Royal College of Art celebrates 10th consecutive year as the world’s leading university for art and design

The Royal College of Art (RCA) in London has been ranked the number 1 university for art & design internationally for the 10th year in a row, according to the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 – the largest world-wide survey of academic and industry opinion, with other UK institutions also being highly ranked.

The latest results demonstrate the College’s reputation with an overall score of 98.5.

As with previous years, University of the Arts London takes up the second place in the Art and Design rankings, with both UK institutions ahead of major international universities including Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rhode Island School of Design and Parsons School of Design in the US, and European institutions such as Aalto University in Finland and Politecnico di Milano in Italy. Meanwhile, the Royal College of Music is named number 1 in the Performing Arts rankings.

Professor Christoph Lindner, President and Vice-Chancellor of the Royal College of Art, said:

“To reach the milestone of 10 years as the world’s top art and design university is such a significant achievement. It is a testament to the incredible talent of the RCA’s community, and to the vibrancy of creative practice in London and the UK. The combination of leading universities, a diverse cultural ecosystem, and thriving creative industries attracts talent from around the world and continues to drive innovation and encourage new approaches to global challenges.”

Sir Jony Ive, Chancellor of the Royal College of Art commented:

“We are proud that the Royal College of Art has been recognised as the world’s best art and design university for the tenth year running. The RCA excels based upon a determined effort to constantly evolve. I believe that as we face substantial global challenges, art and design has a particular relevance and value. The world needs curious, creative and collaborative individuals.”

Sir Peter Bazalgette, RCA Pro-Chancellor and Chair, said:

“The RCA’s influence reaches deep into the creative industries and far beyond. Its status as the world’s number one art and design university over the last ten years builds on nearly 200 years of excellence across art, design, architecture and communication. This achievement stands as a testament to the UK’s valuable creative industries. Not only are they the bedrock of the country’s soft power, they also attract incredible interest, investment and talent from around the globe to power a significant part of our economy.”

The UK’s strength in creative higher education directly feeds into the country’s reputation as a leader for its innovative creative industries and as a global destination for culture, and supports the UK’s creative economy, which contributes £126 billion annually in GVA and employs over 2.4 million people.