Two UK universities have topped a global ranking of the best art and design courses. But one leader is warning the UK cannot take its place at the forefront of creative education for granted.
The QS World University Rankings, published by higher education analysts Quacquarelli Symonds, collect data from 151,000 academics and 100,000 employers.
The subject specific table aims to “provides students with information on institutions that are excelling in the subject areas that matter to them.”
This year, the UK recorded a one-two in the art and design rankings. The Royal College of Art (RCA) topped the table, closely followed by University of the Arts London (UAL).
The pair beat out three prominent US universities – The New School in New York, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) who made up the rest of the top five.
But Polly Mackenzie, UAL’s chief purpose officer, says the UK’s “world-class” reputation for art and design education is under threat.
“The UK’s position as a global creative leader cannot be taken for granted,” she says. “If we fail to properly invest in creative education, we risk losing the pipeline that fuels our industries.”
She referenced a 2024 report by Erskine Analysis, created in collaboration with UAL, which warned the UK risked “self-inflicted economic and diplomatic damage” unless it invested in and supported its creative industries.
And Mackenzie believes these efforts must include the universities which produce the next generations of creative talent.
“To ensure the UK’s future success powering the creative industries, supporting our world class institutions has never been more important,” she says.
Reflecting on its number one position, RCA president and vice-chancellor Professor Christoph Lindner put its success down to the university’s “distinctive approach” to design education.
“We critically explore complexity and design resilience in multiple ways, investigating ethics, identities, making, materials, human-machine interactions, and systemic approaches to services and ecologies – as well as advocating for regenerative and inclusive design,” he said.
This creates, he explains, a “research-led interdisciplinary space” and the RCA’s “exceptional facilities” attract students, researchers and teachers from across the world.
An increased focus on scholarships has opened up the RCA’s postgraduate courses to more people, Lindner says, while its close ties with the design world set students up for success.
These give students the, “skills, experience, and networks needed to lead influential international careers and make significant positive contributions to the world around us,” Lindner says.
Mackenzie too explained how UAL has worked to open up its courses, citing the launch of its School of Pre-Degree Studies in west London, and its digital offering, UAL Online.
And she sees these rankings as a reflection of London’s creative dynamism.
“London has always set the standard for creative excellence, and it will continue to do so for generations to come if our education system nurtures creative talent from the very start,” she says.
“For over a century, UAL has been at the forefront of radical innovation, both in creative practice and in the way we teach creativity. As a university with a clear social purpose, we know that creativity isn’t a luxury, but an essential for building a better future.”
There was also good news for the Glasgow School of Art (GSA), which ranked just outside the top ten in 12th position. With only seven European courses making the top 20, the GSA confirms its place as one of the continent’s leading creative lights.
“The GSA has an incredibly rich heritage in design education, which can be traced back to its original founding in 1845 as one of the UK’s first Government Schools of Design,” says Professor Penny Macbeth, its director and principal. “Since then, it has produced some of Scotland’s most influential design practitioners.”
She says the GSA has built a reputation by combining an international outlook that celebrates the “huge value of being globally connected” with a more specific role in both Glasgow, and the UK’s wider “creative ecosystem.”
“We work collaboratively with academic, cultural, creative and commercial partners underpinning the role that design, innovation and technology has within economic growth and its importance within the UK Government’s new industrial strategy,” she adds.
Alongside the three UK universities, the top 20 is dominated by the USA which takes nine places. There are also two in China, two in the Netherlands, and one each in Singapore, Italy and Finland.
The full top 20 is:
- Royal College of Art (London, UK)
- University of the Arts London (London, UK)
- The New School (New York, USA)
- Rhode Island School of Design (Providence, USA)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, USA)
- Politecnico di Milano (Milan, Italy)
- Pratt Institute (New York, USA)
- Aalto University (Espoo, Finland)
- School of the Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago, USA)
- Design Academy Eindhoven (Eindhoven, the Netherlands)
- Delft University of Technology (Delft, the Netherlands)
- The Glasgow School of Art (Glasgow, UK)
- Savannah College of At and Design (Savannah, USA)
- Art Center College of Design (Pasadena, USA)
- Tsinghua University (Beijing, China)
- Yale University (New Haven, USA)
- Stanford University (Stanford, USA)
- Tongji University (Shanghai, China)
- Nanyang Technological University (Singapore)
- Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, USA)
