One of Britain’s biggest universities located in one of the country’s largest and most diverse cities, Manchester offers close to 500 undergraduate programmes and is the UK’s most applied-to university; it registered almost 93,500 applications for entry in 2023. The university is celebrating its 200-year heritage, having been founded in 1824 as England’s first civic university. The commemorations include Bicentenary Way — Manchester’s version of the Hollywood Walk of Fame — which immortalises Manchester innovations, alumni and academics, from Christabel Pankhurst and Alan Turing to Meera Syal and Benedict Cumberbatch.

What is the University of Manchester’s reputation?

A member of the Russell Group of research-led universities, Manchester received a £17.4 million increase in funding by Research England for 2022-23 — in third place behind Oxford and Imperial College London. In the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), 93 per cent of the university’s research was assessed as world-leading or internationally excellent, the top two categories. The results place Manchester seventh in our research quality index.

The university, which is based at a large campus in the centre of Manchester, retained a silver rating overall in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF 2023), underpinned by silver for the student experience and gold for student outcomes. Regarding outcomes, assessors praised the university’s “tailored approaches that are highly effective in ensuring students succeed in and progress beyond their studies”.

The university has, however, dropped just outside the top 25 of our league table this year due to persistently low rates of student satisfaction. Although not an uncommon issue among research-led and/or urban universities, Manchester remains in the bottom ten for satisfaction with teaching quality (126th) and the bottom 15 for the wider experience (120th) in our latest National Student Survey analysis. 

Campus improvements may help. Six “cosy campus” spaces provide welcoming areas for students to relax with friends. Podcasting studios, VR experience pods and flexible teaching spaces have been opened in the new, zero-emissions Flexible Learning Innovation Space at Booth Street East. The university is a strong contender in global rankings in which student satisfaction is not a factor, placing 34= in the QS World University Rankings 2025.

What degree courses have been discontinued and what new courses are available?

The university has introduced six options for 2024 entry: an integrated master’s degree in optometry; graduate entry medicine; digital media, culture and society; education, leadership and culture; creative and cultural industries; and global development with international study. At the time of publication, Manchester was not able to confirm any course closures.

What are the University of Manchester’s entry requirements — and my chances of getting in?

Entry starts from BCC and goes up to A*A*A*. Contextual offers for eligible students are usually one grade below standard requirements, but those who enter through one of the university’s access programmes may qualify for an extra grade reduction on top. In 2023’s admissions cycle there were 93,500 applications (more than 35,000 from international students) — another record for the university. About 6 per cent of the year’s intake gained their places through clearing. 

What are the graduate prospects?

Manchester graduates were the second most targeted by the UK’s top employers in 2023-24, research by the Times Top 100 Graduate Employers revealed. Recruiters include multinationals such as Rolls-Royce, the BBC, Unilever and GSK, as well as small, growing employers. Among initiatives to boost employability is the Student Experience Internship scheme, which provides paid summer internships in research. The Graduate Outcomes survey shows that 80.8 per cent of graduates were in highly skilled jobs or postgraduate study 15 months after leaving; although this is a high proportion, it is a step down from Manchester’s graduate outcomes the year before, and ranks the university only 39th for this metric.

What is the University of Manchester’s campus like?

Manchester’s 2020 Vision master plan set out a £1 billion investment to create a world-class campus over ten years. The flagship £400 million Manchester Engineering Campus was completed in 2021 and the university continues to have an impact on Britain’s industrial strategy through the Henry Royce Institute. The £150 million redevelopment of the Paterson building, destroyed in a fire in 2017, reopened in May 2023 with double the space for a collaboration with Cancer Research UK and the Christie NHS Foundation Trust for cancer research. Off campus, Jodrell Bank, the university’s world-famous radio observatory, became a Unesco world heritage site in 2019 and a £21.5 million refurbishment project was completed in 2022, adding a visitor exhibition to aid public engagement. 

The university has international centres in Dubai, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Singapore. 

Everything you need to know about the University of Manchester’s student life and wellbeing support

The Manchester city buzz is hard to beat, with 100,000 students at a variety of institutions. Fallowfield and Withington, to the south, are regarded as the key addresses. The Armitage Sports Centre, a 30-minute walk from campus, has a recently upgraded sports hall, squash courts, floodlit five-a-side football pitches, and six grass pitches. Student discounts open up leading sports facilities such as the Manchester Aquatics Centre’s 50m pool and 25m diving pool. Students can access one-to-one mental health appointments with specialists, psychoeducational workshops and therapy groups. 

What do the students say?

“At the heart of the university is the student union, our little world within the city! I've found a supportive community who are as curious and driven as I am. Our days are filled with spirited debates and festive cultural nights.”  
Akansha Karira, students’ union video content producer, and a marketing master’s student

What about student accommodation at the University of Manchester?

The university owns and operates almost 8,500 rooms. All full-time first-years who apply by August 31 in their year of entry are guaranteed a space. Applications received after A-level results are handled in date order, while those who apply through clearing are allocated housing depending on its availability.

How diverse and inclusive is the University of Manchester?

Manchester is 93rd in our social inclusion index overall. seventh among its 21 Russell Group peers in England and Wales in our social inclusion index, placing it just in the top 100 (98th). A little under one third of students are from ethnic minority backgrounds (51st) but its selective school contingent is relatively high at 71.3 per cent (96=).

Everything you need to know about scholarships and bursaries at the University of Manchester

Financial aid includes the Manchester Bursary, worth £1,000 for a household income of up to £35,000 and £2,000 for a household income of up to £25,000. Further support is available to students who have left care or who are estranged from their families. Scholarships for black British students and in specific subjects are also among provision.