University of the Year

It was presented to the Vice-Chancellor Professor Steve Smith and the President of the Guild of Students Jess Dow at a glittering ceremony at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London. The ceremony was attended by 1,200 leading figures from the world of higher education. It caps an excellent year for the University which has firmly established itself as a top 20 UK higher education institution.

Professor Steve Smith, the University’s Vice-Chancellor, said: ‘This is an important statement by our peers who have recognised the excellent work carried out by the University’s staff and students. It caps a fantastic year for the University. Applications and research earnings have increased dramatically and we have risen to 17th place in the UK university league tables. This Award underlines the fact that Exeter is firmly on an upward trajectory. This is a University which combines world class research with a high quality student experience.’

History lecturer Dr Richard Toye also won the award for Young Academic Author of the Year. His colleague Dr Kate Fisher was shortlisted for the same award. Exeter was also shortlisted in the category for Outstanding Student Financial Support Package.

The University of the Year Award highlights three major educational initiatives which came to fruition in 2007. The success of these ventures has substantially raised the University’s profile, demonstrated its ability to work with different partners, added significant new academic assets and fuelled growth. The three ventures are:

• The completion of their studies by students at the University’s Cornwall Campus near Falmouth. Opening a campus 100 miles away in Cornwall was a significant challenge for the University and meant working closely with a very different institution, University College Falmouth. The two institutions share the Campus, including academic and social facilities and student accommodation, and have developed a shared vision for future development. The creation of the Campus has been made possible through European Objective One funding as part of the wider Combined Universities in Cornwall. Not only has the campus proved extremely popular with students but it has also been possible to attract exceptional staff to Cornwall. The Biology group, for example, has attracted a world class group of academics specialising in conservation and evolutionary biology.

• The completion of their studies by the first cohort of students from the Peninsula Medical School. This is another joint venture, this time with Plymouth University. Since the Medical School was established in 2002 it has grown in size from an initial intake of 127 students to 214 now and has established bases in Exeter, Plymouth and Truro. It recently won funding for a new dental school – the first in the UK for 40 years - which opened its doors for students in autumn 2007. Research has quickly developed with Medical School researchers recently making national and international news with their discovery of genes for obesity. Diabetes research is a particular specialism within the Medical School and researchers have identified and developed treatments for forms of ‘monogenic’ diabetes.

• The £14 million Great Western Research project. This is a project involving all of the South West HEIs, but is led by Exeter. The project has provided a significant boost to postgraduate development in the South West with students working on projects in collaboration with local businesses.

The University is now looking to the future with a planned £300m investment in campus facilities by the end of the next decade.