Best universities for primary teaching

University of Edinburgh comes top for primary teaching, with a median salary of £38k 15 months after graduating and 93% of students staying on the course. University of Aberdeen, Liverpool John Moores University and University of Hertfordshire complete the top four.

56 unis ranked£31.5k typical early salary87% in graduate jobs

#1 for primary teaching100

University of Edinburgh

Satisfaction92%better than 80% of primary teaching unis
Stay on course93%better than 73% of primary teaching unis
Graduate jobs95%better than 81% of primary teaching unis
Early salary£38kbetter than 90% of primary teaching unis

Half of students who started had more than 173 UCAS points, counting all their qualifications

Ranked 2 to 5

2University of Aberdeen8691% satisfied, £39k salary
3Liverpool John Moores University8290% satisfied
4University of Hertfordshire8092% satisfied, £31k salary
5University of Reading7591% satisfied, £32k salary

Scores are out of 100 and relative to other unis offering primary teaching. Data: Discover Uni, September 2026.

Will my grades get me in?

Enter your predicted grades to see which primary teaching courses you’d meet the offer for, where you’re a good match and which are a stretch.

We use each university’s typical offer from its course pages. Where we couldn’t get it, we show an estimated offer (marked ~) worked out from courses whose students had similar grades, so always check the course page. Your grades stay on this device. Jump to the table

Best for…

Happiest studentsWrexham University98%positive about their course
Highest early salaryUniversity of Glasgow£40kmedian, 15 months after graduating
Best for graduate jobsUniversity of Wolverhampton100%of working graduates in professional jobs
Best if you’re aiming below ABBUniversity of Reading75/100half of starters had under 125 UCAS points

Full primary teaching ranking

Tap a column to sort. Bars show where each uni sits between the lowest and highest for primary teaching. ^* Ranked on fewer than five measures because some data isn’t published. ~ estimate = we couldn’t get the university’s own offer, so it’s estimated from similar courses. Check the course page.

Find a university

Region Fits my grades Placement year Year abroad Foundation year

	University
1	University of Edinburgh2 courses	–	100	92%	93%	95%	£38k	173
2	University of Aberdeen1 course	BBC	86	91%	96%	85%	£39k	161
3	Liverpool John Moores University^*1 course	ABB–BBB	82	90%	97%	–	–	141
4	University of Hertfordshire1 course	BBB–BBC	80	92%	90%	95%	£31k	134
5	University of Reading5 courses	BBB	75	91%	91%	90%	£32k	125
6	Birmingham City University2 courses	BBC	74	90%	94%	89%	£31k	124
7	Teesside University^*1 course	104–120 UCAS points	74	95%	95%	–	–	122
8	University of Chichester2 courses	BCC	73	91%	89%	95%	£31.5k	119
9	University of Bedfordshire2 courses	112 UCAS points	72	97%	84%	97%	£32k	106
10	University of Wolverhampton1 course	~ABB–BBCestimate	71	89%	86%	100%	£32k	118
11	University of Derby2 courses	BBB	71	87%	97%	87%	£31k	126
12	University of Winchester1 course	BBB–BBC	71	88%	93%	89%	£32k	123
13	University of Brighton2 courses	BBB–CCC	69	92%	85%	92%	£32k	122
14	University of Strathclyde1 course	ABB–BBB	68	93%	89%	80%	£32k	194
15	University of Huddersfield1 course	BBB	68	82%	90%	95%	£30k	144
16	University of Glasgow2 courses	CCC+ others	67	76%	92%	85%	£40k	190
16	University of Stirling6 courses	BBB	67	80%	90%	87%	£40k	180
18	University of East London1 course	112 UCAS points	66	96%	85%	95%	£32k	118
19	Manchester Metropolitan University1 course	120 UCAS points	66	91%	88%	84%	£31.5k	137
20	St Mary's University, Twickenham2 courses	112 UCAS points	66	89%	89%	94%	£33k	106
21	York St John University4 courses	120 UCAS points	66	85%	92%	91%	£31.5k	125
22	Durham University2 courses	128 UCAS points	64	81%	90%	91%	£31.5k	137
23	Anglia Ruskin University^*1 course	104–120 UCAS points	63	92%	85%	–	–	130
24	St Mary's University College^*2 courses	~AAA–ABBestimate	63	79%	98%	–	–	143
25	Birmingham Newman University1 course	~ABB–BBCestimate	62	89%	94%	85%	£31k	123
26	Cardiff Metropolitan University^*2 courses	BCC	62	88%	92%	–	–	124
27	Edge Hill University3 courses	BBB–BBC	60	89%	90%	86%	£31k	122
28	Bradford College^*1 course	96 UCAS points	60	93%	85%	–	–	122
29	Lincoln Bishop University3 courses	96 UCAS points	60	89%	95%	82%	£31k	115
30	Liverpool Hope University^*2 courses	BBB	59	94%	93%	60%	–	117
31	UWE, Bristol1 course	112 UCAS points	59	90%	89%	87%	£31k	120
32	Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh^*1 course	BBC	58	87%	93%	–	–	171
33	University of Northampton1 course	BBC	57	89%	88%	85%	£32k	122
34	University of Worcester2 courses	BBC	55	93%	86%	84%	£31k	120
35	Middlesex University^*1 course	BBC	54	84%	95%	–	–	116
36	Canterbury Christ Church University1 course	BBC	52	90%	86%	89%	£31k	114
37	University of Staffordshire^*1 course	BBC	51	85%	85%	–	–	129
38	Plymouth Marjon University2 courses	BBB–BCC	50	91%	83%	82%	£31.5k	124
39	Sheffield Hallam University2 courses	BBB	49	87%	88%	82%	£31.5k	129
40	University of Northumbria at Newcastle^*1 course	96–112 UCAS points	48	85%	87%	–	–	124
41	Oxford Brookes University1 course	BBC	47	80%	89%	95%	£30k	116
42	University of Cumbria2 courses	BBB–BBC	46	86%	85%	90%	£30k	120
43	University of Gloucestershire3 courses	BBC	43	83%	80%	91%	£31.5k	126
44	University of Greenwich (Part of London and South East University Group)^*2 courses	~ABB–BBCestimate	42	88%	83%	–	–	115
45	Stranmillis University College1 course	AAB	40	70%	95%	87%	£30k	147
46	University of Chester^*2 courses	BBB–BBC	40	79%	90%	–	–	123
47	Leeds Beckett University2 courses	120 UCAS points	39	86%	93%	78%	£30k	120
48	Roehampton University^*2 courses	~BBB–BBCestimate	38	90%	83%	–	–	103
49	Kingston University^*1 course	112–128 UCAS points	36	77%	90%	–	–	112
50	Wrexham University1 course	112 UCAS points	33	98%	95%	55%	£24k	144
51	Bangor University2 courses	104–128 UCAS points	32	68%	87%	92%	£31.5k	123
52	Leeds Trinity University4 courses	112 UCAS points	30	94%	78%	80%	£31k	105
53	University of Suffolk1 course	BBB	27	69%	90%	75%	£30k	130
54	University of Sunderland2 courses	104–120 UCAS points	26	91%	88%	67%	£31k	122
55	University of Wales: Trinity Saint David2 courses	112–128 UCAS points	12	88%	89%	82%	£27k	82
56	University of Portsmouth1 course	BBB–BBC	0	74%	90%	45%	£31.5k	111

What primary teaching graduates earn

Typical (median) earnings for primary teaching graduates, across the universities we rank.

£31.5kAfter 15 months
£26.5kAfter 3 years
£32kAfter 5 years

Highest earnings five years after graduating

The 15-month figure comes from the Graduate Outcomes survey and covers graduates in full-time work. The 3 and 5-year figures come from tax records and include everyone in work, including part-time, so they can be lower than the 15-month figure. Pay also depends on where people live. Compare earnings across all subjects or see what you’d repay on your student loan.

What the measures mean

Student satisfaction: Average share of final-year students answering positively across the seven themes of the National Student Survey: teaching, learning opportunities, assessment, support, organisation, resources and student voice.
Stay on course: Share of students still studying or having qualified a year after starting. Lower numbers mean more people drop out.
Graduate-level jobs: Of graduates in work 15 months after finishing, the share in professional or managerial roles.
Salary after 15 months: Median salary of graduates in full-time work in the UK, 15 months after finishing.
Entry points (median): The middle UCAS tariff score of students who started: half had more, half had less. It counts all their qualifications (a fourth A-level, EPQ, AS levels, music grades and so on), so it usually sits above the published offer, especially at selective universities. It shows how competitive entry is. Always check the real offer on the university’s course page.

See exactly how the overall score is calculated

Not ranked yet

These offer primary teaching but don’t yet have enough published data to rank fairly, often because the course is new or small.

University of South Wales/Prifysgol De Cymru, University of Sussex