University of Buckingham guide: Rankings, open days, fees and accommodation
Overview
Buckingham registered two top-ten performances in the 2025 Whatuni Student Choice awards - ranking fourth for teaching quality and seventh for student support - in contrast to another disappointing set of results in the 2025 National Student Survey, where the university came bottom for student experience under our analysis. These outcomes were both voted for by the university's students, who are based on an attractive riverside campus in the pretty country town of Buckingham. Teaching is modelled on that found in nearby Oxford, with small classes and an intensity of work generated by Buckingham's compression of most degrees into two-year programmes. Copied now by some in the state sector, two-year degrees were pioneered here. The price of tuition is essentially the same as in the state sector, but students' bank balances benefit from the one-year reduction in living costs. A small university of about 3,000 students, Buckingham offers a compact portfolio of undergraduate courses with a strong presence in business, computing, law and teacher training. The university spent too long in the headlines for the wrong reasons in the past year with its vice-chancellor, Professor James Tooley, suspended and then ultimately reinstated in a saga that played out over several months.
Paying the bills
Buckingham's two-year degrees mean its students graduate with significantly less debt than their counterparts in the state sector. Although tuition fees are only marginally less - £27,750 paid over two years (£13,875 per annum) compared to £28,605 paid over three years (£9,535 per annum) in the state sector - students save by not having to pay an extra year of living costs. This means a Buckingham two-year degree costs on average £13,000 less than a three-year degree elsewhere. A limited amount of financial support is available. High Achiever scholarships worth £2,000 in the first year are paid to students from the UK and Ireland who make Buckingham their firm choice and go on to achieve AAB or better in their A-levels. A small number of University of Buckingham bursaries worth up to £9,500 in tuition-fee reductions over two years are available to the most deserving students demonstrating financial need. They are open to students who apply at least two months before enrolment and are in receipt of a maintenance loan of at least £7,500 (paid to students from homes with an annual income of approximately £42,500). A hardship fund is also available to students experiencing financial difficulties, offering a maximum payment of £500. The university issues e-food vouchers in extreme cases, and its laptop scheme provides short-term equipment loans to help students with coursework and assignments. Accommodation prices for 2026 have been reduced for some of the cheapest rooms, which come down to £130 and £145 per week (£6,370 and £7,105 for a 49-week let). The most expensive rooms on the Hunter Street and Verney Park campus top out at £235 a week (£11,515 for 49 weeks), with double rooms and accommodation for couples also available at an extra cost.
What's new?
New residential accommodation at Mount Pleasant has come on stream, giving students a fourth option in Buckingham if they want to live in university-owned rooms. Offering more than 50 twin ensuite rooms, the campus also has a gym, pool, bar and free laundry facilities. Last November, the first mock trial was staged in the university's Moot Room - part of the newly renovated Franciscan Building which also includes a renovated library, collaborative study facilities and a start-up space. Medical school facilities have been beefed up ahead of the closure of the satellite health and medical campus in Crewe in 2026, too. New developments include several simulation rooms in the style of GP surgeries and home visit spaces, equipped with virtual-reality headsets to provide a diverse range of medical experiences for students. Buckingham has also trialled the Being, Belonging, Becoming survey to gather student views on their university experience. The hope is that this will inform future campus enhancements and address recent poor scores in the annual National Student Survey (NSS). While it regularly finished top or close to the top of the NSS rankings a decade ago, the university's performance has slumped in more recent times.
Admissions, teaching and student support
Contextual offers are made to students only after interviews. Mature students - who make up around half of the intake each year - often benefit from this flexibility once relevant work and life experience is considered, although the university does not reduce offers by a set number of grades or Ucas tariff points, preferring to judge each candidate individually. Buckingham's headline tariff range is ABB to BBB at A-level. It achieves good levels of social inclusion, with roughly one-third of students being the first in their immediate family to go to university. Targeted financial support available for those in need includes the University of Buckingham bursary (see Paying the bills above) worth up to £9,500 over the course of a degree. Students on a foundation year can qualify for £1,500 in that year and £2,000 for each subsequent year of their degree, subject to satisfactory progression. A range of other scholarships target specific subjects, local students and disadvantage. Students have access to trained counsellors and wellbeing advisers with mental health training. Mentors are based in each faculty and there are more than 30 mental health first-aiders on campus. Induction week includes sessions on mental health, wellbeing, finances, drugs and alcohol. Student safety is addressed through a wellbeing, skills and diversity talk held for new students during Welcome Week, which covers consent and healthy relationships.