Best Universities for Media and Communication in the UK 2027
Swansea University tops our 2027 media and communication ranking with 201 points, achieving 95% academic support and 86% teaching quality. University of the West of England, Bristol comes second with 196 points and 97% teaching quality. Bath Spa University is third with 194 points. We ranked 79 UK universities offering media and communication degrees across eight metrics: graduate earnings, teaching quality, student satisfaction, academic support, safety, cost of living, social life and sustainability.
Media and communication graduate earnings range from £17,000 (Bangor) to £30,000 (UWE Bristol, 2nd). University of Winchester (17th), Birmingham City University (joint 18th), University of Leicester (35th) and University of Chichester (joint 46th) all achieve 100% academic support. Buckinghamshire New University (48th) reports £49,000 graduate earnings — an outlier driven by placement year and industry partnership data rather than standard six-month graduate outcomes, and should not be compared directly with other institutions. Kingston University (52nd) has the lowest academic support at 65% and lowest teaching quality at 66%.
For how these universities compare across all subjects, see the Unifresher best universities overall ranking and our best universities for employability.
Media and Communication University Rankings 2027
| # | University | Grad Earnings | Satisfaction | Teaching Quality | Academic Support | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swansea University Swansea |
£24,000 | 79% | 86% | 95% | 201 |
| 2 | University of the West of England, Bristol Bristol |
£30,000 | 74% | 97% | 96% | 196 |
| 3 | Bath Spa University Bath |
£24,000 | 79% | 89% | 91% | 194 |
| 4 | University of Worcester Worcester |
£21,000 | 79% | 94% | 92% | 193 |
| 5 | York St John University York |
£23,000 | 80% | 91% | 98% | 192 |
| 6 | Manchester Metropolitan University Manchester |
£25,000 | 73% | 96% | 97% | 186 |
| 7 | Northumbria University, Newcastle Newcastle upon Tyne |
£21,500 | 74% | 89% | 94% | 185 |
| 8 | Bangor University Bangor |
£17,000 | 76% | 82% | 99% | 177 |
| 8 | Edge Hill University Ormskirk |
£22,000 | 83% | 88% | 93% | 177 |
| 9 | University of Plymouth Plymouth |
£22,500 | 75% | 87% | 96% | 175 |
| 10 | Bournemouth University Bournemouth |
£25,000 | 71% | 89% | 88% | 174 |
| 11 | University of Salford Salford |
£24,500 | 73% | 94% | 94% | 172 |
| 12 | University of Exeter Exeter |
£25,000 | 79% | 76% | 85% | 170 |
| 12 | Robert Gordon University Aberdeen |
£26,000 | 77% | 94% | 98% | 170 |
| 13 | De Montfort University Leicester |
£24,000 | 70% | 92% | 88% | 169 |
| 14 | Canterbury Christ Church University Canterbury |
£24,000 | 73% | 88% | 95% | 167 |
| 15 | University of Essex Colchester |
£26,000 | 74% | 88% | 94% | 162 |
| 15 | Glasgow Caledonian University Glasgow |
£23,500 | 71% | 91% | 97% | 162 |
| 16 | University of Lincoln Lincoln |
£23,500 | 78% | 78% | 90% | 161 |
| 17 | University of Winchester Winchester |
£24,000 | 82% | 93% | 100% | 160 |
| 18 | Arts University Bournemouth Bournemouth |
£24,500 | 83% | 86% | 86% | 158 |
| 18 | Birmingham City University Birmingham |
£23,000 | 69% | 91% | 100% | 158 |
| 19 | University of Sunderland Sunderland |
£22,500 | 74% | 93% | 95% | 157 |
| 19 | Leeds Beckett University Leeds |
£24,000 | 70% | 94% | 93% | 157 |
| 20 | University of East Anglia (UEA) Norwich |
£25,000 | 79% | 81% | 89% | 156 |
| 20 | Lancaster University Lancaster |
£26,000 | 82% | 93% | 94% | 156 |
| 21 | Newcastle University Newcastle upon Tyne |
£26,000 | 75% | 84% | 91% | 155 |
| 21 | University of South Wales Pontypridd |
£23,000 | 72% | 85% | 88% | 155 |
| 22 | Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool |
£20,000 | 72% | 84% | 89% | 154 |
| 22 | Nottingham Trent University Nottingham |
£21,000 | 76% | 88% | 91% | 154 |
| 23 | University of Liverpool Liverpool |
£22,500 | 71% | 89% | 90% | 153 |
| 23 | University of Leeds Leeds |
£25,000 | 74% | 90% | 90% | 153 |
| 23 | University of Greenwich London |
£23,000 | 69% | 90% | 98% | 153 |
| 24 | Falmouth University Falmouth |
£23,000 | 82% | 85% | 91% | 152 |
| 25 | University of Surrey Guildford |
£26,000 | 78% | 94% | 96% | 151 |
| 26 | Anglia Ruskin University Cambridge |
£19,500 | 70% | 90% | 97% | 149 |
| 26 | Keele University Newcastle-under-Lyme |
£21,000 | 81% | 93% | 96% | 149 |
| 26 | University of Sheffield Sheffield |
£25,000 | 75% | 94% | 94% | 149 |
| 27 | University of Brighton Brighton |
£24,000 | 72% | 96% | 92% | 147 |
| 28 | University of Gloucestershire Cheltenham / Gloucester |
£24,000 | 76% | 75% | 92% | 145 |
| 29 | Cardiff University Cardiff |
£24,500 | 71% | 78% | 77% | 144 |
| 30 | Oxford Brookes University Oxford |
£24,000 | 74% | 71% | 97% | 143 |
| 31 | University of the Arts London London |
£21,000 | 81% | 80% | 91% | 142 |
| 31 | University of Derby Derby |
£25,000 | 74% | 92% | 91% | 142 |
| 32 | University of Manchester Manchester |
£40,000 | 70% | 82% | 84% | 140 |
| 33 | University of Bedfordshire Luton |
£17,500 | 68% | 86% | 93% | 138 |
| 34 | University of Hertfordshire Hertfordshire |
£24,500 | 71% | 77% | 89% | 133 |
| 34 | King's College London London |
£27,000 | 67% | 82% | 88% | 133 |
| 35 | University of Leicester Leicester |
£22,500 | 73% | 90% | 100% | 132 |
| 36 | Sheffield Hallam University Sheffield |
£19,500 | 73% | 84% | 86% | 130 |
| 37 | Coventry University Coventry |
£26,000 | 72% | 83% | 66% | 127 |
| 38 | University of West London London |
£20,000 | 72% | 80% | 80% | 126 |
| 38 | Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh Edinburgh |
£23,000 | 78% | 91% | 94% | 126 |
| 39 | University of Strathclyde Glasgow |
£23,500 | 75% | 94% | 90% | 124 |
| 40 | University of Sussex Brighton and Hove |
£24,000 | 77% | 84% | 87% | 123 |
| 41 | Liverpool Hope University Liverpool |
£23,000 | 80% | 91% | 93% | 120 |
| 42 | University of Chester Chester |
£20,000 | 78% | 70% | 97% | 119 |
| 42 | University of Nottingham Nottingham |
£25,500 | 74% | 86% | 90% | 119 |
| 43 | University of Portsmouth Portsmouth |
£27,000 | 77% | 85% | 91% | 117 |
| 44 | UCL (University College London) London |
£24,500 | 68% | 73% | 86% | 115 |
| 44 | University of Warwick Coventry |
£27,000 | 74% | 76% | 76% | 115 |
| 45 | Brunel University London Uxbridge |
£25,000 | 68% | 85% | 93% | 114 |
| 46 | Leeds Trinity University Leeds |
£19,000 | 78% | 86% | 98% | 110 |
| 46 | University of Chichester Chichester |
£25,000 | 80% | 100% | 100% | 110 |
| 47 | Teesside University Middlesbrough |
£23,000 | 78% | 92% | 95% | 106 |
| 47 | University of Hull Hull |
£23,000 | 76% | 92% | 97% | 106 |
| 48 | Buckinghamshire New University High Wycombe |
£49,000 † | 70% | 88% | 83% | 105 |
| 49 | University of Stirling Stirling |
£23,500 | 78% | 83% | 88% | 101 |
| 50 | University of Central Lancashire Preston |
£21,000 | 71% | 83% | 87% | 99 |
| 51 | University of East London London |
£19,500 | 68% | 89% | 93% | 98 |
| 52 | Kingston University Kingston upon Thames |
£20,000 | 71% | 66% | 65% | 95 |
| 53 | University of Westminster London |
£24,000 | 68% | 79% | 92% | 93 |
| 54 | University of Huddersfield Huddersfield |
£20,000 | 74% | 65% | 71% | 92 |
| 55 | City St George's, University of London London |
£27,000 | 67% | 84% | 89% | 89 |
| 56 | Goldsmiths, University of London London |
£26,000 | 64% | 82% | 76% | 72 |
| 57 | London South Bank University London |
£28,500 | 68% | 77% | 75% | 63 |
| 58 | Middlesex University Middlesex |
£20,500 | 69% | 70% | 70% | 61 |
| 59 | London Metropolitan University London |
£26,000 | 66% | 61% | 73% | 56 |
| 60 | University of Roehampton London |
£24,000 | 72% | 66% | 75% | 56 |
† Buckinghamshire New University's £49,000 figure reflects placement year and industry partnership data rather than standard six-month graduate outcomes and is not directly comparable with other institutions in this ranking.
What the ranking tells you about studying media and communication
Media and communication is one of the broadest subject groupings in UK higher education, covering journalism, broadcasting, film, public relations, advertising, digital media, media studies and communication theory. With 79 universities in this ranking, variation in studio facilities, industry placement networks, production equipment access and graduate employer connections is very significant. Course delivery scores matter particularly in a practical discipline where the quality of production workshops, newsroom environments, editing suites and professional briefs determines how industry-ready graduates are.
University of Manchester at 32nd: £40,000 — the earnings anomaly in this field
University of Manchester ranks 32nd with 140 points and produces media and communication graduates earning £40,000 — the highest standard graduate earnings in this ranking, £10,000 above UWE Bristol (2nd). Manchester's media graduates disproportionately access premium roles in advertising, digital marketing, communications strategy and media management — areas where Manchester's employer connections, alumni network and city proximity to major agency and media hubs in the North West produce above-field earnings. Manchester ranks 32nd because of low safety and low satisfaction (70%) — both among the lowest in the field. Manchester's media programme is academically research-active and more theoretically orientated than the practical-led programmes at leading positions in this ranking.
UWE Bristol at 2nd: £30,000 and 97% teaching quality
University of the West of England, Bristol ranks 2nd with 196 points and produces graduates earning £30,000 — the highest in the field excluding Manchester's outlier — alongside 97% teaching quality and 96% academic support. UWE's media programmes combine strong practical production training with well-established industry placement networks in Bristol's active screen and media sector. Bristol is home to BBC Natural History Unit, Aardman Animations, ITV West and a significant independent production cluster — UWE's proximity to these employers directly benefits its graduates' career outcomes.
University of Chichester (joint 46th) achieves 100% on both teaching quality and academic support from a position suppressed entirely by city-level factors. Chichester ranks joint 46th with 110 points — identical to Leeds Trinity. Its course delivery scores are the strongest double in the entire 79-university field. The position reflects Chichester's very low safety score (lowest safety in the field at rank 1 of 79) and low sustainability score. For students specifically prioritising the strongest-measured course delivery in media and communication, Chichester's data is the most compelling in this ranking regardless of overall position.
For a broader view of how these universities compare, see the Unifresher overall best universities ranking.
