Applicants put University of Nottingham in UK top three

Nottingham is one of only a few in the Russell Group – the UK’s 20 elite research-intensive universities – to experience an increase in popularity on last year.

The rising number of applications comes in the wake of a string of major successes for Nottingham, including its best-ever score in the National Student Survey (NSS), which measures finalists’ overall level of satisfaction with their degree course and the institution at which they have studied.

The recent QS World Rankings saw Nottingham climb 18 places into the Global Top 75, making it the fastest-rising UK university in the prestigious Top 100.

It was also named ‘Europe’s greenest university’ in the UI GreenMetric World University Ranking, a league table of the world’s most environmentally-friendly higher education institutions, which ranked Nottingham second in the world overall.

Dr Paul Greatrix, Registrar, said: “We’re delighted that so many prospective students have applied to study at The University of Nottingham this year.

“The student experience on offer here is second to none, not only in the quality of teaching and learning, but also in a beautiful campus environment, unique opportunities for overseas study, the breadth of student societies and activities and the excitement of having a vibrant city like Nottingham on the doorstep.

“We’re currently investing £90m in new facilities for teaching, learning and research on campus, to ensure the University continues to offer the world-class education for which it has become known.”

Nationally, UCAS reported an increase in applications of just over five per cent. Commenting on the national picture, Nicola Dandridge, Chief Executive of Universities UK said: “The increase in applications shows that demand for higher education remains steady. A university education is clearly still recognised for the enormous benefits it provides. Undoubtedly, gaining specialist higher-level skills gives graduates an edge.

“The demand from home students remains high with applicants from the UK making up 500,000 of the total 580,000 applications. It is also encouraging to see an 18 per cent increase in science subjects, and an 11.8 per cent rise in applications to the creative arts – a range of subjects that will be vital for the future growth of the UK economy.”

Manchester Metropolitan University and the University of Manchester are the first and second most popular UK universities by application numbers, according to today’s figures, with Leeds and Sheffield Hallam in fourth and fifth.

UCAS figures by institution are published at:
http://www.ucas.com/about_us/media_enquiries/media_releases/2011/20110131appdig

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Notes to editors: The University of Nottingham, described by The Times as “the nearest Britain has to a truly global university”, has award-winning campuses in the United Kingdom, China and Malaysia. It is ranked in the UK's Top 10 and the World's Top 75 universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong (SJTU) and the QS World University Rankings. It was named ‘Europe’s greenest university’ in the UI GreenMetric World University Ranking, a league table of the world’s most environmentally-friendly higher education institutions, which ranked Nottingham second in the world overall.

The University is committed to providing a truly international education for its 39,000 students, producing world-leading research and benefiting the communities around its campuses in the UK and Asia.

More than 90 per cent of research at The University of Nottingham is of international quality, according to the most recent Research Assessment Exercise, with almost 60 per cent of all research defined as ‘world-leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. Research Fortnight analysis of RAE 2008 ranked the University 7th in the UK by research power. The University’s vision is to be recognised around the world for its signature contributions, especially in global food security, energy & sustainability, and health.

More news from the University at: www.nottingham.ac.uk/news