34 Best universities for Early Childhood Education in the United Kingdom

Updated: March 02, 2025

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in the United Kingdom ranked based on their research performance in Early Childhood Education. A graph of 125K citations received by 4.8K academic papers made by 34 universities in the United Kingdom was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. University College London

England | London

For Early Childhood Education

#2 in Europe

#18 in the World

Enrollment: 42,000
Founded: 1826

2. University of Manchester

England | Manchester

For Early Childhood Education

#3 in Europe

#35 in the World

Founded: 1824

3. University of London

England | London

For Early Childhood Education

#7 in Europe

#54 in the World

Enrollment: 50,000
Founded: 1836

4. University of Edinburgh

Scotland | Edinburgh

For Early Childhood Education

#14 in Europe

#86 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 51%
Founded: 1583

5. University of Birmingham

England | Birmingham

For Early Childhood Education

#17 in Europe

#90 in the World

Founded: 1900

6. University of Oxford

England | Oxford

For Early Childhood Education

#18 in Europe

#97 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 22%
Founded: 1096

7. University of Warwick

England | Coventry

For Early Childhood Education

#20 in Europe

#109 in the World

Enrollment: 27,278
Founded: 1965

8. University of Exeter

England | Exeter

For Early Childhood Education

#22 in Europe

#117 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 73%
Founded: 1955

9. University of Sheffield

England | Sheffield

For Early Childhood Education

#23 in Europe

#124 in the World

Founded: 1905

10. University of Cambridge

England | Cambridge

For Early Childhood Education

#27 in Europe

#135 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 21%
Founded: 1209

11. University of Leeds

England | Leeds

For Early Childhood Education

#28 in Europe

#137 in the World

Founded: 1904

12. University of Roehampton

England | London

For Early Childhood Education

#31 in Europe

#142 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Founded: 2004

13. University of Northampton

England | Northampton

For Early Childhood Education

#35 in Europe

#152 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 73%
Founded: 2005

14. University of Southampton

England | Southampton

For Early Childhood Education

#38 in Europe

#166 in the World

Enrollment: 21,335
Founded: 1952

15. University of Strathclyde

Scotland | Glasgow

For Early Childhood Education

#40 in Europe

#170 in the World

Founded: 1964

16. University of Plymouth

England | Plymouth

For Early Childhood Education

#45 in Europe

#189 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Founded: 1992

17. University of Nottingham

England | Nottingham

For Early Childhood Education

#52 in Europe

#209 in the World

Founded: 1948

18. University of East London

England | London

For Early Childhood Education

#54 in Europe

#225 in the World

Founded: 1992

19. University of York

England | York

For Early Childhood Education

#55 in Europe

#231 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 20%
Founded: 1963

20. Cardiff University

Wales | Cardiff

For Early Childhood Education

#57 in Europe

#240 in the World

Founded: 1997

21. Canterbury Christ Church University

England | Canterbury

For Early Childhood Education

#58 in Europe

#243 in the World

Founded: 2005

22. University of Bristol

England | Bristol

For Early Childhood Education

#59 in Europe

#247 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Enrollment: 27,513
Founded: 1909

23. Lancaster University

England | Lancaster

For Early Childhood Education

#61 in Europe

#252 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 22%
Founded: 1964

24. Manchester Metropolitan University

England | Manchester

For Early Childhood Education

#62 in Europe

#255 in the World

Founded: 1992

25. University of Glasgow

Scotland | Glasgow

For Early Childhood Education

#68 in Europe

#277 in the World

Founded: 1451

26. University of Sussex

England | Brighton

For Early Childhood Education

#71 in Europe

#286 in the World

Enrollment: 17,319
Male:Female: 44:56
Founded: 1961

27. Durham University

England | Durham

For Early Childhood Education

#74 in Europe

#301 in the World

Enrollment: 19,520
Founded: 1832

28. University of Reading

England | Reading

For Early Childhood Education

#82 in Europe

#315 in the World

Founded: 1892

29. University of Bath

England | Bath

For Early Childhood Education

#84 in Europe

#334 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 67%
Enrollment: 18,857
Male:Female: 53:47
Founded: 1966

30. Liverpool John Moores University

England | Liverpool

For Early Childhood Education

#91 in Europe

#344 in the World

Founded: 1992

31. Oxford Brookes University

England | Oxford

For Early Childhood Education

#92 in Europe

#345 in the World

Enrollment: 16,900
Founded: 1865

32. Queen's University Belfast

Northern Ireland | Belfast

For Early Childhood Education

#93 in Europe

#347 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 31%
Founded: 1849

33. London School of Economics and Political Science

England | London

For Early Childhood Education

#95 in Europe

#350 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 8%
Enrollment: 9,218
Founded: 1895

34. Ulster University

Northern Ireland | Coleraine

For Early Childhood Education

#102 in Europe

#368 in the World

Founded: 1968

The best cities to study Early Childhood Education in the United Kingdom based on the number of universities and their ranks are London, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Birmingham.