Communication and media studies at Cardiff University ranks in global Top 40

The School of Journalism, Media and Culture has ranked 37th in the world for communication and media studies in the 2026 QS World University Rankings by Subject.

This year’s ranking is a climb of 13 places from last year and embeds the School among the world’s best institutions.

Cardiff University now has 8 subjects ranked in the global Top 100.

The annually published rankings aim to help prospective students identify the leading universities in a particular subject. The results use research citation data, along with the results of global surveys of employers and academics to score universities and this year, 275 institutions have been included in the rankings for communication and media studies.

Dr Matt Walsh, Head of the School of Journalism, Media and Culture welcomed the news. He said: “It’s great to see the School place within the top 40 of this year’s QS World University Rankings by Subject, and I’m incredibly pleased that we’ve improved on last year’s position.

“This is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our staff who go above and beyond to ensure students get the most out of their time at Cardiff University and enjoy all the opportunities we offer.

“This once again underlines that studying with us delivers a world-class education.”

This recognition consolidates the School’s position as a centre of excellence in communication and media studies research and teaching and follows successful rankings in other tables published recently. Currently, the School is in the Top 10 in the UK for communication and media studies in both the Complete University Guide 2026 and the Times Good University Guide 2026. In addition, the School was placed in the Top 10 for journalism and in the Top 5 for media studies in the Daily Mail University League Table 2026.

The School is also celebrated for its research excellence, placing 2nd in the UK for the quality of its communication, cultural and media studies research in the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021). This includes research in areas such as journalism and democracy, digital media and society, and media, culture and creativity.