Spain’s third-largest city, located about 350km south of Barcelona on the east coast, Valencia is ranked 87th in the world in the Best Student Cities 2023 ranking, slipping a place since the previous edition. Despite this, the city has improved its rank for both desirability and student view.
Universitat Politècnica de València (=400th in the world)
Population
1,910,000
Average international fees (at ranked unis)
US$1,400
Desirability rank
54th
Employer Activity rank
126th
Affordability rank
46th
Student View rank
87th
To find out how each of the above categories is calculated, view the methodology.
Why study in Valencia?
The history and culture
Valencia’s city centre (Ciutat Vella) is packed with historical buildings and monuments and has plenty of restaurants, bars and cafés.
The transport links
Valencia has fantastic transport links, with regular links to major Spanish cities such as Madrid and Barcelona.
The beach
There’s no better way to relax after a long day of lectures than soaking up the sun on the beach. The beach is in very easy reach of the University of Valencia.
Valencian cuisine
Known for its paella, tapas and fideua, students won’t go hungry in Valencia.
Cost of studying in Valencia
With tuition fees only costing around US$1,400 per year and the city having relatively low living costs, Valencia ranks an impressive 46th for affordability this year.
Prices in Valencia are about 12 percent lower than in Spain’s capital, Madrid according to Numbeo. A one-bedroom city-centre apartment in Valencia’s city center will cost around US$836, compared to approximately US$1,056 for the same apartment in Madrid.
Life & culture in Valencia
Valencia is probably best known for being the spiritual home of the delicious rice-based dish paella. It is also home of the massive Les Falles festival, where hundreds of giant puppets are paraded and then burned, and the Festival Internacional de Benicàssim, one of the biggest music festivals in Europe. The ‘La Tomatina’ annual tomato fight also draws huge crowds to the city.
Aside from these events, Valencia is a major tourist magnet through much of the year, due to its beautiful beaches, attractive city center, museums and interest-packed Ciutat Vella (Old Town) – full of historic buildings and bustling bars.
The city is also home to the futuristic Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències (City of Arts and Sciences), which boasts the largest oceanographic aquarium in Europe, among many other attractions.
Career in Valencia
Valencia is a prosperous area of Spain – its economy is the third largest of the Spanish cities.
The trade, hospitality, tourism, IT, engineering, finance and healthcare sectors are the most likely areas to find a graduate job in the city.
Some jobs may require specialist knowledge, making them perfect for recent graduates in that field and prominent national and international companies are always looking out for skilled workers.
The former Assistant Editor of TopUniversities.com, Sabrina wrote and edited articles to guide students from around the world on a wide range of topics. She has a bachelor's degree in English Literature and Creative Writing from Aberystwyth University and grew up in Staffordshire, UK.
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Study in Valencia
By Sabrina Collier
Updated July 1, 2022 Updated July 1, 2022Valencia for students
Spain’s third-largest city, located about 350km south of Barcelona on the east coast, Valencia is ranked 87th in the world in the Best Student Cities 2023 ranking, slipping a place since the previous edition. Despite this, the city has improved its rank for both desirability and student view.
Valencia has quite a large student population, with notable universities in Valencia including the Universitat Politècnica de València and the Universitat de Valencia, both of which make the top 600 of the QS World University Rankings® 2023.
Best universities in Valencia - QS Best Student Cities ranking: 87th
More about Valencia
Number of universities ranked by QS
2
Highest-ranked institution
Universitat Politècnica de València (=400th in the world)
Population
1,910,000
Average international fees (at ranked unis)
US$1,400
Desirability rank
54th
Employer Activity rank
126th
Affordability rank
46th
Student View rank
87th
To find out how each of the above categories is calculated, view the methodology.
Why study in Valencia?
The history and culture
Valencia’s city centre (Ciutat Vella) is packed with historical buildings and monuments and has plenty of restaurants, bars and cafés.
The transport links
Valencia has fantastic transport links, with regular links to major Spanish cities such as Madrid and Barcelona.
The beach
There’s no better way to relax after a long day of lectures than soaking up the sun on the beach. The beach is in very easy reach of the University of Valencia.
Valencian cuisine
Known for its paella, tapas and fideua, students won’t go hungry in Valencia.
Cost of studying in Valencia
With tuition fees only costing around US$1,400 per year and the city having relatively low living costs, Valencia ranks an impressive 46th for affordability this year.
Prices in Valencia are about 12 percent lower than in Spain’s capital, Madrid according to Numbeo. A one-bedroom city-centre apartment in Valencia’s city center will cost around US$836, compared to approximately US$1,056 for the same apartment in Madrid.
Life & culture in Valencia
Valencia is probably best known for being the spiritual home of the delicious rice-based dish paella. It is also home of the massive Les Falles festival, where hundreds of giant puppets are paraded and then burned, and the Festival Internacional de Benicàssim, one of the biggest music festivals in Europe. The ‘La Tomatina’ annual tomato fight also draws huge crowds to the city.
Aside from these events, Valencia is a major tourist magnet through much of the year, due to its beautiful beaches, attractive city center, museums and interest-packed Ciutat Vella (Old Town) – full of historic buildings and bustling bars.
The city is also home to the futuristic Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències (City of Arts and Sciences), which boasts the largest oceanographic aquarium in Europe, among many other attractions.
Career in Valencia
Valencia is a prosperous area of Spain – its economy is the third largest of the Spanish cities.
The trade, hospitality, tourism, IT, engineering, finance and healthcare sectors are the most likely areas to find a graduate job in the city.
Some jobs may require specialist knowledge, making them perfect for recent graduates in that field and prominent national and international companies are always looking out for skilled workers.
This article was originally published in November 2015 . It was last updated in July 2022
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The former Assistant Editor of TopUniversities.com, Sabrina wrote and edited articles to guide students from around the world on a wide range of topics. She has a bachelor's degree in English Literature and Creative Writing from Aberystwyth University and grew up in Staffordshire, UK.
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