Be University Wise guides › Rankings › Performing arts
Top universities for performing arts in the UK: the Be Wise ranking
59 UK universities and colleges ranked for performing arts on official data.
Providers need at least 50 survey responses in performing arts to appear in the table. Student experience is the average share of final-year students giving positive answers across the seven National Student Survey themes. Earnings are medians five years after graduating, compared with the UK average for performing arts.
The table
| Position | University or college | Score out of 100 | Student experience | Continuation | Graduate prospects | Earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of BristolBristol, England | 100.0 | 83.6% | 100.0% | 69.2% | £31,10022% above the UK average for this subject |
| 2 | Royal College of MusicCollegeEngland | 93.1 | 84.7% | 94.0% | 75.0% | £28,90013% above the UK average for this subject |
| 3 | Edinburgh Napier UniversityEdinburgh, Scotland | 91.4 | 85.6% | 85.8% | 82.7% | £28,90013% above the UK average for this subject |
| 4 | University of ExeterExeter, England | 88.7 | 82.9% | 96.0% | 59.0% | £32,00025% above the UK average for this subject |
| 5 | University of LeedsLeeds, England | 88.4 | 82.9% | 93.0% | 65.9% | £31,20022% above the UK average for this subject |
| 6 | The Royal Academy of MusicCollegeEngland | 87.5 | 84.9% | 92.1% | 82.7% | £25,600In line with the UK average for this subject |
| 7 | Royal Holloway, University of LondonEgham, England | 85.8 | 87.0% | 95.9% | 63.8% | £27,4007% above the UK average for this subject |
| 8 | The Arts Educational SchoolsCollegeEngland | 80.6 | 88.0% | 97.9% | Not published | £24,1006% below the UK average for this subject |
| 9 | University of SurreyGuildford, England | 80.5 | 79.8% | 93.4% | 73.6% | £28,20010% above the UK average for this subject |
| 10 | University of LiverpoolLiverpool, England | 78.0 | 90.7% | 81.7% | 66.2% | £27,4007% above the UK average for this subject |
| 11 | University of ManchesterManchester, England | 77.7 | 83.9% | 90.7% | 62.3% | £28,90013% above the UK average for this subject |
| 12 | Southampton Solent UniversitySouthampton, England | 77.5 | 90.6% | 97.3% | 46.0% | £26,7004% above the UK average for this subject |
| 13 | University of YorkYork, England | 76.2 | 84.6% | 93.9% | 57.6% | £28,0009% above the UK average for this subject |
| 14 | University of EssexColchester, England | 72.4 | 90.1% | 94.3% | 60.1% | £22,70011% below the UK average for this subject |
| 15 | London Contemporary Dance (The Place)CollegeLondon, England | 72.0 | 84.0% | 85.0% | 72.2% | Not published |
| 16 | Guildhall School of Music & DramaCollegeEngland | 71.9 | 79.9% | 91.1% | 71.6% | £26,7004% above the UK average for this subject |
| 17 | London Studio CentreCollegeEngland | 70.5 | 89.5% | 89.0% | 61.0% | £24,2005% below the UK average for this subject |
| 18 | Birmingham City UniversityBirmingham, England | 69.8 | 85.4% | 91.9% | 66.5% | £23,8007% below the UK average for this subject |
| 19 | University of LincolnLincoln, England | 68.4 | 85.3% | 92.6% | 59.8% | £24,9003% below the UK average for this subject |
| 20 | Bath Spa UniversityBath, England | 67.3 | 85.1% | 88.2% | 59.7% | £26,4003% above the UK average for this subject |
| 21 | Royal Northern College of MusicCollegeEngland | 65.6 | 81.3% | 93.5% | 67.0% | £24,1006% below the UK average for this subject |
| 21 | York St John UniversityYork, England | 65.6 | 88.2% | 91.3% | 46.8% | £26,2002% above the UK average for this subject |
| 23 | University of LancashirePreston, England | 64.5 | 93.8% | 90.0% | 43.2% | £24,0006% below the UK average for this subject |
| 24 | Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and DanceCollegeEngland | 62.4 | 80.9% | 87.9% | 72.2% | £24,0006% below the UK average for this subject |
| 25 | Mountview Academy of Theatre ArtsCollegeEngland | 62.2 | 90.3% | 98.0% | 52.2% | £19,90022% below the UK average for this subject |
| 26 | Nottingham Trent UniversityNottingham, England | 62.1 | 85.9% | 85.9% | 46.8% | £28,50011% above the UK average for this subject |
| 27 | Royal Conservatoire of ScotlandCollegeScotland | 61.8 | 80.9% | 92.9% | 66.7% | £23,4008% below the UK average for this subject |
| 28 | University of GloucestershireCheltenham, England | 61.1 | 84.2% | 84.0% | 68.2% | £24,2005% below the UK average for this subject |
| 29 | University of West LondonLondon, England | 60.9 | 84.2% | 82.9% | 56.0% | £27,8009% above the UK average for this subject |
| 30 | UWE BristolBristol, England | 59.7 | 92.6% | 79.4% | 53.3% | £24,5004% below the UK average for this subject |
| 31 | University of the West of ScotlandPaisley, Scotland | 58.5 | 91.7% | 76.6% | 57.8% | £24,5004% below the UK average for this subject |
| 32 | University of WinchesterWinchester, England | 57.7 | 85.7% | 93.8% | 42.4% | £25,3001% below the UK average for this subject |
| 33 | University of ChichesterChichester, England | 57.0 | 82.7% | 88.8% | 52.7% | £26,0002% above the UK average for this subject |
| 33 | University of HuddersfieldHuddersfield, England | 57.0 | 79.5% | 92.7% | 56.9% | £25,3001% below the UK average for this subject |
| 35 | Arts University BournemouthBournemouth and Poole, England | 56.3 | 87.8% | 89.2% | 41.5% | £25,600In line with the UK average for this subject |
| 36 | Royal Welsh College of Music and DramaCollegeCardiff, Wales | 55.9 | 74.9% | 95.5% | 61.2% | Not published |
| 37 | LTE GroupCollegeEngland | 54.0 | 83.9% | 89.5% | Not published | £23,10010% below the UK average for this subject |
| 38 | Queen's University BelfastBelfast, Northern Ireland | 53.1 | 80.3% | 89.5% | 55.0% | Not in LEO data |
| 39 | Rose Bruford College of Theatre and PerformanceCollegeEngland | 51.7 | 80.8% | 91.5% | 56.6% | £23,3009% below the UK average for this subject |
| 40 | The Royal Central School of Speech and DramaCollegeEngland | 50.9 | 73.9% | 91.6% | 57.6% | £26,8005% above the UK average for this subject |
| 41 | The Liverpool Institute for Performing ArtsCollegeLiverpool, England | 50.6 | 76.4% | 89.9% | 55.6% | £26,4003% above the UK average for this subject |
| 42 | University of SalfordSalford, England | 49.4 | 84.5% | 84.5% | 48.7% | £25,1002% below the UK average for this subject |
| 43 | De Montfort UniversityLeicester, England | 49.1 | 89.8% | 85.0% | 34.0% | £25,600In line with the UK average for this subject |
| 44 | Leeds ConservatoireCollegeLeeds, England | 48.8 | 78.1% | 86.8% | 59.5% | Not published |
| 45 | Leeds Beckett UniversityLeeds, England | 48.0 | 77.2% | 82.8% | 57.1% | £27,4007% above the UK average for this subject |
| 46 | University of Wales Trinity Saint DavidSwansea, Wales | 47.4 | 79.4% | 90.2% | 51.7% | £24,5004% below the UK average for this subject |
| 47 | University of South WalesPontypridd, Wales | 45.9 | 79.6% | 84.9% | 62.3% | £23,10010% below the UK average for this subject |
| 48 | Falmouth UniversityFalmouth, England | 45.0 | 88.3% | 85.9% | 35.1% | £24,5004% below the UK average for this subject |
| 49 | Canterbury Christ Church UniversityCanterbury, England | 44.8 | 83.8% | 76.1% | 51.8% | £26,4003% above the UK average for this subject |
| 50 | ICMP ManagementCollegeLondon, England | 44.7 | 78.4% | 80.5% | 65.6% | £24,2005% below the UK average for this subject |
| 51 | University of the Arts, LondonLondon, England | 44.2 | 80.5% | 86.8% | 43.0% | £26,4003% above the UK average for this subject |
| 52 | Manchester Metropolitan UniversityManchester, England | 41.2 | 74.4% | 93.2% | 51.9% | £24,2005% below the UK average for this subject |
| 53 | University of East LondonLondon, England | 39.0 | 85.9% | 78.0% | 46.9% | £23,8007% below the UK average for this subject |
| 54 | Goldsmiths, University of LondonLondon, England | 37.6 | 72.9% | 84.9% | 62.6% | £24,2005% below the UK average for this subject |
| 55 | BIMM UniversityLondon, England | 37.2 | 79.0% | 80.3% | Not published | £25,3001% below the UK average for this subject |
| 56 | University for the Creative ArtsCanterbury, England | 28.2 | 82.8% | 81.2% | 39.8% | £22,70011% below the UK average for this subject |
| 57 | Buckinghamshire New UniversityHigh Wycombe, England | 21.4 | 71.8% | 80.3% | 52.9% | £23,8007% below the UK average for this subject |
| 58 | ACM GuildfordCollegeEngland | 20.8 | 72.4% | 72.5% | 57.8% | £24,9003% below the UK average for this subject |
| 59 | LCCM AU UKCollegeEngland | 0.0 | 74.4% | 52.6% | Not published | £24,5004% below the UK average for this subject |
Sources: National Student Survey 2026, Office for Students (Open Government Licence v3.0), first degree, full-time, by teaching provider; LEO graduate outcomes, tax year 2023-24, Department for Education (Open Government Licence v3.0), median earnings five years after graduating; Discover Uni dataset, 8 September 2026 edition, HESA (CC BY 4.0), continuation and graduate prospects. All sources and licences.
Not enough data (110)
These providers teach performing arts but have fewer than 50 survey responses in the subject or too few published measures to include fairly. This says nothing about their quality. Discover Uni has their course-level data.
Aberystwyth University; Academy of Live Technology; Anglia Ruskin University; Arts University Plymouth; Bangor University; Blackpool and the Fylde College; Bournemouth University; Brighton Academy; Bristol Old Vic Theatre School; Bristol School of Acting; Brunel University London; Cardiff Metropolitan University; Cardiff University; Chichester College Group; City St George's, University of London; Colchester Institute; Collective Acting Studio; Court Theatre Training Company; Coventry University; Dance Box Theatre Works; Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts; Drama Studio London; Durham University; Edge Hill University; Fourth Monkey Actor Training Company; Futureworks Training; Keele University; King's College London; Kingston University; Lamda; Lancaster University; Leeds Arts University; Lincoln Bishop University; Liverpool Hope University; Liverpool John Moores University; Liverpool Media Academy; London Metropolitan University; London South Bank University; Loughborough University; Luminate Education Group; Met Film; Met Film School; Middlesex University; Millennium Performing Arts; Momentum Perfoming Arts Academy; NCG; National Centre for Circus Arts; Newcastle University; Northern School of Contemporary Dance; Northumbria University; Norwich University of the Arts; Nottingham College; Oxford Brookes University; Performance Preperation Academy; Point Blank; Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh; Queen Mary University of London; Royal Academy of Dance; Sheffield Hallam University; Shockout Arts; Slough Borough Council; South Gloucestershire and Stroud College; Spirit SSR; St Mary’s University, Twickenham; Stageworks Productions; Stella Mann College of Performing Arts; TEC Partnership; Teesside University; The Glasgow School of Art; The Northern School of Art; The School of Ballet Theatre UK; UCL (University College London); University College Birmingham; University of Aberdeen; University of Bedfordshire; University of Birmingham; University of Cambridge; University of Chester; University of Cumbria; University of Derby; University of East Anglia; University of Edinburgh; University of Glasgow; University of Greater Manchester; University of Greenwich; University of Hertfordshire; University of Hull; University of Kent; University of Northampton; University of Nottingham; University of Oxford; University of Plymouth; University of Portsmouth; University of Reading; University of Roehampton; University of Sheffield; University of Southampton; University of St Mark & St John; University of Staffordshire; University of Sunderland; University of Sussex; University of Warwick; University of Westminster; University of Wolverhampton; University of Worcester; University of the Highlands and Islands; WaterBear Education; Weston College of Further and Higher Education; Wilkes Academy; dBs Music Holdings
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Quick answers
Which universities have the highest student satisfaction for performing arts?
In the 2026 National Student Survey, the highest average positive scores for performing arts among providers with at least 50 responses were University of Lancashire (93.8%), UWE Bristol (92.6%), University of the West of Scotland (91.7%), University of Liverpool (90.7%), Southampton Solent University (90.6%). This is one measure; the full table also shows graduate earnings.
How much do performing arts graduates earn?
Across UK providers, the typical (median) earnings of performing arts graduates five years after graduating were £25,600 in the 2023-24 tax year, according to the Department for Education's LEO data. Earnings vary a lot by university, region and job.
How is this performing arts table put together?
It uses only official data: the National Student Survey 2026, Discover Uni and LEO earnings. We do not copy commercial league tables. Universities with too little data are listed as not enough data rather than guessed.