For the second year in a row, the University of Cambridge has topped the Guardian University Guide, an annual league table that ranks every university in the UK according to a unique formula.
The formula takes into account spending per student; a university's student/staff ratio; graduate career prospects; what grades applicants need; a value-added score that compares students' entry qualifications with their final degree results; and how happy final-year students are with their courses, based on the annual National Student Survey. The table is also accompanied by rankings showing how universities perform across the major subject areas.
In this years guide, Oxford has come second and the London School of Economics has climbed a place to come third.
St Andrews, rated third last year, is now in fourth place while Warwick is fifth. UCL, Durham, Lancaster, Bath and Exeter make up the top ten.
All of the public English universities in the Guardian's top 20 will charge the maximum fee of £9,000 for new undergraduates from this September, except for the LSE which will charge £8,500.
The publication of the league table in the Guardian University Guide for 2013 is hosted on the Guardian's new online hub for students, here.
