University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh Overview
The University of Edinburgh is a public university established in 1583. It has five campuses located in Edinburgh, Scotland—the country’s capital and one of its biggest cities. The Central Area Campus houses the main administrative offices, library, and facilities for humanities and social sciences. The other campuses include King’s Buildings, Easter Bush, Little France, and Western General Hospital. Tuition fees are higher for students coming from outside Scotland and the EU.
The university is divided into three colleges: arts, humanities, and social sciences; medicine and veterinary medicine; and science and engineering—together comprising 20 schools. The academic year follows a semester system, with English as the primary language of instruction. Students can also sign up for free six-week introductory Gaelic courses to experience Scotland’s historic language. First-year undergraduates from outside Edinburgh are guaranteed housing, and there are accommodation options for graduate students as well, with guaranteed spots for new non-EU postgraduates.
A major research milestone linked to the university is the first successful cloning of a mammal from an adult cell—Dolly the sheep, cloned in 1996 at the university’s Roslin Institute. Other key research centers include the Centre on Constitutional Change, the MRC Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, and the UK Centre for Astrobiology.
University of Edinburgh Rankings
The University of Edinburgh is ranked #39 in the Best Global Universities list. Rankings are based on performance across widely recognized indicators of excellence.
Global Rankings
- #39 – Best Global Universities
- #8 – Best Global Universities in Europe
- #6 – Best Global Universities in the UK
Subject Rankings
- #140 – Agricultural Sciences
- #97 – Artificial Intelligence (tie)
- #10 – Arts and Humanities
- #60 – Biology and Biochemistry (tie)
- #36 – Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology
- #49 – Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems (tie)
- #48 – Cell Biology
- #123 – Chemical Engineering
- #196 – Chemistry (tie)
- #230 – Civil Engineering
- #40 – Clinical Medicine (tie)
- #67 – Computer Science (tie)
- #66 – Ecology
- #140 – Economics and Business
- #30 – Education and Educational Research
- #211 – Electrical and Electronic Engineering (tie)
- #27 – Endocrinology and Metabolism
- #115 – Energy and Fuels
- #162 – Engineering
- #203 – Environmental Engineering
- #56 – Environment/Ecology
- #47 – Gastroenterology and Hepatology
- #57 – Geosciences
- #95 – Green and Sustainable Science and Technology
- #69 – Immunology
- #46 – Infectious Diseases (tie)
- #348 – Materials Science (tie)
- #48 – Mathematics
- #46 – Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences
- #56 – Microbiology
- #43 – Molecular Biology and Genetics
- #285 – Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (tie)
- #23 – Neuroscience and Behavior
- #68 – Oncology
- #171 – Optics
- #30 – Pharmacology and Toxicology
- #315 – Physical Chemistry (tie)
- #46 – Physics
- #67 – Plant and Animal Science (tie)
- #48 – Psychiatry/Psychology
- #12 – Public, Environmental and Occupational Health
- #36 – Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging
- #37 – Social Sciences and Public Health
- #44 – Space Science
- #49 – Surgery (tie)
2025-2026 Indicator Rankings
Thirteen indicators determine the University of Edinburgh’s overall Best Global Universities rank. Below is how it performs in each category.
- #39 – Best Global Universities
- Global Score: 78.2
- Global Research Reputation: #55
- Regional Research Reputation: #42
- Publications: #78
- Books: #7
- Conferences: #71
- Normalized Citation Impact: #70
- Total Citations: #53
- Top 10% Most Cited Publications: #63
- Percentage of Top 10% Most Cited Publications: #121
- International Collaboration (Relative to Country): #727
- International Collaboration: #320
- Top 1% Most Cited Papers: #48
- Percentage of Top 1% Most Cited Papers: #81
