QS University Rankings Europe: Student Opinions of the Top Schools

As an international student, I did not feel out of place in this university. This is actually what I was personally most concerned about in terms of coming abroad for further studies. I was afraid to be faced with racism and misunderstanding due to the cultural differences and that I might never get used to the food here.

That, was not the case at all. This university provides so much support and feedback system to those who needs it. For example, during my first year in uni, I had to do my first year first semester online. it was pretty difficult for me as I was not used to online studies as most of us students were during the pandemic. With all the student support system and with the guide of my academic advisor, I did just fine. Also, the international students in the university are so diverse. There are more students from all around the world that were studying there(from more than 170 countries if I remembered correctly.), which did not make me feel like I stuck out like a sore thumb or anything, which smoothed over a lot of worries that I had.

Academic wise, Manchester offers a wide range of course selections. For me, I picked International business Finance and Economics (IBFE). It was truly an enjoyable course and my peers were friendly as well which was great.

Overall, I shared my personal experience regarding this university and would definitely recommend this university for students who are considering a spot at the University of Manchester.

Even though I did my masters in the GDI program during the pandemic and everything was online, the university and department went over and beyond to give us students an incredible learning environment and experience. Not only were all the professors professionals in their field, they were also super understanding if any emergencies came up. Overall, UoM was an amazing university and I am glad to have been a part of it.

I was surrounded by a lively and encouraging environment while attending the University of Manchester, and I had access to a multitude of helpful online tools. The lectures and material offered were very beneficial and greatly aided my academic endeavours. That being said, it’s crucial to acknowledge that the strikes affected my educational experience. Notwithstanding these difficulties, I am appreciative of Manchester University’s efforts to provide a supportive learning environment, and grateful for the teachers who went the extra mile to help accommodate us.

I appreciate that the courses are taught by the right lecturers and delivered effectively. For instance, instead of just using slideshows to teach a physics experiment, there are practical demonstrations that help you visualize and understand the experiment better. This approach is extremely important in my view.

The university is compact and accommodating; there’s not as many students in my year, so classes can be really enjoyable, the lecturers gave you specific attention. There are work spaces and a very cozy library for doing research, and you can get a lunch or a menu item in the cafeterias. The cloisters host a variety of stands with every year, quite fascinating displays.

I spent my time there working to discover anything negative about it since I didn’t enjoy moving back to Munich from the U.S. but the program has been amazing in every way—the level entrance, enrollment, and everything else have all been excellent. professors who also act as keen listeners? Give everyone of them a raise.

As one of the oldest universities in the world, the University of Edinburgh has a lot of old buildings, so everyday it seems that I study in old castles with beautiful sceneries. Our school has a lot of resources, for example, library resources. In case we don’t make good use of it, our school set a course to help us with that, which is really nice. For my major, we have practical homework and readings. Tutors would explain some theories in seminars and we do our practice and have further discussions in out tutorials. I think it is a good place to study.

The University of Edinburgh is, depending on what you want to gain from University, a great place to be. Ultimately, every student experience differs, but everybody tends to unite on the fact that the city is a fantastic place to be as a young adult. As an English Literature student, the bookshops everywhere offer a great way to engage with my course, and the standard of teaching is excellent. The tutors are a particular standout – they are always willing to offer help and are genuinely interested in the content.

Overall I have thoroughly enjoyed my first year at The University of Edinburgh. The campus is stunning, and has lots of facilities (gym, library, cafes) and study areas. Also, since it is in the centre of the city it makes it very convenient and means that I can walk to campus (10 minutes!) from my accommodation. My main course is Sustainable development, however due to the flexibility of this curriculum I was also able to take electives in both Politics and Geography, two subjects which I had considered studying at university. This means that I am able to approach my courses with multiple different perspectives, really contributing to my learning.
The one downside which I have experienced this year is that many classes have been cancelled due to strikes, which despite being a cause I fully support as an individual, it has definitely been detrimental to my overall education and knowledge.

The campus is driven by the leading class research and innovation mindset. I really liked how you are surrounded by people from a variety of background and this school sets a new standard of quality in education. The cost of the school is funded in large proportion by the Swiss government, making it really affordable for students. I would criticize the quality of the teaching. All professors are researcher, and some of them don’t have an education background at all. It makes it really difficult sometimes to get it through. Thankfully we are surrounded by older students and teaching assistants that can help us.

EPFL is an exceptional university that embodies excellence in education and research. With its world-class faculty, collaborative environment, and cutting-edge technology, it empowers students to thrive and innovate. Its commitment to pushing boundaries and tackling global challenges makes EPFL a true pioneer in shaping the future.

There are many EPFL associations for students who would like to do arts, philosophy, sports or have a hands-on experience, I personally worked with the Rocket Team EPFL and Junior Entreprise EPFL as a software engineer.

Each semester you can choose courses that best suits you and in each course several teaching assistants will make sure that students have a good understanding of the course material.

All in all, students are well-supervised, they can do as much activities as they want and it is easy to make new friends.

It is a great university, well ranked worldwide, with a beautiful view on the lac and the Alpes from the campus. The courses and the programs are really interesting, the teachers are smart, but you have to work a lot, specially during the first year of bachelor, which is a kind of selective year.

I just completed my MSc in Remote Sensing and Environmental Mapping at UCL and it was extremely disappointing. Our program was completely over-enrolled (the biggest class sizes our professors have ever had) which meant we did not actually get access to all of the modules they promise on their website, and the professors had no time for us. The classes were also extremely theory based, and I never actually learned how to do any practical remote sensing using a program. If you think you will learn during your dissertation think again – they only allow your advisor to help for about 4 weeks and then you’re on your own. Really not a good experience.

I have been at UCL for a year now and overall I have really liked my university experience. The campus itself is beautiful and is located in a wonderful area of London. There is lots do around and it is well connected so can always spend quality time with friends in between lectures and classes. The university itself has an abundance of societies ranging from sports societies to a Bubble tea society. It means that you can really find your people at society events and you can take a break from academics very easily. My course itself has been very difficult with lots of reading and there are some lecturers who may not be so engaging all the time, but I really enjoy the content of what I am learning. The marking strikes did have an impact on us but in general, first year went really well. I even had contact with the welfare and support team and they really helped me with my issues. The main thing is that when I wake up in the morning, I’m really excited to head into campus and learn about the things I really love.

This university is a leading global university for a reason: it pushes you to strive for your best, offers great support and helps to prepare you for life after university as well with its great career and internship opportunities. It also offers wellbeing services to support students with a range of matters, be it university-related or unrelated. The study facilities are beneficial, however due to the large scale of students it is often difficult to find a space, particularly during exam season.

It is a very diverse study program. It has a lot of studen associations but also a very serious side wher you learn a lot of things. There are many labs doing super interesting and helpful research. The ideas generated are innovative and a great help for a greater future.

Grew up in Zurich and attended ETH in mechanical engineering.

Going abroad for an exchange made me realize how good ETH is. Low assignment workload and pure focus on theory in the first years means the theoretical depth and thoroughness with which it is tested makes this a great education. The student engineering projects that we were able to participate in were world-class. ETH also has a great low-bureacracy culture. The amount of lectures held on cutting edge topics by world-class professors is amazing. And: In their last few years, students have the opportunity to participate in internationally competitive research.

With some exceptions, the students I took classes with during my exchange in North America did not seem nearly as consistenly competent as my peers at ETH.

However, ETH has a few areas where there is definitely room for improvement:

– Male-dominated in many fields, both in the student body and among professors. This definitely must be improved.
– Generally, ETH is not nearly as diverse as other unis (e.g. MIT), which means there’s less diversity of thought and a less creative culture.
– Ethics and scientist’s/engineer’s role in society are almost never discussed at ETH.

Studying at ETH is fun… sometimes. Many courses tend to be a lot of work. There are not only lectures but also exercises one should solve every week which take quite a while to solve. Then there are not only the mandatory courses but also other subjects one has to do for the credits which are not directly related to your major. I think the best part are the events which usually take place in the evening organized by the Fachvereine. I also like the fact that thinking back to where I‘ve started I did learn quite a bit. ETH really makes an effort in giving you job opportunitues with events such as polymesse and kontaktparty etc.

About study: I’m learning physics now and it’s not easy. The programme is designed for future researchers so you can learn basic theories, research skills, and basic computing skills as well. The workload is okay, but (I feel) you have to study really hard if you want to not just be able to deal with the exam but also really understand the principles behind. The university is supportive. We have supervision every week and my supervisors are all really helpful and nice. There’re also many talks on related topics.
About living: accommodation is provided by the college. My room is big, with a double bed, and it’s at the city centre. I like it. 😀
About dining: I usually eat in college’s hall so I don’t need to think about what to eat. That really saves my time. The price is fair, and the foods are good. My college has formal hall almost every day – a good chance to talk with different people.
About people here: all the people in the university I’ve met are very nice. No one is gonna judge you on how you live, so you can be yourself here.
Plus: I like our gown!

Before joining the University of Cambridge, the whole system sounded incredibly intimidating. Meeting one-on-one with some of the world’s most distinguished academics and research pioneers initially seemed like a stressful experience. The freedom to choose my own texts and essay topics sounded like immense pressure. Writing multiple essays per week seemed like a recipe for insomnia.

However, none of these pre-conceptions that I held came to pass. The opportunity to hear first-hand from quite literally the best in the world is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You get to be a part of research and ideas that will shape our future world. Getting to personalise your academy experience enables you to grow not only as a student but an independent person too. Furthermore, learning to work under pressure makes it so much easier once you enter the working world.

The level of academic exposure that the university provides is truly invaluable. Through the unique supervision system you are truly aided in achieving the highest level of academic success. Cambridge’s supervision system and structure of the social sciences courses fosters independence and inquisitiveness to question the world, why it operates the way that it does and how we can contribute to changing it. It truly does mold you into becoming a confident scholar. The collegiate system also provides a distinct opportunity to make friends because many activities unique to Oxbridge (such as formal dinners, matriculation and scholars dinners) happen within individual colleges and between peers. The city is small and has great character, beautiful architecture and is gorgeous during all seasons.

A fantastic university with innumerous facilities, libraries and it is steeped in history.

Studying at Oxford has been a once in a lifetime opportunity. Being surrounded by academics at the top of their field can at times be very intimidating, but there is a great deal of support and desire for all students to fulfil their potential. The city is incredible and the libraries are a dream to study in!

Yes, the workload is intense and more than I had anticipated, but if you manage your time effectively then it is definitely manageable. Equally, forming friendships and having a strong support system around you is vital here, otherwise it can be very isolating and harder to cope with the pressure.

Studying at Oxford is incredible – from the campus, to the resources, to the students attending. What’s more challenging than the coursework however is continuously advocating for yourself and putting yourself out there amidst hundreds of other students doing the same. It’s crucial to develop a strong support network for yourself to cope with the constant pressure of the environment. That being said, it was an exceptional experience, one I will treasure for a life time.

Studying at Oxford is a unique and enriching experience. Although the workload can be heavy, the tutorial system allows you to receive more personalised feedback than you would at a non-Oxbridge university. Tutorial essays champion independent thought, and the tutorials itself (usually involving another student and one tutor) allow you to expand, challenge, and defend ideas. The 28 university libraries are called the Bodleian Libraries; they are scattered around the city which means you will always find a space to study. Beyond academics, the city offers a lot of fun activities to participate in with friends, not to mention the various student societies you can attend or be a committee member of.

The methods used to foster insight by the tutors at Imperial College are not only hands on, but also facitlitate memory. My classes were pegged on course materials as well as experiantial learning, where both professors and students shared their perspectives on a variety of topical issues that affected not only life at the college, but also focused on giving solutions to the signiicant challenges that weigh down humanity. Every experience was worthy, and every class built me.

With Imperial College being one of the top universities in the world, one cannot expect an easy ride through studying a degree there. Students need grit, a passion for what they do, and above all, discipline to put in the work necessary to succeed. Aeronautical Engineering, one of the most competitive courses to get into, provides a vast knowledge base which can initially be overwhelming. I’ve found myself feeling a little lost at times, with too much information being unloaded at once, but with time you learn to connect the dots and a constellation of valuable knowledge begins to form. The most important part is knowing when you need to push through the struggle, or when someone isn’t worth your time or energy. It’s a difficult balance to achieve, but something that is important to learn as early on as possible.

I really enjoy the diversity of opportunities available at my university. The academic programs are excellent and offer a wide range of disciplines to choose from. Additionally, the professors are knowledgeable and approachable, and the resources available to students, such as the library and the computer lab, are top-notch. I also appreciate the many extracurricular activities offered, such as clubs and sports teams, as they provide opportunities to get involved and meet new people. The campus is beautiful, and the overall atmosphere is very positive and supportive. Overall, I feel like my university has given me a great education and has helped me grow both academically and personally.