Dear Colleagues,
Being named The Sunday Times University of the Year 2011/12 has helped to strengthen our profile and now we have something more to celebrate.
I am delighted to tell you that the Sunday Times has ranked us at third in its new league table. This is Bath’s highest ever ranking in the guide with only Oxford and Cambridge now sitting above us in the table of 126 UK universities and colleges. We are standing proudly on the medal podium.
This is fantastic news and deserved recognition of the levels of enthusiasm, dedication and commitment to excellence you have shown in the past year. Thank you to each and every one of you.
We have also excelled in the paper’s individual subject rankings coming top in no fewer than three subjects – Architecture, Mechanical Engineering and Business Studies. This is a truly exceptional performance by the departments and I congratulate all concerned. Again only Oxford and Cambridge come higher in more subject tables than Bath.
We can all take immense pride in this news which comes just days after the National Student Survey (NSS) results were published showing our students are again amongst the most satisfied in the UK.
At 91%, the overall satisfaction rate for Bath students is six points above the UK national average for HEIs (higher education institutions), and puts us fifth in the national table of over 250 universities and further education colleges.
This reflects the students’ view of our combination of high quality teaching, excellent support services and a welcoming campus community.
In addition, the University has been shortlisted for two THE awards: Outstanding Contribution to Leadership Development and Research Project of the Year (Dr Adrian Bowyer’s Rep Rap initiative). Let’s hope we have yet more cause for celebration when the winners are announced in November.
To thank and reward staff for an outstanding year I would like to announce an additional discretionary day of leave for all staff on Monday, 24 December 2012. This will mean the University closes for the Christmas holiday period on Friday, 21 December and reopens on Wednesday, 2 January 2013.
The new academic year is now upon us and will no doubt bring fresh challenges but we can enter it with renewed vigour and pride in our University.
Thank you.