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Good University Guide 2018

Newcastle University ranked top for Art and Design in the UK

Published on: 25 September 2017

Newcastle University has been ranked as the best university in the UK for Art and Design by an influential guide.

For the second year in a row, The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2018 places Newcastle University top in the nation for Art and Design. The guide shows that Newcastle is among the best for many of its popular courses: Psychology, English, Creative Writing, Communication and Media Studies, and Anatomy and Physiology – all ranked in the top 10%.

Placing Newcastle 26th overall in the UK, and best in the region for student experience, the guide indicates that Newcastle has seen a surge in student applications in 2017, noting that: “the demand for places has been rising for most of the decade.” The survey recognises that the University received a gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), the only university in the region to score the highest ranking. The University was also singled out by the TEF panel for the excellent support for students, including tailored provision for disabled learners.

A Fine Art student working in the studios

Outstanding student experience

Professor Chris Day, Vice-Chancellor and President, Newcastle University, said: “Our position in the Good University Guide, our consistently strong student satisfaction scores, combined with our TEF Gold award, reflect our commitment to delivering the best possible educational experience for our students through our continued focus on providing learning and teaching of the highest standard, supported by our five-year, £500m programme of investment.”

Fine Art student Luke W. Robson said: “Newcastle University has everything to offer for art students. It has excellent facilities and staff, and connections to broader cultural organisation within the city. The art department has a welcoming and warm ethos where students and staff are always happy to help each other.”

Richard Talbot, Head of Fine Art, Newcastle University, said: "This news reflects the clear commitment by all staff to ensuring the highest quality of education for our students." 

£500m programme of investment

The top ranking for Art and Design follows on the announcement of the launch of Collective Studio - a pioneering new programme that aims to develop the next generation of artists and creatives in the region. The Collective Studio is a collaboration between Newcastle University’s Institute for Creative Arts Practice (NICAP) and artist-led studei community The NewBridge Project.

The Hatton Gallery at Newcastle University will re-open on 7 October 2017, following a £3.8m redevelopment, made possible through the Heritage Lottery Fund. It will re-open with a ground-breaking exhibition that will firmly – and correctly - position Newcastle as the birthplace of Pop Art.

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2018 highlights the latest investments in areas, including the £75m Park View Student Village, with 1,300 bedrooms, which will be ready for the 2018 intake and the £30m extension to the Sports Centre is scheduled to open the following year.

The survey features the £350m Science Central project, which is run with the City Council and will house the new National Innovation Centre for Ageing, the National Innovation Centre for Data and the National Centre for Energy Systems Integration. The £58m Urban Sciences Building is a new home for the 1,395 staff and students in the School of Computing.  

The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2018 is the latest in a long list of independent surveys reflecting the high level of student experience and satisfaction at Newcastle University.

The latest National Student Survey shows that 88% of students are satisfied with their experience at Newcastle University – placing it joint 15th in the UK when considered against comparator institutions.

In the latest International Student Barometer (ISB) Survey 2016, the University scored a satisfaction rating of 94% from its international students. 

The new edition of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2018 provides the definitive rankings for UK universities and the most comprehensive overview of higher education in Britain. It includes profiles on 131 universities and the definitive UK university rankings, making use of the latest data published in the past two months. 

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