Imperial comes out on top in the employer reputation indicator, ranking ninth to UCL’s 13th. 

Both schools have a high faculty/student ratio, although Imperial places in 27th and UCL ranks 38th. Imperial also has the advantage in the research impact indicator; ranking 44 positions above its rival.  

Imperial and UCL are also proud both globally focused universities and rank within the top 100 for percentage of student faculty members and international students. Although both rank very similarly for these two indicators, Imperial beats UCL on each.  Despite this advantage, both Imperial and UCL should appeal to students keen to join a truly international community of students and academics. 

Subject strengths   

Rather than relying on the world ranking alone, it might be more useful to consider how these two universities perform for the subject you wish to study. 

Looking firstly at the broad subject areas of the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021, Imperial College London achieves the strongest score for the engineering and technology indicators, and is ranked seventh in the world for this subject area. 

While UCL operates across the full academic spectrum, Imperial specialiseses primarily in science, engineering, management and medicine, and has a leading business school.  

So, if your area of interest is one of the arts, humanities or social sciences disciplines, you should probably apply to UCL. Alongside world-leading departments of the arts and sciences, UCL also boasts a top-rated architecture school and one of the UK’s best art schools, the Slade School of Art. 

You can get a closer insight into how UCL and Imperial compare for different disciplines in the table below. 

UCL and Imperial in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021
	UCL	Imperial
Accounting & finance	=68th	33rd
Anatomy & physiology	7th	12th
Anthropology	6th	--
Archaeology	2nd	--
Architecture	--	--
Art & design	=48th	51-100
Biological sciences	15th	=13th
Business & management	=94th	34th
Chemistry	39th	12th
Classics & ancient history	22nd	--
Communication & media studies	=44th	--
Computer science & information systems	=23rd	16th
Dentistry	12th	--
Development studies	--	51-100
Earth & marine sciences	=34th	24th
Economics	16th	53rd
Education & training	1st	8th
Engineering (chemical)	=24th	10th
Engineering (civil)	51-100	6th
Engineering (electrical)	=49th	9th
Engineering (mechanical)	111th	8th
Engineering (petroleum)	--	6th
English language & literature	13th	--
Environmental sciences	33rd	10th
Geography	9th	--
Geology	40th	29th
Geophysics	38th	33rd
History	=19th	--
Law	15th	--
Library & information management	19th	--
Linguistics	=17th	--
Materials science	60th	14th
Mathematics	=42nd	11th
Medicine	9th	10th
Modern languages	20th	--
Pharmacy	7th	=26th
Philosophy	22nd	--
Physics & astronomy	=31st	11th
Politics	42nd	--
Psychology	=10th	--
Social policy & administration	=28th	101-120
Sociology	20th	--
Sports-related subjects	20th	--
Statistics	28th	10th
Theology, divinity & religious studies	101-120	--
See the full QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021

Location  

UCL and Imperial are both located in the centre of London, close to dynamic and culture-rich areas full of museums, galleries, theatres and more. However, there are some differences in location that might influence your student experience.  

While Imperial’s South Kensington location is central relative to the sprawling immensity of the Greater London Area, it’s actually located a little to the west of central London. Not that this is a bad thing: Imperial is near Harrods, Hyde Park, and the Science Museum and Natural History Museum, meaning it’s based in one of London’s most attractive and desirable postcodes. 

UCL’s Bloomsbury campus is a small enclave of calm amid London’s bustling centre. At equal distances from Soho and King’s Cross, and in walking distance to Chinatown and Piccadilly Circus, you couldn’t be much closer to the heart of the city. 

One of UCL’s main student halls of residence is in nearby Camden Town, which is renowned for its lively social scene, famous market and live music. UCL’s central campus is next to the British Library, one of the most important and comprehensive research libraries in the world. 

Meanwhile, Imperial’s main halls of residence are based near to its campus in West London, a well-heeled part of town with a slightly calmer atmosphere. Imperial’s location may be slightly more appealing to those who fancy some respite from the crowds, especially since it’s just a stone’s throw away from the large green spaces of Hyde Park.  

London itself was ranked number one in the latest QS Best Student Cities ranking, thanks to its excellent scores in every indicator, apart from affordability. 

Student community   

UCL is one of the constituent colleges of the University of London, and one advantage of its Bloomsbury location is that it’s based in the middle of a huge student community. The main campus backs out onto a courtyard shared by SOAS and Birkbeck College, and the adjacent University of London Union is a hub of activity, from societies and student politics to live music and social events. 

UCL’s total student population of 43,800 students puts it at the larger end of UK universities. When the student populations of the other nearby University of London colleges are factored in, its extended student community ranks among the largest in the world. 

Imperial is slightly more self-contained, with a total student population less than half the size of UCL’s at around 19,904. Imperial was previously a member of the University of London - before becoming formally independent in 2007 - and its students are still integrated into the city’s wider student community. However, its location and independent status mean it remains separate, with a slightly more intimate community feel. 

Tuition fees  

Domestic students starting their undergraduate studies will pay £9,250 per year. At undergraduate level, international students at UCL can expect to pay around £23,300 to £31,200 for most programs. 

In 2018, UCL implemented ‘fixed fees’ for international undergraduates, meaning your tuition fees will stay the same in each year of your course. However, this does not apply to those studying medicine. 

Imperial charges international students £32,000 to £34,500 annually for most of its undergraduate and postgraduate courses, with medicine coming in at £45,300 per year. 

Science and engineering degrees at both universities are often three-year programs with an optional fourth year, leading to MSc or MEng qualifications. Undergraduate-level arts, humanities and social sciences degrees at UCL are nearly always three years in length.  

Financial aid  

While those overseas tuition fees might seem expensive, the good news is there are funding opportunities available for both universities.  

UCL’s website offers a scholarship finder tool, allowing you to search for scholarships matching your subject and demographics. 

Imperial offers one of the most generous bursary schemes in the country for home students – the Imperial Bursary. It also has a scholarship search tool, which provides you with more personalised results dependent on the level of detail you provide. 

As well as looking on the official university websites, there are many external scholarships you could consider, including those funded by the UK government. One example is the British Chevening Scholarships, which aim to develop global leaders by providing full or part funding for graduate programs in any subject. You can browse other UK scholarships here. 

This article was originally published in December 2013. It is updated after every QS World University Rankings launch, most recently in June 2021. 

You can read about more of the top universities in London here.  

Want more content like this? Register for free site membership to get regular updates and your own personal content feed.