1. Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences
  2. School of Computer Science
  3. Research and innovation
  4. Our reputation

Our reputation

Student study zone 3

In 1957, the University of Leeds was one of the first universities in the UK to buy a computer. This was a revolutionary development in university science and engineering, and the springboard for academic computer science in the university. Today, the School of Computer Science has a global reputation for its teaching and research with over 1500 students from over 55 countries studying with us. 

The quality of our research, and the funding it attracts, means we’re able to invest in world-class facilities and academic staff who are actively engaged in cutting-edge research, which means you will be taught by internationally renowned, inspirational academics working at the top of their fields.

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Academic excellence

  • The University of Leeds is ranked 82nd in the world, QS World University Rankings 2025
  • University of Leeds students are among the top 5 most targeted by top employers according to The Graduate Market 2024, High Fliers Research
  • We are a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities
  • 99% of the submitted computing research activity is rated as either “world-leading” or “internationally excellent”, with 63% rated as “world-leading”, Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021

Gender equality

We have been commended for our strong and continued commitment to gender equality in the form of a prestigious Athena SWAN Silver award.

Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021

Every six years, the UK’s four higher education funding bodies undertake an exercise to measure the quality of research undertaken by UK higher education institutions (HEIs). The funding bodies use the outcomes to inform the allocation of their research funding to HEIs. The Research Excellence Framework was the framework used in 2021.

Unit of assessment: Computer Science and Informatics

  • 3.62 overall quality profile
  • 99% of the submitted computing research activity is rated as either “world-leading” or “internationally excellent”, with 63% rated as “world-leading”
  • 83% of our impact case studies classified as “world-leading” and all the others as “internationally excellent”
  • Leading two UKRI Centres for Doctoral Training in Medicine and AI, and Fluid Dynamics, each producing 10 PhD students a year
  • Joint 9th on Grade Point Average (GPA) – Times Higher Education – GPA is a simple measure of the overall or average quality of research