More than 69,000 hopefuls applied for a place at this redbrick city-centre favourite last year — one of the country’s largest universities — attracted by the lively nightlife as well as the research-led pedigree. The university’s future-facing academic ambition is to create graduates who make positive impacts as global citizens. As such all students engage with the Leeds Curriculum, which aims to broaden their intellectual horizons and requires everyone to produce a final-year research project.
What is the University of Leeds’ reputation?
Leeds traces its origins to the Leeds School of Medicine — established in 1831, so that medical students did not have to travel to Scotland, London or abroad to study — and the Yorkshire College of Science, founded in 1874, which was a pioneer in welcoming students of all faiths and none, contrary to Oxbridge’s exclusivity at the time.
Today the focus is on research into pressing global challenges at Leeds’ four new Futures Institutes, the first of which — the Priestley Centre for Climate Futures — opened for the 2024 academic year. Next up are institutes focused on health, society and education. The university is partnering with Leeds Children’s Hospital on a £5 million five-year research initiative tackling key areas of health inequalities and outcomes for young patients, including childhood cancer, children’s mental health and life-threatening illnesses.
Ninety per cent of a hefty submission by Leeds academics across 28 subject areas was rated world-leading or internationally excellent in the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021) — up on the 80 per cent in the previous national assessment, in 2014, leading to a seven-place rise in our research quality index, into the top 20. It is also a consistent presence in the QS World University rankings, where it is 82= in the 2025 edition, down from 75th place in 2024.
However, rates of student satisfaction have varied. Leeds remains outside the top 100 for teaching quality (127th), although it has re-entered it for the wider experience (92=), in our new analysis of the National Student Survey.
When awarding Leeds a silver rating overall in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF 2023), (down from gold in the previous TEF, six years before) assessors gave it a bronze for its student experience. Even so, the panel commended “outstanding rates of continuation and completion” for Leeds students and courses.
Developments at Leeds students’ union should help to boost rates of student satisfaction. To help with the rising cost of living, the Essentials basic needs hub has opened. There, students can find emergency food supplies, free sanitary products and more. Essentials also gives students a route to wellbeing and financial literacy support services. The new Crossroads multifunctional entertainment lounge has esports and gaming equipment along with board games, cards and a comfy spot to watch television.
Professor Shearer West will become Leeds’ vice-chancellor from November 2024. She has been in the same role at the University of Nottingham since 2017.
What degree courses have been discontinued and what new courses are available?
Leeds is partway through its five-year Curriculum Redefined initiative, under which its course offering is being rationalised, but it is not currently able to confirm whether any courses are closing or launching in 2024 or 2025.
The university is looking to expand its higher and degree apprenticeship programmes across the fields of health; digital; engineering; and management and leadership.
What are the University of Leeds’ entry requirements — and my chances of getting in?
Courses ask for between BBB up to A*AA. Contextual offers reduce entry requirements by up to two grades, which benefited approximately a quarter of entrants in 2023. To be eligible, applicants must come from deprived postcodes (qualifying them for a one-grade reduction) or have completed the university’s access scheme (undercutting their offer by two A-level grades). Clearing accounted for 2.3 per cent of first-year students in 2023.
What are the graduate prospects?
Leeds supports students to complete work placements with organisations locally, nationally and globally. However, it is down 12 places, for its proportion of graduates in highly skilled work or further study after 15 months, ranking 35= overall. Recent initiatives include students taking up placements at UK fintech companies through the new Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology, and six-week student research internships for those from under-represented groups.
What is the University of Leeds’ campus like?
A ten-minute walk from the city centre, the university’s campus continues to evolve. Helix, a digital innovation and learning space, opened in 2023 and includes immersive technology, prototyping equipment and multimedia studios where students can collaborate on their own projects. A library makerspace is an addition that has brought technologies such as craft cutting machines and 3D printers along with podcasting and photography workshops. The Esther Simpson Building opened in 2022 as part of an expansion by the business and law schools. It includes a trading room, flexible teaching areas and behavioural laboratories. The Faculty of Biological Sciences has received a significant refurbishment too.
These developments follow the recently opened Sir William Henry Bragg Building for engineering and physical sciences, with its facilities to engineer materials at atomic and molecular scales. The Laidlaw Library and the refurbished Edward Boyle Library are also among the campus’ modern resources, while a £17 million upgrade to the students’ union building, once famed for having the longest bar in the country, improved social spaces and performance venues.
Everything you need to know about the University of Leeds’ student life and wellbeing support
Student-led clubs and societies play a big part in undergraduate life, with more than 300 to choose from, including aikido, art, “stitch’n’bitch” and street dancing. Leeds is one of the UK’s leading student cities — offering undergraduate-friendly social scenes and plenty of green spaces within an urban setting that is easy to get around.
Sport is particularly well provided for, including at Sports Park Bodington and its Bodington Football Hub — a collaboration between the Football Foundation and the university; it has three full-size floodlit 3G pitches and associated pavilion facilities for use by students and the local community. Housed at the Sports Park Weetwood outdoor sports ground, the Brownlee Centre is the UK’s first purpose-built triathlon training base. Those living in halls get free access to the Edge (discounted rates are offered university-wide). There are more facilities at the Gryphon Sports Centre, also on campus, which has studio space, sports halls and squash courts. Many of the Gryphon sports clubs compete in the British Universities & Colleges Sport (Bucs) competitions. Rowers use the £1 million boathouse on the Aire and Calder Navigation Canal.
Leeds has converted a strength and conditioning gym at the Edge sports centre into a holistic wellbeing studio. The university has also boosted staff numbers within its counselling and wellbeing service to include same-day (remote) drop-in appointments. All students who have registered for support have been offered initial counselling, wellbeing or mental health appointments.
What do the students say?
“Leeds is a student city; we are lucky to be so close to the centre of town from our campus but also have a great green space an equal distance away. Joining a society early was the best thing I did, as I was able to meet so many like-minded people, including my best friends. Leeds offers a safe space within which to challenge one another — exactly what I expected university to be.”
Bethan Corner, education officer at Leeds students’ union, and a theatre and performance with enterprise graduate
What about student accommodation at the University of Leeds?
Leeds guarantees a room to first-years who meet the housing deadlines and academic offer. Much of the accommodation is further from the city centre than the campus.
How diverse and inclusive is the University of Leeds?
More than a quarter of students enter from selective schools (98th) and about a third are the first in their family to go to university (94th), contributing to its 105th place for social inclusion overall.
Everything you need to know about scholarships and bursaries at the University of Leeds
Awards include the Leeds Bursary, worth £1,000, £1,500 or £2,000 a year to students from households with incomes up to £36,000. The bursary can be received as cash or as credit against tuition fees or accommodation costs. To be eligible for the personal-circumstances scholarships of £3,000 a year, students need to meet widening participation criteria as well as, in some cases, academic standards. Leeds also offers a wide range of subject-specific scholarships based on academic merit.
