Out of the 127 universities listed in the guide, Lancaster also finishes as the North West’s top university, while the Management School ranked highly in several subject areas.

Lancaster ranked 2nd in the country for Marketing for the second year running, and rose to 9th for Business and Management Studies.

We were also ranked 9th for Accounting and Finance and climbed to 14th for Economics. 

The table is based on ten measures: student satisfaction, research quality, research intensity, entry standards, student: staff ratio; spending on academic services; spending on student facilities; good honours degrees achieved; graduate prospects and completion. 

Professor Mark E. Smith, Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University welcomed the news, saying: “I am delighted that the reputation of our university is reflected in high rankings year-on-year in the UK's major university league tables. 

“Lancaster combines excellence in research and teaching to provide the very best education experience for our students.

“Holding 9th place demonstrates how Lancaster continues to successfully compete with some of the very best universities across the world.” 

Dr Bernard Kingston, principal author of TheCompleteUniversityGuide.co.uk, said: “There is a considerable degree of stability at the upper end of the league table this year. While dramatic changes may be newsworthy, this stability indicates that the rankings are robust and credible for young people seeking a university place – our primary purpose.”