UWE Bristol has been awarded gold status – the highest possible rating – in the latest government rankings for higher education providers.
The university, which gained a silver rating last year, is acclaimed as ‘consistently outstanding’ in the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF), a national exercise that assesses excellence in teaching at universities and colleges.
It also measures how well they ensure excellent outcomes for their students in terms of graduate-level employment or further study.
UWE was praised by assessors for its outstanding graduate employability outcomes and successful approaches to personalised learning.
TEF, which is led by the government’s Office for Students, was introduced two years. It has been designed to help students choose where to study by providing clear information about teaching provision and student outcomes.
In its 2018 assessment, UWE received recognition for:
- Outstanding performance with regard to sustained employment and graduate earnings
- Students from all backgrounds achieving consistently outstanding outcomes
- Student satisfaction with academic support, and the rate of progression to highly skilled employment or further study, being above the university’s benchmarks
- Outstanding learning resources with extensive facilities for lecture capture
- Successful approaches to personalised learning, with effective support arrangements for specific student groups, that secure the highest levels of student engagement with learning.
- UWE’s gold rating is valid for up to three years.
The university, which has more than 29,000 students and employs 3,000 staff, is ranked in the top quartile of all higher education providers in the UK and is among only five universities in the South West to hold gold TEF status, the others being Bath, Bournemouth, Exeter and Falmouth.
UWE vice-chancellor Prof Steve West said: “We are absolutely thrilled to receive this gold award. It recognises the importance we place on the student experience and teaching, and how our practice orientated and professionally accredited courses consistently equip our students for graduate level jobs.
“A huge thank you goes to all our staff on what is a very proud day for the University. Their hard work and commitment has made a vital contribution by ensuring students receive the best possible higher education experience.”
The award of a gold rating in the TEF comes one week after UWE Bristol was named in the top 40 of the annual university league table compiled by the Guardian.
The university climbed to its highest ever position of 37th out of 121 UK institutions following strong performance in the NSS and an increase in spend per student.
