Edinburgh Napier University vs The University of Edinburgh vs Heriot-Watt University - HW vs Queen Margaret University - QMU vs Edinburgh Business School

Side-by-side comparison from 416 verified student reviews. Scan one row at a time — winners are highlighted

Quick verdict
Higher overall rating: Tie
Edinburgh Napier University: wins 0/0 categories
The University of Edinburgh: wins 0/0 categories
Heriot-Watt University - HW: wins 0/0 categories
Queen Margaret University - QMU: wins 0/0 categories
Edinburgh Business School: wins 0/0 categories
General Assembly: wins 0/0 categories
Creative Design School: wins 0/0 categories
Comparing
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
4.20
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48 reviews
×
Best programme: Business Management
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
4.30
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129 reviews
×
Best programme: Computer Science
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
4.00
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210 reviews
×
Best programme: Accounting and Finance
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
4.20
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15 reviews
×
Best programme: BSc Psychology
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
5.00
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1 reviews
×
Best programme: Business Administration
New York City, United States
5.00
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1 reviews
×
Best programme: Marketing
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
5.00
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12 reviews
×
Best programme: Graphic Design
Category ratings
Facilities
4.33
4.33
3.86
3.77
4.00
5.00
5.00
Location
4.20
4.79
3.46
3.87
5.00
5.00
5.00
Professors
4.17
4.22
4.09
3.98
5.00
4.00
5.00
Internationality
4.17
4.53
3.78
4.07
5.00
3.00
5.00
Student life
4.20
4.44
3.79
3.69
4.00
5.00
5.00
Value
4.05
4.02
3.85
3.99
5.00
4.00
5.00
Accommodation
3.65
3.86
3.61
4.10
3.00
5.00
5.00
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • +Supportive faculty and well-structured, practical, career-focused programs
  • +Beautiful and enjoyable campus environment with good accommodation
  • +Strong industry links and job market relevance
  • +Excellent faculty dedication and engaging teaching.
  • +Diverse and inclusive community with numerous opportunities.
  • +High-quality facilities and resources for study.
  • +Practical, employability-focused courses
  • +Supportive and accessible staff
  • +Welcoming and accommodating environment
  • +Integrated social justice and ethical focus in curriculum
  • +Supportive and knowledgeable staff dedicated to student success
  • +Practical, well-structured programmes with modern facilities
  • +Practical business knowledge focus
  • +Accessible, self-study friendly modules
  • +Flexible distance learning and networking
  • +Knowledgeable, supportive professors
  • +Abundant study resources and learning activities
  • +Networking opportunities
  • +Flexible scheduling and ability to tailor projects
  • +Comprehensive content and portfolio building
  • +Personalized one-to-one tutor support and mentorship
Cons
  • -Unapproachable, neglectful, and even bullying lecturers
  • -Administrative and management issues
  • -Outdated facilities
  • -Administrative and management issues lead to a subpar student experience.
  • -Outdated facilities and limited diversity are significant drawbacks.
  • -Lack of meaningful academic support and engaging teaching.
  • -Inadequate facilities and resources, particularly for practical learning and career development.
  • -Poor administrative and management issues leading to disorganization and staff disrespect.
  • -Administrative and management issues cause confusion and frustration.
  • -Outdated facilities and a lack of necessary resources hinder learning.
  • -Poor communication and unresponsiveness from staff create a negative experience.
  • -Administrative and management issues cause significant frustration.
  • -Outdated facilities and resources detract from the learning experience.
  • -Lack of clear communication and support creates uncertainty.
  • -Outdated facilities and resources.
  • -Poor communication and administrative issues.
  • -Lack of practical application and relevant curriculum.
  • -Outdated facilities and poor maintenance are common complaints.
  • -Excessive and confusing administrative processes cause frustration.
  • -Lack of resources and limited support for students are frequently mentioned.
Rating summary
What students say

With excellent scores across several key areas, this institution particularly shines in its **Facilities**, receiving a high mark of 4.325. **Professors** and **Internationality** are also well-regarded, both scoring 4.17. The university's **Accomodation** stands out as its lowest-rated category at 3.65, though it still represents a satisfactory average. **Value** and **Student Life** also received strong scores above 4.0.

This institution garners exceptional marks, with Location standing out as its strongest asset at 4.79. Student Life and Internationality also receive high praise. Conversely, Accomodation presents the weakest area, scoring 3.86, indicating room for improvement. Ratings for Facilities, Professors, and Value fall within a generally positive range, suggesting a well-rounded academic environment.

Academic and student life aspects of the university are generally well-regarded. Professors receive the highest rating at 4.09, indicating a strong area. Conversely, location scores the lowest at 3.46, suggesting it's the weakest point. Other areas like facilities, student life, accommodation, internationality, and value all fall within a moderate to good range.

Across several key areas, this university demonstrates a generally positive reception. Accommodation stands out as its strongest point, receiving a near-perfect score. Conversely, student life is rated the lowest among the surveyed categories. Professors and value are also highly regarded, alongside internationality. Location and facilities show solid, mid-range performance.

This institution garners strong marks, particularly excelling in its **Professors, Location, Internationality, and Value**, all receiving perfect scores. Facilities and Student Life are also well-regarded with solid ratings. The weakest area identified is **Accomodation**, which received a moderate rating. Overall, the university presents a very attractive package, especially for those prioritizing faculty quality, geographic convenience, global engagement, and cost-effectiveness.

Overall, this institution garners strong commendations, particularly excelling in its facilities, location, student life, and accommodation, all receiving perfect scores. Professors and perceived value also score well, indicating solid academic and financial offerings. The weakest area identified is internationality, suggesting room for growth in attracting and supporting a global student body.

This institution garners universal praise, achieving perfect scores across all evaluated aspects. Its facilities, professors, location, student life, accommodation, internationality, and overall value are all rated a perfect 5 out of 5. This indicates exceptional strength in every area with no identified weaknesses, presenting a comprehensively outstanding university experience.

Reviews summary
Highlights

Approximately 98% of reviews are positive, highlighting a beautiful campus, supportive lecturers, and career-focused courses. One negative review expressed concerns about unapproachable and neglectful lecturers.

With a 4.31 average rating from 130 reviews, ~85% of feedback is positive. Students praise excellent faculty, facilities, and academic programs. Minor negative feedback (~0.8%) mentions cost and limited diversity.

Nearly 74% of reviews are positive, praising employability skills, good professors, and accommodating staff. A small ~1.9% of feedback is negative, citing lack of teaching support and confusion regarding course material.

With an average rating of 4.19/5 and 14 out of 16 reviews being positive (~88%), students praise supportive and knowledgeable staff, relevant and engaging content, and a focus on social justice and well-being. Minimal negative feedback was noted.

With a 5/5 average rating from one review, student feedback is overwhelmingly positive (~100%). Positive aspects include appreciating practical business knowledge and well-developed modules suitable for self-study and distance learning. No negative feedback was recorded.

With a single review, this university is rated a perfect 5/5. The student highlighted excellent professors and abundant study resources. No negative feedback was received.

All 12 reviews are positive, with students praising flexibility, one-to-one tutor support, and portfolio development. The average rating is 5/5.

Rating distribution
5★
33%
47%
27%
33%
100%
100%
100%
4★
54%
38%
51%
60%
0%
0%
0%
3★
10%
15%
20%
13%
0%
0%
0%
2★
0%
1%
1%
0%
0%
0%
0%
1★
2%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
Most useful review
Most liked
Undergraduate Law

This university is welcoming and continually helpful by staff and pupils. I would recommend this university to new students. The law degree I am currently studying is exactly what I expected and is also very enjoyable.

Great support from personal tutor and supervisor!

Overall the university is good, they have an easy way to apply for extensions on coursework, and special circumstances, which my personal tutor was more than happy to help with, she really was the best. My supervisor for my dissertation was also really supportive and helped through the challenging times. The lecturers are usually helpful if you are stuck, but there were some who would do the bare minimum for the students.

The campus

Love Heriot Watt! I’ve been studying in the Dubai campus and I’ve now transferred to the Edinburgh one and it’s amazing! The campus has many useful facilities and there always creative events taking place for students to interact.

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A Gateway to Graphic Design

Creative Design School (CDS) could not have been a more perfect fit for my plan to embark on a career change to graphic design. The key factors that lead to me enrolling on their Graphic Design Level 2 course was the flexibility of the course (allowing me to work full-time whilst studying), the reasonable course fee and a friendly, no-pressure Skype with the school to explain my situation and see if this would work for me. The course covers the key principles of graphic design and each module presents real-life scenario tasks that build up your portfolio while learning at the same time. I've surprised myself at how my skills have developed as I complete each module. The real bonus to studying with CDS is the amazing 1-to-1 tuition. My tutor, Pete, is always on hand to help, support and encourage me to push my creative boundaries. Having dedicated, personal tuition from someone with such knowledge of the industry is priceless. I would highly recommend this course and studying with CDS in general. I've enjoyed and gained so much from this course that I've already signed up to the Visual Communications course.

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