Yorkshire’s cities are home to some popular and prestigious universities, which attract enthusiastic scholars from all over the country.
The Guardian’s latest university guide for the 2026 academic year went live over the weekend. This annual league table compares and ranks more than 120 universities from across the UK, giving them scores out of 100. It uses a comprehensive methodology, which factors in the latest data on student satisfaction, staff numbers, spending, future career prospects for graduates, and more.
We’ve picked out universities from across Yorkshire to see how they did in the latest guide. As well as their overall scores, we have added a few key details likely to be important to sixth form students considering studying there - including a score representing how satisfied final year students were with their teaching, and the proportion of recent graduates either employed in a graduate-level job or undertaking further study 15 months after their course finished.
But The Guardian warns that prospective students should take the results with a grain of salt. “Rankings change annually, and some universities may benefit from temporary measures such as funding boosts or changes to their student intake. Don’t forget that universities languishing at the bottom of the overall table can be top for certain subjects,” its creators wrote. Some universities have also not been included, where data was not available.
Here were the 10 Yorkshire universities on this year’s list, and how they did overall:
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5. Leeds Trinity University
Based on the outskirts of Leeds, Trinity came next. It ranked 76th overall this year, up from 105th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 51.4 out of 100. It had a rating of 92.9 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 72% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Jonathan Gawthorpe/National World
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6. Sheffield Hallam University
This is another university in South Yorkshire’s largest city. It ranked 88th overall this year, down from 75th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 48.5 out of 100. It had a rating of 83.2 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 78% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Scott Merrylees/National World
7. University of Huddersfield
This university is headquartered in Huddersfield, in West Yorkshire’s Kirklees borough. It ranked 95th overall this year, down from 68th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 46.4 out of 100. It had a rating of 81 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 71% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Google
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8. University of Hull
The University of Hull, over to the east in Kingston upon Hull, was next. It ranked 98th overall this year, down from 75th last year. The Guardian gave it an overall score of 45.6 out of 100. It had a rating of 87.6 for students satisfied with their teaching, and 82% of recent graduates were either employed or in further study after 15 months. | Adobe Stock