Poppy Read-Pitt
Russell Group universities are considered to be the UK’s most prestigious places to study. They consist of 24 institutions that specialise in pioneering academic research and are often said to be the UK’s version of the Ivy League. Despite the reputation that proceeds them, Poppy asks: does it actually matter if the university you attend is a Russell Group?
While generally regarded as prestigious, it should be noted that the Russell Group is self-formed and was not created to be an indicator of academic excellence, but instead to collectively represent the interests of its members to the government.
There are many ‘prestigious’ and highly ranked universities that are not members: St Andrews, Bath and Lancaster are ranked 4th ,10th and 11th in the country respectively– higher than many Russell group universities.
Similarly, belonging to the Russell Group does not have any bearing over the quality of the education. Who is to say that the lectures and tutors at Russell Groups are better at what they do than other lectures at different universities?
Terry Eagle- regarded as one of the most influential British critics in his field – teaches at Lancaster, and Carol Ann Duffy, our Poet Laurette up until 2019, teaches at Manchester Met.
The teaching at Russell Groups also tends to be limited to traditional courses, so depending on the course you want to study, a Russell Group university may not offer you the best education.
non-Russell Group universities often rank very high in university league tables
For courses that are more vocational or artistic, you may find that an institution that specialises in those types of courses would be more suitable than a Russell Group. For example, if you wanted to study something related to film, somewhere known for its excellence in creative arts like Falmouth or Arts University Bournemouth might serve you better than somewhere like Nottingham.
Even if your course is more traditionally academic, non-Russell Group universities often rank very high in university league tables. On the Guardian’s 2022 university rankings for English and Creative Writing, 50% of the universities in the top 10 are non-Russell Groups.
It’s easy to see why so many people regard Russell Groups highly, as collectively these universities and their alumni are successful. They award 60% of all doctorates in the UK, house nearly 200 Nobel Prize winning academics and attracts more highly qualified applicants than other UK universities.
there’s not anything specific a Russell Group university could offer you that a non-Russell Group couldn’t
These universities are also particularly wealthy, they receive the majority of funding available from governments and charities. This means they can invest more in your education by doing things like hiring more staff to attend better to students, build better facilities and provide state-of-the-art technology. However, these are not things that are exclusive to Russell Group universities – many other non-Russell Group universities can offer you all of the aforementioned criteria.
Although they may come with an air of prestige, aside from Oxford or Cambridge, there’s not anything specific a Russell Group university could offer you that a non-Russell Group couldn’t. Somewhere like Cardiff is not inherently better than somewhere like Nottingham Trent just because it belongs to the Russell Group.
As previously mentioned, the Russell Group is not a measure of academic excellence, so it doesn’t really matter whether you go to one or not. When picking a university, there are many other important factors to consider. However, it is understandable that you may want to go to one, given the reputation the name carries.
Poppy Read-Pitt
Featured image courtesy of David Jakab via Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
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