Imperial College London vs London School of Economics and Political Science - LSE vs Heriot-Watt University - HW vs University of the West of Scotland - UWS vs University of Derby - UoD

Side-by-side comparison from 909 verified student reviews. Scan one row at a time — winners are highlighted

Quick verdict
Higher overall rating: Le Cordon Bleu Paris (4.70)
Imperial College London: wins 0/7 categories
London School of Economics and Political Science - LSE: wins 2/7 categories
Heriot-Watt University - HW: wins 0/7 categories
University of the West of Scotland - UWS: wins 0/7 categories
University of Derby - UoD: wins 2/7 categories
University of Brighton - UoB: wins 1/7 categories
Le Cordon Bleu Paris: wins 2/7 categories
Comparing
London, The United Kingdom
4.30
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244 reviews
×
Best programme: Medicine
Best programme: Economics
Edinburgh, The United Kingdom
4.00
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208 reviews
×
Best programme: Accounting and Finance
Best programme: Human Resource Management
Derby, The United Kingdom
4.40
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34 reviews
×
Best programme: Computer Engineering and Computer Science
Brighton, The United Kingdom
3.90
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59 reviews
×
Best programme: Accounting
4.70
Top
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9 reviews
×
Best programme: Culinary Arts
Category ratings
Facilities
4.37
4.04
3.87
4.16
4.32
4.10
4.56
Win
Location
4.64
4.78
Win
3.45
3.84
4.21
4.36
4.78
Professors
4.34
4.26
4.09
4.42
4.30
4.11
4.67
Win
Internationality
4.70
4.80
Win
3.78
4.29
4.21
3.86
4.67
Student life
3.97
3.63
3.80
3.48
4.03
4.33
Win
4.00
Value
4.16
4.04
3.85
4.10
4.21
Win
3.82
4.00
Accommodation
3.98
3.78
3.61
3.40
4.03
Win
3.74
3.22
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • +Excellent academics and research, with supportive and professional professors
  • +Strong focus on skills development and valuable career/networking opportunities
  • +Vibrant campus life with diverse societies and central London location
  • +Expert and experienced faculty
  • +Supportive and collaborative community atmosphere
  • +Diverse and flexible learning and assessment methods
  • +Supportive and approachable staff and technical teams
  • +Valuable and recognized academic programmes with international recognition
  • +Opportunities for personal and professional growth through projects and societies
  • +Supportive, knowledgeable, and accessible faculty
  • +Engaging, innovative, and comprehensive course content
  • +Vibrant campus life and diverse student community
  • +Excellent lecturers and quality education
  • +Strong student support and feeling heard
  • +Modern facilities and practical, employability-focused learning
  • +Engaging and supportive faculty
  • +Rich student experience and personal growth
  • +Abundant resources and extracurriculars
  • +exceptional quality of teaching and knowledgeable, approachable instructors
  • +strong emphasis on precision, quality, and professional skill development
  • +welcoming environment and supportive alumni network
Cons
  • -Administrative and management issues
  • -Outdated facilities
  • -Poor teaching quality and lack of structure in academic programs.
  • -Inadequate support services and limited social opportunities.
  • -High fees with perceived low value and administrative issues.
  • -Poor teaching quality and lack of academic support result in unhelpful education.
  • -Insufficient or outdated facilities hinder learning and career development opportunities.
  • -Administrative issues and lack of clear direction create a confusing and negative experience.
  • -Lack of academic and administrative support.
  • -Ineffective teaching and unclear assignment guidance.
  • -Insufficient time for major projects.
  • -Inconsistent teaching quality and lecturer availability, including frequent reliance on pre-recorded materials.
  • -Misleading course promises and unexpected shifts to online learning.
  • -Poor academic support and teaching quality.
  • -Disappointing course content and relevance.
  • -Unwelcoming environment and difficult social integration.
  • -Administrative and management issues cause significant frustration.
  • -Outdated facilities and technology hinder the learning experience.
  • -Lack of career support and industry relevance leads to dissatisfaction.
Rating summary
What students say

This university receives its highest accolades for Internationality, scoring an impressive 4.70. Location is also a significant strength, with a rating of 4.64. Conversely, Student Life and Accomodation present areas for potential improvement, both scoring just under 4.0. Other aspects like Facilities, Professors, and Value are rated solidly in the mid-4s.

Perceived strengths of this institution lie significantly in its **Location** and **Internationality**, both receiving top marks. Conversely, **Student Life** emerges as the area with the lowest reported satisfaction. Ratings for Facilities, Professors, Accomodation, and Value fall within a moderate to good range, indicating generally positive feedback across these aspects.

A comprehensive assessment reveals a university with generally positive feedback. Professors are a standout strength, earning the highest score. In contrast, the location received the lowest rating among the surveyed aspects. Other areas like facilities, student life, internationality, and value also scored well, demonstrating a solid overall performance. Accommodations also received a respectable, though not top-tier, evaluation.

Demonstrating robust strengths in key areas, this university excels with particularly high marks for its professors and internationality. Facilities and value are also well-regarded. Conversely, student life and accommodation present as areas for potential improvement, receiving the lowest scores. Location also shows room for enhancement.

With most categories scoring well above 4.0, this university demonstrates robust strengths, particularly in **Facilities** (4.32), closely followed by **Professors** (4.30). **Location**, **Internationality**, and **Value** also received consistently high marks at 4.21. The areas with the most room for improvement, though still rated positively, are **Student Life** and **Accomodation**, both hovering around the 4.03 mark.

This institution demonstrates considerable strengths, particularly in its **location** and **student life**, both scoring above 4.3. **Facilities** and **professors** also receive strong marks around 4.1. However, **accommodation** stands out as the weakest area, receiving a rating of 3.74. **Internationality** and **value** are mid-range at approximately 3.86 and 3.82 respectively, indicating areas for potential improvement.

This institution receives high marks for its Location, scoring 4.78, and for its Professors and Internationality, both at 4.67. Facilities also rate well at 4.56. Student Life and Value are both solid at 4.00. The weakest area is Accomodation, which received a rating of 3.22.

Reviews summary
Highlights

With an average rating of 4.32/5 from 244 reviews, ~99.6% of feedback is positive. Students praise top-tier research, excellent lecturers, and extensive resources. One review found the campus small.

Most reviews (~74%) are positive, praising academic reputation, expert faculty, and excellent resources. A small percentage (~3.4%) express dissatisfaction with lecturing quality, course structure, or career services.

Approximately 74% of reviews are positive, highlighting good professors, valuable learning, and supportive staff. A small ~1.9% of feedback mentions a lack of course support and teaching, or career/internship opportunities.

Approximately 74% of reviews are positive, highlighting valuable courses, supportive faculty, and a lively student environment. A single negative review mentioned a lack of course support and unhelpful lecturers.

Most reviews (around 91%) are highly positive, praising incredible lecturers, top-notch facilities, and strong support. A small percentage (around 3%) mentioned issues like inconsistent grading or lecturers not showing up.

~74% of reviews are positive, highlighting excellent teaching quality, faculty dedication, and student experience. A small portion (~8.5%) of feedback mentioned poor academic support and course content.

All 9 reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.67/5. Students highlight exceptional teaching quality and knowledgeable instructors, along with impeccable facilities. The curriculum and emphasis on precision are frequently praised.

Rating distribution
5★
42%
34%
26%
39%
56%
36%
67%
4★
49%
44%
51%
36%
32%
31%
33%
3★
9%
19%
21%
21%
9%
25%
0%
2★
0%
2%
1%
3%
3%
7%
0%
1★
0%
1%
0%
0%
0%
2%
0%
Most useful review
Most liked
Diversify University

The University included different subjects which suitable for different person. Professors are nice and professional. When You have any questions, they are always ready to help and discuss with you. You can enjoy the study environment, the facilities in campus is in very good condition.

Great Experience

LSE is a great place to create life-long connections and friends. There's a certain sense of community that is special to the university. The staff are hands-on and approachable. The facilities are modern and well-equipped.

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.

More programme coordination

The lecturers in my programme are quite helpful. Would recommend they infuse some kind of practice or practicality into the program. A little bit of programme coordination, and more interaction with peers should be incorporated.

Derby is Lovely

Derby is amazing, they are super organized and is great with communication. They ensure that all their students feel heard, safe, and involved in everything. I'm in my second year, and I have no complaints thus far.

Working while studying

Studying at the University of Brighton allows me to flexiblility of working and studying at the same time - so I don't have to chose between the two. As the course I'm studying is also online, this allows me to keep up with my social life and job in my home town while enjoying the range of oppounities Brighton has to offer.

Student in 2013

I really enjoyed my time at LCB! I've found that my skills when I entered the work force were much higher than others. I think though there was a big portion missing in recipe development and composition. True- we did learn it through memorizing the recipes, but we really were missing classes on how different ingredients affect the final textures.. how you can change them... etc. That I still am not an expert in .. and I create recipes! Ouf! Also, I don't know if you still do a month of sugar work... but that really wasn't necessary and should be either cut or minimized to just 2 lessons. It's such a niche skill to know that I would have really preferred more technical skills. I loved the old location. The "rumors" I'm getting about the new location are that it's not as good, unfortunately - that i's become more of a money focused/marketing machine. I really hope that this image can be fixed as I love LCB and enjoyed my time there! Oh also - there should be more help for students to get jobs and featuring old students accomplishments - from cookbook launches to new bakeries so that current and old students can support them.

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