Stanford University vs Cambridge University: Which one is better?

Stanford University vs Cambridge University

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Stanford University is a private research university located in Stanford USA. Stanford comprises seven academic schools and 18 interdisciplinary schools. International students choose Stanford majorly for graduate-level courses. There are 200+ graduate courses in 90+ subject areas for you to choose from. University of Cambridge is the second best university in the world as per QS World University Rankings in 2023. Cambridge University is the fourth oldest university and is currently home to 22,693 students.

Overview Comparison
Stanford UniversityUniversity of Cambridge
Collegedunia Score9.3 Out of 109 Out of 10
ranking (overall)# 3 QS World University 2026
# 3 Center for World University Rankings 2025
# 6 Times Higher Education 2025
# 6 QS World University 2026
# 4 Center for World University Rankings 2025
# 5 Times Higher Education 2025
Subject Strength# 2 for Engineering by Times Higher Education 2025
# 3 for Medicine by QS World University 2025
# 1 for Law by US News 2025
# 4 for Engineering by QS World University 2025
# 5 for Medicine by QS World University 2025
# 3 for Law by QS World University 2025
ProgramsUG Programs -48
PG Programs -37
Doctorate Programs -70
UG Programs -27
PG Programs -101
Doctorate Programs -90
Acceptance Rate3.9 %21.0 %
Exam ScoreGMAT-630
IELTS-7
SAT-1450
TOEFL-100
GMAT-640
IELTS-7.5
SAT-1500
TOEFL-100
Cost to StudyAverage Tuition Fees   65286
[For UG Program]
Average Tuition Fees  72420
[For PG Program]
Hostel + Meal - 33155 Per Year
Average Tuition Fees   30673
[For UG Program]
Average Tuition Fees  44645
[For PG Program]
Hostel + Meal - 2200 Per Year
placement (average package)

Stanford University is one of the top private universities in Stanford, United States. It is ranked #3 in QS World University Rankings 2023.

Ranked #2 in Graduate Employability Rank 

  • Bachelor (Other): $221,000 
  • MBA: $184,000 
  • Executive MBA: $181,000 
  • Masters in Finance: $154,000 
  • Executive Masters: $142,000 
  • Doctorate: $140,000

University of Cambridge is one of the top public universities in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is ranked #2 in QS World University Rankings 2023.

Average Salaries Of The Degree:

  • MBA : $107,000 
  • Masters of Arts: $101,000 
  • Masters in Finance : $100,000 
  • LLM : $95,000 
  • Doctorate : $92,000 
  • Executive MBA : $88,000 

application requirements

Supplemental Form (for a few programs);
LORs & SOPs;
Essays;
Portfolio (required for a few programs)

Academic Transcripts; Cambridge Online Preliminary Application (for UG applicants); Proof of English language proficiency; Interviews; subject-specific written admission assessment; 1-2 References; Personal Statement; Resume; Standardized test scores (GRE, etc.)

Campuses and B-SchoolsStanford Graduate School of Business
Cambridge Judge Business School
General Facts Comparison
General FactsStanford UniversityUniversity of Cambridge
Type of UniversityUniversity
University
Established1885
1209
Student:Faculty Ratio5:1
:1
Male:Female50% Male, 50% Female0% Male, 0% Female
Location Facts

The campus is located in the center of the San Francisco Peninsula. Settled on 8,180 acres of land, the campus is located approx. 37 miles southeast of San Francisco and approx. 20 miles northwest of San Jose.


Located in Cambridge, UK; 50 miles north of London, in the center of Cambridge city. 


Library

With a network of 20 libraries, the Stanford University Library has a collection of 9.3 million volumes, nearly 300,000 rare or special books, 1.5 million e-books, 2.5 million audiovisual materials, 77,000 serials, nearly 6 million microform holdings, and thousands of other digital resources.


Cambridge University Library is over 600 years old and is one of the largest legal deposit libraries in the world. There are a total of 100 faculty and college libraries across the departments in the university. The libraries hold over 8 million books, journals, and other items. It is one of the largest collections on open shelves in Europe. In 2010, with a generous donation of around 1.5 million GBP, the digitizing of some of the library collections was started. 


Campus Life

Campus landmarks include the Main Quad, Memorial Church, Cantor Center for Visual Arts, Bing Concert Hall, Stanford Mausoleum, Hoover Tower, Stanford University Arboretum, Green Library, 31 Club Sports, etc. There are over 625 student-organized groups to participate in, eight dining halls to experience the food on-campus, 2 museums, and 25 student affairs offices. 


The campus offers University of Cambridge Library; nine specialist museums; extensive welfare services; over 60 sports; language center; 500+ student clubs; King’s College Chapel; Cavendish Laboratory; Cambridge University Press.


Hostel#Campus Housing(Graduate) - $23535
#Living Expenses--Per Week - $200
Famous Alumni

Presently, there are more than 220,000 Stanford alumni that include 83 Nobel laureates, 28 Turing Award laureates, 8 Fields Medalists, 270 Olympic medals including 139 gold medals. Larry Page (Co-founder Google); Mike Krieger (Co-founder, Instagram); Peter Thiel (Co-founder, Paypal); Gene D. Block (8th chancellor of UCLA); Derek Bok (25th president of Harvard), etc.


20 Nobel Laureates; 11 field medalists; 7 Tiring Award winners; 194 Olympic medals; Sir Issac Newton; Srinivasa Ramanujan (Indian Mathematician); Stephen Hawking; Rajiv Gandhi (Former Prime Minister of India); Eddie Redmayne (Actor), etc.


City Life

Located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, Stanford is a census-designated place in California. You can explore various museums, the national zoo, enjoy delicacies of all kinds available at multicuisine restaurants, enjoy basketball games, national baseball games, Jazz music, waterfront near Georgetown, and more. The unemployment rate of the city is 5.1%


The city of Cambridge offers Folk festivals, food festivals, and diverse cultural festivals. The unemployment rate of the city is as low as 2.6%. The city has a buzzing nightlife, a variety of art venues, museums, cinemas, parks, and tourist attractions.   


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