Higher marks for University of Brighton

Results from this year’s National Student Survey (NSS), published today, show 83 per cent of final-year students said they were satisfied with their courses, a one point increase on last year.

At the same time, 83 per cent of students who responded said they would recommend the university to others, up on last year and a higher percentage than the average for all universities.

Some 75 per cent of University of Brighton final year students responded to the survey, higher than the national average and there was a host of courses which generated satisfaction levels of 90 per cent and above. These courses covered subjects including business, education, art and design, literature, social sciences, health, architecture, humanities, construction, medicine and sport.

Courses which scored a 100 per cent satisfaction rate were product design with professional experience, geology, project management for construction, paramedic practice, physiotherapy, media and English literature, international hospitality management, physical education with QTS, and retail marketing.

University staff also ranked highly. The NSS results, published annually by the Higher Education Funding Council for England, showed 85 per cent of students said university staff were good at explaining matters and even more, 87 per cent, said staff had made their subjects interesting. Staff were enthusiastic (87 per cent) and the course was intellectually stimulating (83 per cent).

Some 81 per cent of students were satisfied with academic support and 84 per cent said learning resources met their needs. And 83 per cent said their time at the university had helped their personal development and had boosted their confidence.

Brighton and Sussex Medical School, run by Brighton and Sussex universities, received an overall satisfaction rating from final year students of 98 per cent, giving it joint first place among providers of medicine, along with Keele University and the University of Oxford.

Professor Julian Crampton CBE, the University of Brighton's Vice-Chancellor, said: "The university’s results are very encouraging and show that the vast majority of students were happy and that they valued the quality and relevance of their courses.

“We will over the next few weeks assess our results in more detail to look for ways of further enhancing the student satisfaction.

“And our efforts have produced positive results. According to the latest annual figures from the Higher Education Statistics Agency, 92 per cent of our graduates who completed their first degree in academic year 2013-14 were in employment or further study, with over two thirds employed at a managerial and professional level, six months after they graduated.

“The university provides an excellent learning and teaching environment for students and the NSS is a valuable tool in helping us understand what is working well and where we can improve.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our final year students who completed the survey and all staff for their hard work and contributions to the quality of the student experience."