The University does not appear in any newspaper or any other organised league tables apart from tables published prior to August 2008. The University believes that the Government and its official agencies should be the formal assessors of higher education in the UK.

The quality of teaching of each UK University is assessed by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA).

The University received an outstanding report in its most recent assessment in 2007. In a year-long exercise for taught degree awarding powers (TDAPs), inspectors from the QAA closely examined the University's quality and standards. It judged the University had met all the necessary criteria for the award of taught degree awarding powers and recommended Privy Council approval which was granted on January 14 2008.

On January 15 2008, the Privy Council also approved the University's change of title to Swansea Metropolitan University as a result of gaining TDAPs.

In the University's Continuation Audit Report in 2002, the QAA commended the University in several areas and identified no serious weaknesses.

And in previous teaching quality assessment exercises (TQAs), over sixty per cent of the University's subject work was rated "Excellent".

The University believes that the higher education sector should be assessed through formal governmental means rather than by league tables compiled by organisations and newspapers using differing sets of criteria that are both unofficial and potentially unsound.