TOP 10 universities in Europe
It is no secret that nowadays, students are constantly looking to study in the best universities possible, as the competition is extremely high. It is very important to know which are the top universities in Europe, as the decision regarding the university will affect our lives and will have an important impact on our future.
According to the QS World University Rankings 2021, the most prestigious universities in Europe are the following:
1. University of Oxford, UK
2. ETH Zurich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Switzerland
3. University of Cambridge, UK
4. Imperial College London, UK
5. University College London, UK
6. EPFL, Swiss Federal Institute of Lausanne, Switzerland
7. The University of Edinburgh, UK
8. The University of Manchester, UK
9. King’s College London, UK
10. London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
Most of the previous institutes are located in the United Kingdom, however, two of them are Switzerland universities. Hence, it is possible to affirm that the best European universities are placed in the UK, and that is why a vast number of students are trying their best to get into one of these universities.
Which are the criteria on which the QS World Ranking is based?
What is deeply important to consider is on what grounds the list is based. QS Ranking uses four different components to establish whether or not a university may be considered to be part of one of the elite educations. It is taken into consideration the academic and the employer reputation, the research citations per paper and the H-Index, a way to evaluate both the efficiency and effectiveness of the published work of either a scientist or a scholar.
The biggest factor in the QS ranking is academic reputation. To stand among the crowd, it is necessary to be extremely focused on the quality of the teaching. Therefore, the lecturers have to be very talented and have a unique teaching environment is a plus. Another important element is the “citations per faculty” which considers how often the researched work is cited by other researchers.
Additionally, it is essential to consider the student-to-faculty ratio, which is the number of staff employed compared to the number of students who are enrolled. Last but not least, it is necessary to discuss the employer reputation, the international faculty ratio and the student’s ratio. The last two show whether the university attracts international students.
International students: why are they so important?
Having international students, not only shows that the university is famous all over the world, but it will be useful as it will bring in smart people from different parts of the world. Moreover, bringing together students from different cultures enriches the learning experience, and can help the students have different perspectives of life.
On the other hand, if a classroom is fulfilled with people with a similar background it is almost impossible to get to know perspectives different from ours. It is not a coincidence that the top universities have a shocking number of international students. The Imperial College of London has more than 59% of students coming from outside the UK.
How do they stand out among other universities?
The question which usually arises is how can they stand out among their competitors? Very few universities stand above, the majority is on average but it does not have as much importance as the ones which stand among the crowd. As stated above, there are several ways to be ranked as one of the best universities in Europe. All the top 10 universities have in common a very low rate of acceptance, thus, only the best students can get accepted.
For example, the Imperial College of London (fourth) has an acceptance rate of around 14,3% or the EPFL in Switzerland (sixth) which this year accepted only 8% of its PhD applicants. However, the most important factor is the teaching quality, as better teaching prepares the students to deal with the workplace with competence. Consequently, students who studied in the top Universities might have better preparation than others.
To conclude, it is evident that it is deeply hard to get into one of these universities but if truly motivated it is worth trying as they usually skillfully prepare you for the future.
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