Leading Universities

[bale]

I am looking at some leader boards on the internet to see what are the best universities on the course I want to take, however where ever I look I see different results. Could someone please advice me on a reliable leaderboard that grades universities based on there academic reputation rather than facilities and students satisfaction.

[Schmetterling]

http://unistats.direct.gov.uk/ I thought it very helpful when I did my research.

[ChocolateDrop]

I would say QS Rankings is really reliable for universal university comparisons.

http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings

I'm not really a side-ads type of person but the adverts from the site are pretty helpful as well, if you're looking to study internationally.

[Arrowhead]

Rankings are pointless when it comes to comparing universities that are generally very similar. This is because different leaderboards take into account different things.

There's this one, I think Times, that gives a lot of weight to academic research being conducted. While that's all well and good, that means nothing to a prospective undergraduate student. Just figure out the general rank of universities you're interested in and pick the top 5 from that general area.

[IBTutorOnline]

If you mainly care about academic merit, definitely check out The Times and The Gaurdian rankings

[bale]

I am thinking to do a course with mathematics and computer science like a dual degree in the UK any suggestions? I looked at the http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings however only saw 2 good universities in UK (oxford & cambrige) am I correct in thinking that computer science is a degree that should be done in USA?

[ChocolateDrop]

I am thinking to do a course with mathematics and computer science like a dual degree in the UK any suggestions? I looked at the http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings however only saw 2 good universities in UK (oxford & Cambridge am I correct in thinking that computer science is a degree that should be done in USA?

If you're talking good as in prestige good, in the UK the generally recognized as prestigious are the Russell group universities.

Russell group universities are almost comparable to Ivy league, but Ivy league was based on sports and athletic measures whereas Russell group is based on academics. Hence why MIT is not ivy league, but is super academic. So if you're looking for a joint degree in a "good" as in Russell group good UK institution, you can just google maths and computer degree at one of the institutions from this list. These universities are seen as good, regardless of where they fall in the list

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_Group

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivy_League

eg. Google search: Nottingham computer science and mathematics

http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/ugstudy/courses/mathematicalsciences/bsc-mathematics-computer-science.aspx

Nottingham offers such a degree and it is Russell group.

Or alternatively you could search "computer science and mathematics" and eliminate the ones that don't fall into the Russell group list.

American universities seem to be really flexible when it comes to dual degrees/ double majors/ major and minor degrees. For computer science and engineering american institutions are the top at the moment. But the top ones are notoriously difficile to get into, like MIT for example especially if your international for many reasons. So it's always good to not put your hopes in few institutions especially if they are uber competitive.

My advice apply to the UK, 5 you like. It only costs less than £25 pounds. That's like £5 per institution via UCAS. Thank you HL maths . Might have some joining fees but whatevs it's a future investment. You can't apply directly to Universities (as far as I know) you have to go through UCAS.

And apply to the ones you want to go to in America, if money isn't too much of an issue. Also if you like are good at essays it may be easier for you, there's a lot of essay writing for most of the applications.Some of them you can apply using common app which you write general information and common essays (basically your app) once and it can be passed onto multiple institutions. Not all american institutions accept common app. I'm not sure how application fees work with common app. Others you may have to apply to directly, like MIT app fee is $75 (ish). You can technically apply to an infinite amount of American universities, but beware that could leave your wallet burning and your pockets bleeding.

Good luck!

Edited April 8, 2013 by ChocolateDrop

[IBidiot]

Don't even think about rankings concerning universities overall yet. Like Arrowhead said, look into what programmes you are interested in. What do you want to be? Or what field would you actively be involved and motivated in? While overall rankings should heed a small portion of attention simply because you will find better universities up there, not a community college or something of that level, start researching what schools have the best programmes you are interested in. For example: While Harvard may be up there, the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill has an amazing public health programme, and I've seen Washington University in St. Louis trump Harvard on some lists concerning medicine. It just depends. Bottom line: research programmes, then look into each school to see which environment you would be most comfortable in, and then seriously get down to deciding which one would be your perfect fit.