With its easy-breezy outdoorsy lifestyle and hyper-Instagrammable coastline, Sydney is something of a dream location for students. The Harbour City is home to more than 22 higher education institutions, including our most famous – the University of Sydney – recently ranked as the most picturesque in the country. Now, the latest annual rankings from esteemed higher education experts have been revealed, and Sydney came in as the sixth best city for students in the world.
The results come from QS Top Universities, a prestigious ranking body from higher education analytics firm Quacquarelli Symonds. The top cities were ranked on factors considered most important to international students, like affordability, employment opportunities, diversity, university quality and student feedback. One-hundred-and-fifty cities were surveyed, so it's quite an impressive achievement to crack the top six in the world.
Sydney scored its high ranking thanks to a number of factors, including “student mix” (the diversity and inclusivity of the student community) and “desirability” – which refers to the quality of life that the Harbour City offers (or, at least, is seen to offer by prospective students).
Student life in Sydney is so coveted that the city ranked as the fourth most desirable location in the world for international students. Sydney’s relatively stable job market and economy is also a reason for our high ranking.
Where we fell down is, unsurprisingly, in the affordability department – with the combo of the cost of living crisis and high international student tuition fees meaning Sydney ranked at 130 on the affordability rating (read: not affordable). It's no wonder that recent data from the Australian Taxation Office revealed that the two poorest postcodes in Australia (according to income) are those dominated by student populations within NSW.
So which cities beat us for the top spots? London was crowned as the best city in the world for students, due to its high number of quality universities, large international community and employment opportunities. But once again, its major let-down was a lack of affordability. In second place was Tokyo, followed by Seoul and Munich. Melbourne pipped us to the post, coming in at fifth place as Australia's best city for students.
These are the ten best cities for students in the world:
- London, UK
- Tokyo, Japan
- Seoul, South Korea
- Munich, Germany
- Melbourne, Australia
- Sydney, Australia
- Paris, France
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Berlin, Germany
- Montreal, Canada
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