A mid Wales university is now the second best place to study in Wales, according to the latest rankings.

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022 has named Aberystwyth University in second place, up from third in last year's list, leap-frogging Swansea.

Cardiff University remains top of the Welsh university rankings, sitting in 35th place nationally.

Cardiff has also been named Welsh University of the Year, the first time it has done so since the guide launched this award. The University has invested £50 million in student support services, and this term is opening a Centre for Student Life. This year applications to the institution were up 12 percent.

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide provides the definitive rankings for UK universities and the most comprehensive overview of higher education in Britain. It includes profiles on 135 universities, making use of the latest data published in the past two months.

The guide provides prospective students and their families with the right information to make an informed choice about their higher education, evaluating everything from satisfaction with teaching quality and the student experience through to degree completion rates and graduate employment prospects.

Top Universities in Wales

Regional rank University National rank Last year’s national rank 2021 National student survey Teaching excellence

Regional rank 

University 

National rank 

Last year’s national rank 

2021 National student survey Teaching excellence 

(%) 

2021 National student survey Student satisfaction 

(%) 

Graduate prospects (% in high-skilled jobs or graduate-level study) 

Completion rate 

(%) 

1 

Cardiff University 

35= 

34 

71.0 

66.2 

80.4 

91.8 

2 

Aberystwyth University 

38 

42 

81.8 

77.9 

65.0 

85.0 

3 

Swansea University 

39 

36 

77.7 

73.5 

75.0 

89.4 

4 

Bangor University 

64 

62 

74.8 

69.3 

66.3 

81.4 

5 

Cardiff Metropolitan University 

79= 

79 

74.9 

70.2 

68.4 

78.9 

6 

University of Wales Trinity St David 

83= 

101= 

79.5 

70.0 

60.7 

78.8 

7 

University of South Wales 

99 

90= 

75.5 

68.4 

63.7 

81.8 

8 

Wrexham Glyndŵr University 

110= 

124 

82.0 

73.8 

64.0 

73.2