The highest-ranking universities for 2021, according to The Good Universities Guide
Independent university rankings remain important for prospective students when choosing where to study, with good rankings are often being associated with quality education.
The Good Universities Guide is Australia's most trusted resource on higher education. For over 20 years, it’s been a point of reference for students wanting to make well-informed choices when it comes to the right course, the right provider and ultimately the right career for them.
The 2021 ratings have officially landed, providing a series of rankings and insights on Australian universities, to assist in the decision-making process when deciding where to study.
These performance ratings and rankings are created using a combination of resources provided by the Department of Education, Skills & Employment, and graduate and student experience surveys in Australia.
The 13 rating types are grouped under three broad categories: Characteristics, The Educational Experience and Graduate Outcomes. In the table below, we’ve listed the university that ranked highest in each rating category.
Characteristics
| Rating Type | Definition | Top University (undergraduate) | |
| Social equity | The proportion of domestic students enrolling at each university from low socioeconomic or disadvantaged backgrounds | CQ University Australia – 40% | |
| Student Demand | Where high-achieving students choose to study — compares the proportion of commencing students with high ATAR scores at each university | University of Queensland — Low: 0 Medium: 65 High: 35 | |
| Student – Teacher Ratio | The number of students per teaching staff member |
|
|
| First Generation | The proportion of domestic students commencing a bachelor degree whose parents’ education is known and did not exceed Year 12 |
|
|
| Staff Qualification | The proportion of staff who hold a masters or doctoral degree | Australian National University — 90% |
The Educational Experience
| Rating Type | Definition | Top University (Undergraduate) | |
| Learner Engagement | The proportion of students who felt they were engaged with learning in their institution | Bond University — 84% | |
| Overall Experience | The proportion of students who were satisfied with the overall quality of their educational experience | The University of Notre Dame Australia — 88% | |
| Skills Development | The proportion of students who were satisfied with the skill development they experienced through their studies | Bond University — 91% | |
| Student Support | The proportion of students who were satisfied with the support they received from their institution | Bond University — 90% | |
| Learning Resources | The proportion of students who were satisfied with the learning resources provided by their institution |
|
|
| Teaching Quality | The proportion of students who were satisfied with the quality of teaching they experienced | The University of Notre Dame Australia — 90% |
Graduate Outcomes
| Rating Type | Definition | Top University (undergraduate) |
| Graduate Salary | The median salary of graduates from different universities | University of Tasmania — $67,600 |
| Full time Employment | The employment rates of graduates from different universities | Charles Sturt University — 87% |
Head to the Ratings tab on The Good Universities Guide website to view the most recent ratings across all categories — you can also filter by subject, level of study (undergraduate or postgraduate) or state.
Further reading