RGU among the best in UK for graduate career prospects

The Guardian University Guide 2025 has placed RGU first in Scotland and in the UK’s top 10 for assessment satisfaction while the University has improved its position on the career prospects measure as well being placed inside the UK’s top 20 for satisfaction in teaching.  

There was success in individual courses too with Physiotherapy marked overall first in the UK. Pharmacy and Pharmacology was also ranked first in Scotland and in the UK’s top 10 with Children’s Nursing, Fine Art, Construction, Surveying and planning second in Scotland. 

In relation to employability and career prospects, RGU ranked top in Scotland and the UK in Midwifery; Physiotherapy; Electrical and Electronic Engineering; and Construction, Surveying and Planning.  

Other subject specific highlights include Physiotherapy being graded first in the UK for assessment satisfaction with Children’s Nursing; General Nursing; Pharmacy and Pharmacology; Computer Science; Business and Management; Media and Film Studies; Fine Art; Product Design; and Construction, Surveying and Planning rated first in Scotland.

Physiotherapy was rated second in the UK for teaching satisfaction with Pharmacy and Pharmacology; Forensic Science; Computer Science; Hospitality; Fine Art; Product Design; and Construction, Surveying and Planning number one in Scotland for the same measure. Overall, RGU has risen three places in the Guardian University Guide. 

Renowned for its impressive graduate employability prospects, the Daily Mail University Guide 2025 has also placed RGU second in Scotland and eighth in the UK for careers on track in a measure based on the views of graduates and whether they felt that their early-stage careers were on track and in line with their expectations.

RGU also featured third in Scotland for both teaching excellence and student support, as well as fourth in Scotland for high-skilled jobs.

There was again considerable success at subject level too with Counselling, Psychotherapy and Occupational Therapy; Media Studies; Nursing and Midwifery; Art; and Architecture, building and planning; all ranking first in Scotland and in the UK's top 10.

Pharmacy was also in the UK top ten while Electrical and Electronic Engineering; Social Work; Tourism, Transport and Travel; Nutrition and Dietetics; Physiotherapy; and Design Studies ranked in the top 20 of the UK. In all, 60% of subjects taught by RGU were placed in the top 20 in the UK.

Professor Steve Olivier, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Robert Gordon University said: “RGU is rightly known for its graduate employability and these latest rankings illustrate why. We are in the top 10 in the UK for graduates being on track upon leaving the University which is both outstanding and testament to our strategy to create global citizens through our relevant and engaging curriculum. 

“The subject specific rankings again show the varied expertise that we possess at the University, of which I am very proud of. This marks a positive start to the 2024/25 academic year as we prepare to welcome new and returning students to RGU from across the world.”

In the guide, Alastair McCall, editor of the Daily Mail University Guide, said: “If you want a University with eminently attainable Higher grade requirements that offers students outstanding career prospects, look no further.

“Around four in five graduates are in high-skilled jobs within 15 months of leaving, having taken courses that have optional or compulsory placement years that can introduce students to their future employers.”

Of the 129 universities featured in the league table, RGU is joint 23rd for teaching excellence and 24th for high skilled jobs in the UK. Furthermore, the University moved up five places overall.

The Daily Mail University Guide first published last year and is made up of 12 performance indicators. These cover student satisfaction with teaching quality, support and their wider university experience, graduate jobs outcomes and salaries, research quality and income, degree outcomes, student progression, entry standards and a measure of universities’ commitment to social mobility, measured through the proportion of first-generation students registered. 

This builds on RGU’s success in the Complete University Guide 2025 with four different areas ranked inside the UK’s top 10 and positive placings in student satisfaction and both graduate prospect measures across a wide range of subjects.