Latest news from Loughborough University
| 13 June 2006 | PR 06/65 |
Loughborough joins the prestigious 1994 Group
Loughborough University, one of the country’s leading higher education institutions, has been invited to join the esteemed 1994 Group – a set of internationally recognised, research-intensive universities.
From 1 August, Loughborough will join eighteen other member universities, each of which undertakes diverse and high quality research, while at the same time ensuring excellent levels of teaching and student experience.
Commenting on the news, Professor Shirley Pearce, Vice Chancellor of Loughborough said: “Loughborough’s place as a top university, that is both research-intensive and offers an exceptional student experience, is widely recognised. We are delighted to be joining the 1994 Group and look forward to working together to promote the excellence of UK Higher Education."
Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, Loughborough has established a reputation for first-class teaching, pioneering research and multi-faceted industrial collaboration. It has been awarded five Queen's Anniversary Prizes – an achievement equalled only by Oxford – and last week it was ranked 6th in The Times league table, confirming it as one of the country’s leading higher education institutions. In the first-ever National Student Survey, full-time students voted it one of their favourite universities.
Loughborough has strengths across the board – in engineering, science and technology, social sciences and the humanities, as well as art, design and business. It is also the UK’s premier university for sports development and plays a world-leading role in sports research and education.
Loughborough’s teaching has been consistently rated excellent in independent assessments, putting it towards the very top of the teaching quality tables. The University is research-intensive, with much of its work directed towards the needs of business and industry. It is also one of the most prolific universities in the country for spin-out company formation, demonstrating the commercial applicability of its research.
Other universities also joining the 1994 Group are the University of Leicester, the School of Oriental and African Studies, and Queen Mary University of London.
Welcoming them, Professor David Eastwood, chair of the 1994 Group, said: ”Along with other member universities they share a commitment to research excellence, high quality teaching and an outstanding student experience. This shared ethos means that the Group is able to engage in a coherent and positive manner with key stakeholders and play an increasingly pivotal role in shaping policy in the higher education sector.”
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For further information contact:
- Hannah Baldwin, Head of PR, Loughborough
University,
T: 01509 222239, E: H.E.Baldwin@lboro.ac.uk
Notes to editors
- From 1 August 2006, the members of The 1994 Group will be:
- Loughborough has an established reputation for excellence in teaching
and research, strong links with industry, and unrivalled sporting achievement.
Assessments of teaching quality by the Quality Assurance Agency place
it in the top flight of UK universities; the National Student Survey
ranked Loughborough equal first among full-time students; and industry
highlights the University in its top five for graduate recruitment.
Around 40% of Loughborough’s income is for research, and 60% for
teaching. The University has been awarded five Queen's Anniversary Prizes:
for its collaboration with aerospace and automotive companies such as
BAE Systems, Ford and Rolls Royce; for its work in developing countries;
for pioneering research in optical engineering; for its world-leading
role in sports research, education and development; and for its outstanding
work in evaluating and helping to develop social policy-related programmes.
In 2006 Loughborough celebrates the 40th anniversary of its University Charter, awarded on 19 April 1966 in recognition of the excellence achieved by Loughborough College of Advanced Technology and its predecessor Colleges. Loughborough University of Technology was renamed Loughborough University in 1996.
Bath, Birkbeck, Durham, East Anglia, Essex, Exeter, Goldsmiths University of London, Lancaster, Leicester, Loughborough, Queen Mary University of London, Reading, Royal Holloway University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies, St Andrews, Surrey, Sussex, Warwick and York.