Cambridge has topped an annual league table of UK universities for the eighth year in a row.

The prestigious institution saw off competition from Oxford, as well as a number of London universities.

The Complete University Guide 2019 rankings are based on 10 measures, including student satisfaction, research, entry standards, the proportion of good honours degrees awarded, graduate prospects and completion rates.

In third place, behind Cambridge and Oxford, was the London School of Economics and Political Science, then Imperial College London in fourth, and rounding out the top five was the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s alma mater, the University of St Andrews.

  • Cambridge
  • Oxford
  • London School of Economics and Political Science
  • Imperial College London
  • St Andrews

Durham was in sixth position, followed by Loughborough, Lancaster, Warwick and the University College London taking the tenth spot.

The rankings, which cover 131 institutions, also show that the biggest climber was Staffordshire University, which moves up 32 places to joint 73rd.

Dr Bernard Kingston, chairman of thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk, said: “It is a fact that Cambridge and Oxford have usually topped the table. But some 20 British universities could be regarded as top world-class institutions – some ancient like Cambridge and Oxford, and some modern like Warwick and Lancaster. All are able to attract faculty and research funding globally.

“This clearly influences the quality of their undergraduate teaching and enables them to recruit high-quality students.  All universities strive for continual improvement, and it is conceivable that in the future others may pose a challenge to Cambridge and Oxford.”

The authors note that across the UK, the proportion of graduates gaining a first or 2.1 has increased year-on-year since the table was first created.