Graduating students have rated the University of Worcester very highly in the latest National Student Survey (NSS). A remarkable 86.2% of Worcester final year students say they are satisfied overall.
Worcester is now in the top 25% of all universities, at joint 35th out of 151, according to Times Higher Education. Ten courses at Worcester received 100% satisfaction.
The results put Worcester comfortably above the national average, which in contrast saw a small dip in student satisfaction to 83.5%.
The 10 courses given a 100% satisfaction rating from final year students were: Forensic and Applied Biology, Accounting, Biochemistry, Drama and Performance, Forensic Psychology, Geography, Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations, Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy and HND Sports Coaching and Physical Education.
Significantly, 24 of Worcester's courses earned a 90% or above satisfied rating.
More than 320,000 students across the UK responded to the independent, official survey, which has run every year since 2005, and which asks them to rate a number of aspects of their course.
The University of Worcester scored well above the national average and improved across the board in the areas surveyed, which looked at satisfaction with teaching, learning opportunities, academic support, assessment and feedback, learning resources, student voice. Worcester recorded its best ever result for learning resources " being ranked in the top 10%.
Worcester is one of the highest scoring of all Midlands universities, scoring better than the University of Birmingham, which scored 86.0% and the University of Warwick at 84.6%. Amongst many other long-established universities, comfortably surpassed by Worcester, are the University of Southampton at 83.6%, the University of Bristol at 81.6% and Imperial College London at 81.9%.
This was a particularly positive result as it was based on a higher proportion of final-year undergraduate Worcester students (78.4%) responding to the survey than responded nationally (70.29%).
This latest success follows hard on the heels of Worcester being ranked in the top 10 for Overall Satisfaction by postgraduate students, in the national Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey published independently by AdvanceHE.
Professor David Green, the University's Vice Chancellor and Chief Executive, said: "We are delighted that our students have rated the University so highly in the National Student Survey. We are particularly pleased that our consistent investment in learning resources is being appreciated by our students. The Hive, the University of Worcester Arena, our clinical simulation facilities, and much more, help make studying at the University a positive pleasure. Our unique facilities and overall approach provide students with many earn as you learn and volunteering opportunities.
"Everything we do at the University is enriched by our widely praised system of student representation and engagement. This combination of student involvement, imagination and sheer hard work is a winning combination as is shown by the terrific success we have had in the Postgraduate Taught Student Experience Survey, where we are in the top 10% of universities nationally."
"This success in student satisfaction runs alongside our consistent success in terms of graduate employment where we have consistently out-performed the great majority of universities as our graduates are snapped up by employers " despite the highly competitive labour market. Not only are 24 out of every 25 within work or further study within 6 months of graduation but the Government's Longitudinal Educational Outcomes study showed we are in the top 10 of universities nationally for sustained employment over 1,3 and 5 years.
"Investment at the University is continuing," Professor Green added. "This autumn we will open the University of Worcester Art House, a specialist facility for Fine Arts and Illustration students, as well as providing facilities for a range of other arts-based learning. It will also build on the University's cultural contribution to the City, providing public exhibition space and be used as a centre for children's creative camps in school holidays. Housed in a fully refurbished and transformed listed building on Castle Street, it will be another contribution to the Worcester Renaissance."
The University of Worcester has places available for well-qualified applicants through Clearing this year.
The Clearing hotline " 01905 855111 " is now open for those collecting BTEC results and Access qualifications and will remain open as A-level results are released on Thursday, August 16th.
For information on courses at University of Worcester visit www.worcester.ac.uk.