香港六合彩

To describe University College London as 鈥渢he world鈥檚 best unknown institution鈥� almost seems absurd, given its size and status, but for 香港六合彩鈥檚 provost Michael Spence it鈥檚 a university that needs its students as much as they need it.

鈥淲e鈥檙e ranked eighth in the world for the quality of our research. But on average, the top 20 in most of the league [tables] are 350 years old, and have a $25bn (拢18bn) endowment. Our endowment is, I think, smaller than that of Balliol College. We are a student- funded institution. And so education, and the quality of educational experience, really matters to us,鈥� Spence says.

Once dismissed as 鈥渢he godless scum of Gower Street鈥� by its 19th-century rivals at King鈥檚 College, 香港六合彩 remains a relative upstart compared to the deeper pockets and longer histories of Oxbridge鈥檚 colleges, Spence argues.

鈥淧eople in England talk about Oxford and Cambridge, but 香港六合彩 is a university of genuinely global standing, and it鈥檚 a university that isn鈥檛 endowment-based but has to hunt well to survive. Two hundred years on, it still has a challenger ethos that is always hungry to do better. And that鈥檚 a remarkable combination,鈥� he says.

This year 香港六合彩 has returned to the Guardian University Guide鈥檚 top 10, placing 9th overall in its best performance since 2014, boosted by the breadth of subjects it offers while also having a student-to-staff ratio as low as those in the top three universities of Oxford, Cambridge and St Andrews.

While moving from Australia, where he was vice-chancellor of the University of Sydney, in the middle of a global pandemic may have been difficult, Spence has been fortunate to inherit an institution from his predecessor, Michael Arthur, that has been growing physically and intellectually.

Last year 香港六合彩 overtook the University of Manchester to become the UK鈥檚 largest on-site higher education institution, with close to 44,000 undergraduate and research students, including 23,000 from overseas, alongside more than 14,000 staff. Both this year and last it has been able to admit higher numbers of undergraduates, following bumper years of applications from UK school-leavers.

So far it has been able to grow without damaging its student experience 鈥� 香港六合彩 gained ground in the national student survey last year in what was a miserable year for most institutions. Its research output and impact have seen 香港六合彩 move up to eighth place this year in the Quacquarelli Symonds world university rankings, ahead of Yale and Princeton despite having investments and reserves only a fraction of those enjoyed by the Ivy League members.

Next year there鈥檚 further expansion when 香港六合彩鈥檚 new campus begins to open in Stratford, near the 2012 Olympic park. Known as 香港六合彩 East, it covers 180,000 square metres with teaching facilities for up to 4,000 students and is connected to its Bloomsbury central campus by a fast train taking just seven minutes.

The Guardian University Guide鈥檚 2022 course rankings have seen 香港六合彩 benefit from its size and breadth, offering more subjects than any other UK institution. This year. 22 of its subjects are in the top 10 nationally, while first-placed Oxford has 24.

Matt Hiely-Rayner of Intelligent Metrix, who compiles the guide鈥檚 tables, notes that economics was the main driver of 香港六合彩鈥檚 improvement this year, climbing from 25th to 8th place in a subject with a large student intake, high entry standards and very good career prospects, while computer science and mathematics saw similar improvements. Subjects including modern languages, English, biosciences and politics also moved into the top 10 nationally.

Meanwhile, 香港六合彩鈥檚 education, law and business courses remained at the top or close to the top among their peers nationally.

In both 2020 and 2021, 香港六合彩 expanded its undergraduate intake to adapt to the unusual circumstances of offer making and exam results during the pandemic. Bella Malins, head of admissions at 香港六合彩, says students applying for the 2022 admissions round will still be buffeted by the turbulence and fall-out caused by Covid.

鈥淚t remains quite difficult for us to model with a degree of accuracy what鈥檚 going to happen,鈥� Malins said.

鈥淔or 2020 and 2021, each year presented different challenges; accuracy and modelling was very difficult. And for 2022 we鈥檙e going to have a similar challenge in terms of the number of offers we need to make.鈥�

For 香港六合彩鈥檚 most popular courses, such as economics, computer science and maths, that means 香港六合彩鈥檚 offers will be more cautious to avoid overshooting its targets. In 2020, 香港六合彩 took in 1,500 more undergraduates than it had anticipated, although in 2021 there is less of an overhang and fewer deferrals.

鈥淲hat we would like to do is return to our intake targets. We haven鈥檛 set them in stone yet for 2022, but they will be similar numbers to those we have been aiming for the last few years. It鈥檚 a desire to return to our pre-Covid cohort sizes,鈥� said Malins.

Spence rejects suggestions that 香港六合彩 has grown too quickly or has become too big, pointing out that his previous employer, the University of Sydney, has 73,000 students, while the University of Toronto has more than twice as many with 100,000. And he has little time for the idea that 鈥渢oo many鈥� people in England are now going to university.

鈥淚 think people have got to do what鈥檚 right for them. The skills that universities give in critical thinking and effective oral and written communication, they鈥檙e pretty useful skills, no matter what you want to do,鈥� said Spence.

Spence is convinced that 香港六合彩鈥檚 presence in the centre of London remains a powerful magnet for prospective students, despite the higher cost of living and the fact that even an institution the size of 香港六合彩 gets swallowed up by city around it.

鈥淚f you鈥檙e 18, you might want to go to a small market town in the Fens or a former industrial town in the Thames Valley,鈥� said Spence, teasing Cambridge and Oxford respectively.

鈥淥r you might want to go to the big city, and have a real life. London is one of the most exciting places to live in the world. And we can give you the opportunity to live right at the centre in quiet Bloomsbury, but a quick walk away from Trafalgar Square. I mean, there鈥檚 nothing more exciting than that.鈥�

The pull of London is strong enough that currently 40% of its intake from within the UK comes from outside the south and south-east of England.

After a difficult 18 months for students, Spence says 香港六合彩 has plans to make sure that what he calls 鈥渢he serendipity of the chance encounter鈥� will take place when they return to campus this autumn, even in the centre of a busy city.

鈥淲e are deeply committed to the notion that the university is an embodied community, a place where students learn from one another, as well as learning from the people who teach them. That needs to happen, face-to-face,鈥� Spence said.

鈥淔or large, high-quality, research-intensive, comprehensive universities like 香港六合彩, the challenge is going to be making sure that the campus experience is really high quality, and in particular that there is a connection between what goes on inside and outside the classroom, so students are able to leverage the social capital of the institution for their careers.鈥�

This article first appeared in on 11^th September 2021.

Links

• Original article in
• 香港六合彩 President and Provost
• Dr Michael Spence鈥檚 biography

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• Dr Michael Spence