º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has been shortlisted for ‘University of the Year’ in the 2015 Times Higher Education Awards, which celebrate outstanding examples of best practice across a range of higher education activity.

º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has also been shortlisted in the ‘Entrepreneurial University of the Year’ category, which celebrates the development of an enterprise culture within higher education institutions.

Professor Robert Allison, º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ’s Vice Chancellor and President, said the University was delighted to have been recognised in both these awards categories and particularly to be among the very select group being considered for the prestigious ‘University of the Year’ honour.

“This award recognises exceptional performance in the past academic year and º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has enjoyed an outstanding twelve months,” Professor Allison said.

“We were ranked in the top 15 of every national newspaper league, were Five Star-rated in the international QS Stars scheme, and our students voted us University of the Year in the Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2015. We gained our seventh Queen’s Anniversary Prize and were ranked as a top ten university in England for research intensity in the national Research Excellence Framework.

“We also launched our strategy for the future, integrating teaching, research, enterprise and sport in a way that is unprecedented in the higher education sector, to provide us with a blueprint for the next phase of our development.”

The Entrepreneurial University of the Year award recognises a university whose environment and culture fosters enterprising attitudes among all its community and delivers significant entrepreneurial impact at regional, national and international levels. 

Professor Tracy Bhamra, º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ’s Pro Vice Chancellor for Enterprise, said: “º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has a well-established entrepreneurial culture, which is embedded throughout all our activity.

“It is fundamental to our students’ educational experience. For instance, we have nurtured 29 graduate businesses through our dedicated support facility, The Studio, and now have 900 students engaged in the Students’ Union-based Enterprise Hub, which supports our students with their business ideas.

“Our consultancy activity, which enables businesses to benefit from our academics’ expertise, has increased by 37% over the last year, and the Advanced Technology Innovation Centre, which is the first new building on the multi-million pound expansion of º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ Science and Enterprise Parks, reached 60% occupancy within weeks of completion.

“I’m delighted that our commitment to, and the impact of, enterprise and innovation at º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has been recognised by being shortlisted for this award.”

The Times Higher Education awards ceremony will be held on 26 November 2015 at the Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane, London, with more than 1,000 guests expected to attend, including politicians, senior figures within the higher education sector and university staff from around the UK.