Top subjects in Northern Ireland 2024

Studying in Northern Ireland  

There are two main universities in Northern Ireland and what the region might lack in quantity, it certainly makes up for in quality. Both universities are consistently in our top 50 UK university rankings with Queen’s University, Belfast in 27th place and Ulster University in 49th in 2024.   

Northern Ireland is in the northwest of the UK and shares a border with the Republic of Ireland. Its dramatic landscape is often used in films, and Game of Throne fans might recognise some of it from those memorable battle scenes. The Giant’s Causeway is its most famous landmark. Belfast, an energetic, affordable, and interesting city, is where you’re likely to spend a lot of your time as a student.

To find out more about studying in Northern Ireland check out our regional guide 

Queen’s University Belfast  

Queen’s University is a compact campus about a 15-minute walk from Belfast city centre. The uni guarantees accommodation to first year students from outside Northern Ireland and there’s lots going on with a new student centre and more than 200 clubs and societies to choose from.  

To find out more about QUB visit their profile 

Queen’s University is ranked second in the subject table for Agriculture, Pharmacology, and Social Work, so it’s easy to see why these are also popular subjects to study here.

Celtic Studies, Information Technology and Dentistry are also all in the top five at Queen’s. 

The Dental School has been delivering dental education since 1920 and there are a wide range of course options for Celtic Studies including an Archaeology and Irish BA. 

Information Technology at Queen’s makes the most of the links it has with over 500 IT companies both here and abroad. There are more software companies located in Northern Ireland than in any other part of the UK, outside of London.

To find out more about the other subjects in the top 10 check out our subject guides

Ulster University 

Ulster University has four distinctive campuses in Belfast and Derry, all offering friendly and affordable places to live. The university guarantees any first-year student accommodation on-site providing the deadline for room applications is met. It’s reputation in research and strong emphasis on skills-based practice is perhaps why so many of its graduates get jobs or are inspired to do further study.  

To find out more about Ulster visit their profile

Ulster University has a solid reputation in several subject areas, especially in Land and Property Management and Speech and Language Therapy, ranked second in the UK subject table. Optometry and Pharmacology, Building, Celtic Studies and Pharmacology also perform well and make up the five most popular topics to study at Ulster.  

The Belfast based Land and Property Management course focuses on planning, regeneration and development. Various architectural subjects are covered in Ulster’s building offer and the Business Analytics BSc at Coleraine Campus is rated as 3rd best in the Information Technology and Systems league table.

To find out more about the other subjects in the top 10 check out our subject guides

Discover the top unis in other UK regions