Students Voice Opinions Over Best Universities

(PRWeb UK) June 30, 2009

The university comparison website Whatuni.com has released results for the Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2009 (see file attached). Based on the opinions expressed by over 7,000 current student reviews and divided across ten categories from best for accommodation to best for courses and lecturers, these awards represent the views of today’s ‘consumer students’.

In many cases the outcome reveals an alternative picture of successful universities, and challenges the notion that only certain institutions provide a stimulating and rewarding intellectual and social experience for their students.

For instance, although Buckinghamshire New University and University of Dundee do not usually figure within the top 20 positions of more established rankings, they are both top 5 Student Choice Award winners for Courses and Lecturers (above Cambridge in 6th). The reviews are made up of comments from students and a rating out of ten enabling students to rank each of the following categories: overall experience; course & lecturers; accommodation; city life; facilities; clubs and societies; student union; eye candy and job prospects.

Editor of Whatuni.com Oliver Brann comments: “There are a number of factors that prospective students should take into account whilst deciding on which university will most suit their needs. The internet and in particular the arrival of web 2.0 has meant that students’ opinions and assessments themselves can be utilised, as a whole, as with the Student Choice Awards, or with specific pieces of information and advice within the reviews themselves.”

Prof Ruth Farwell, Vice Chancellor of Bucks New University, commented: “Our primary aim is to put students first, and so it is fantastic for us to be recognised by our students for the quality of our courses and lecturers. This year we have seen the highest percentage increase in applications to our full-time undergraduate honours degree courses of any UK university, and the fact that we are ranked alongside some of the older universities in the whatuni.com awards, indicates that ‘new generation’ universities are able to compete effectively in the areas that really matter to students.”

Baroness Estelle Morris commented: “I think these awards are a highly welcome and important addition to information channels available to prospective students. They can be seen as the ‘customers’ of a university and are uniquely positioned to provide insight and make assessments across a wide spectrum of university life. It is logical that their voice should be heard and be a significant contribution to the wider perception of their institution.”

Alan Speight, Pro Vice Chancellor Student Experience at Swansea University, said: "Swansea University is very pleased to have won 6 Whatuni Choice Awardsin 2009. It is fantastic that we have received this accolade from students who have experienced, first-hand, what life is really like at the University. We applaud Whatuni.com for providing students, planning to start University in 2009 or 2010, with a true insight of what Swansea has to offer.”

Mike Elms, founder of Hotcourses (Whatuni.com publisher) added: “After the introduction of fees we have seen a shift towards the importance of students and their views. They are rightly becoming much more demanding of their universities. In the end the opinions expressed in these reviews are what matter most, as they are the views of the students and so, many congratulations to all the universities that have done well.”

It would seem Year 12 and 13 students concur. A recent survey conducted by Hotcourses found that year 12 and 13 (6th form) students rated the importance of current university students’ knowledge and experience above that of their parents, friends and teachers/career advisors.

Hotcourses founded in 1996 by Mike Elms and Jeremy Hunt MP (and now Shadow Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport), provides UK education websites for school-leavers and life-long learners as well as international websites in India, China, Malaysia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Mexico, Brazil, Russia, Thailand, Vietnam and Australia, Singapore and the Middle East which combined are visited by over 22 million people a year making Hotcourses the largest and busiest publisher of education websites in the UK. Hotcourses employs 230 people in the UK, India, Australia and South Africa.

Whatuni URL:
http://www.whatuni.com

A lighter look: A Uni Fit for a King and Top Uni for Eye Candy...Swansea

Surprise, surprise there are no London institutions in the top 10 for Accommodation…Whereas it’s top for City Life represented by King’s College - helped no doubt by its’ Thames-side union doubling up as a high profile gig venue for acclaimed bands across the globe. Edinburgh and Leeds follow up in second and third place.

As might be expected, the university that Prince William attended, St Andrews, came top for Clubs and Societies - studying with future kings is a pretty exclusive club in itself, I suppose..

Results in the Courses and Lectures category show that the traditionally top universities aren’t necessarily the best at teaching at least as far as their students are concerned, with Buckinghamshire New University and University of Dundee coming above Cambridge in 6th. Don’t they say something about really intelligent people being terrible at explaining stuff…?

For Job Prospects it seems that students at the traditional top uni’s are confident the reputations of their establishments will help them achieve gainful employment with all the usual suspects, Cambridge, Oxford, LSE, Imperial, Durham ranking highly. This lot aren’t anywhere however when it comes to the Student Union category (University of East Anglia, Loughborough, and Leeds University - first, second and third), a section populated with universities who have students who perhaps have a more ‘balanced’ work/play philosophy…

For the Overall the winner is a university that really must be fit for a king – St Andrews. An outstanding performance across the board first in the Course and Lecturers category, First for Clubs and Society, second for Job Prospects (excellent contacts to be made here..). Runner up in this category is a well deserving University of Anglia, consistently highly placed across the board.

The winner of the Eye Candy category is Swansea university. Interestingly no London institutions are placed in this category. An explanation they may try and put forward is that their universities are in the midst of all those model types/beautiful people attracted to London from all over the world and this affects the judgement of their students, rating their fellow students more harshly. If this were the case however, what does this theory say about the local population of Swansea?

For further information contact:
Oliver Brann
Email: oliver.brann @ whatuni.com
Tel: 020 8600 5401

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