Photo credit: Hong Yong Lim
The University of York has called the results of the Guardian’s latest league table “disappointing” after dropping two places and has acknowledged there is more to be done in the upcoming year. York has fallen from 15th place and is now ranked 17th for courses at UK universities for students starting in 2013.
The University said: “These results are disappointing given the continued effort and investment we are making in improving aspects of the student experience. We hope to do better next year following the extension and refurbishment of the library, the student centre, sports facilities and new college as well as refurbishment of other parts of Heslington West, further investment in academic staff, and additional spend on library materials. The focus on employability, with additional internship opportunities and alumni networks for graduating students, should also make a positive impact.”
The University’s average teaching score has dropped from 72.7 down to 71.3, whilst overall student satisfaction has maintained its score of 87 per cent. The table measures career prospects by the proportion of graduates who find graduate-level employment or go on to take up full time studies within six months of graduation. York has increased its percentage from 64 percent to 67 per cent.
YUSU President Tim Ellis told Nouse: “It is disappointing to see York drop another two places in the Guardian’s League table. It is extremely important that the University does not lose sight of the things that are consistently lowering our scores. This is includes feedback, employment prospects and also the overall satisfaction with the student experience.
“A lot has been done over the last year in these areas but more still needs to be done. Employability needs to be at the top of the agenda at York. Potential students need to be able to see the value that a degree at York can give you and currently our career prospects aren’t demonstrating this.”
The University Guide was published in full on the Guardian website today and is based on data for full-time undergraduates at universities across the UK. Rankings are based on official data collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (Hesa) and on the national student survey, published by Hefce. Cambridge topped the table for the second year running, followed by Oxford and the London School of Economics respectively.
22 May ’12 at 11:08 am
Matt Ravenhall
Fortunately this drop means very little to those of us who do biology, York remains at third place for biological sciences!
Report22 May ’12 at 3:31 pm
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Thanks for letting us know Matt.
Report22 May ’12 at 7:30 pm
Reprehensible
What does the evidence base say about executive pay and performance Prof Cantor? I see no correlation here.
Report22 May ’12 at 8:57 pm
Suren
@Reprehensible and all other slaves of leauge tables.
League table position does not reflect the true performance of universities.
There are many universities which are below the top 10 yet they are considered more prestigious by employers than some universities in the top 10.
Over all York’s reputation has gone up, we are part of the Russell group which will bring more investment.
Report23 May ’12 at 10:40 am
Alex
Exactly what @Suren says. The RAE score, funding and membership of the Russell group are what truly matter at an academic level. Though in terms of attracting good students the league tables do matter.
Report23 May ’12 at 11:30 am
3rd year Stude.
When I applied to York, I looked at the league tables and only applied to 5 of the top 10 universities on the Guardian and Times league tables. In short, I chose York based on the league tables and word of mouth reputation. As an Oxbridge reject, my choice was between York, Nottingham and Durham. York was above the others at the time – so I chose to apply to York.
Whether you like it or not – the league tables matter. They influence 16/17/18 year old 6th form and gap year students, particularly those who may be the first in their family to attend university. I remember sitting in my 6th form computer room and going through the league tables with my college mates.
I would never apply to any university that is not in the Top 15 of the league tables. Would you really apply for a university that is 97th or 43rd or 30th?
Report23 May ’12 at 12:32 pm
Suren
@ 3rd year Stude
97th is a bit extreme, but in the case of 30th, I recall they ranked Manchester below 40th once and Manchester is a better university than Lancaster or Loughborough, So is Edinburgh.
Edinburgh and Bristol has far more high calibre applicants than Lancaster.
Report23 May ’12 at 5:54 pm
Reprehensible
I don’t actually think league tables are a great performance indicator but you have to have some targets. Just can’t see how what appears like an average performance justifies the crazy salaries of the executive team.
Report25 May ’12 at 1:38 pm
Mugged off.
I agree with 3rd year. As a fellow oxbridge reject I feel like I was tricked into thinking York was good. It was flitting between 8th and 9th in the rankings when I chose it.
Now I’m attending the worst university that I got offers from. Cheers Cantor.
Report25 May ’12 at 6:04 pm
Binky
I should have gone to Edinburgh.
Report25 May ’12 at 7:48 pm
Jim B
When York is ranked lowly on the tables, the league tables are shunned. When York in ranked highly, the league tables are deemd an accurate reflection. Ha!
http://www.yorkvision.co.uk/news/york-re-enters-top-10-in-university-league-tables/
“The University press officer, David Garner, commented: “Our position in The Times Good University Guide and The Complete University Guide in The Independent reflects the hard work of our staff in pursuit of the highest standards in both teaching and research and further underlines York’s reputation as one of the leading universities in the UK and the world.”
This contrasts greatly with comments made by the Vice-Chancellor, back in 2008. In response to York’s decline to 16th and 15th place in The Times and The Guardian respectively, Cantor stated, “We [the university] don’t really believe league table charts.”
The league tables also show York is considerably behind in some measures, specifically graduate prospects. “
Report26 May ’12 at 3:55 pm
Jim Wilfson
If I could go back now to the days when I was applying for University, I hate to say this but I would probably apply to Lancaster. If you look at the tables, they are higher than us not only in the overall table but also in many of the individual subject tables.
Report26 May ’12 at 9:00 pm
Amanda Banana.
Well at least the league tables will be a potential deterrent to future students.
I think that I would be selfish to recommend York to anyone except my greatest enemy. To be fair, most people want to go to Oxford or Cambridge, after that its the London universities. However those who were brought up in London often ‘opt out’ of London unis so they can experience something new. After that I think that Edinburgh, Manchester, Durham, Warwick, St Andrews, Lancaster etc are great unis to attend.
If you can’t go to Oxbridge, I say its best to go somewhere you will have fun and enjoy the people, environment and the course.
Report27 May ’12 at 1:09 am
Optimist
God you lot are a miserable bunch. League tables mean everything now?
Report31 May ’12 at 2:55 pm
@Optimist
No, they’re not the sole factor. But they’re still massively important.
Report17 Jun ’12 at 1:02 am
ddd
Out of all the things to complain about…you choose the uni’s league table positioning? What about the appalling graduate employment rate?!
I promise you that no employer will turn you down as York slipped 2 places- most likely no one will know. Your old college pals won’t disown you, your mother will not weep because you accepted the lowest ranked uni from UCAS track, and your future children will not speak fearfully of the great 2-point drop of 2012. You will be fine.
Ultimately there are ‘good’ names and ‘bad’ names on your application, luckily York will always be a name that impresses people. It’s not AS impressive as imperial, oxbridge, etc, but you didn’t get in there so get over it. There are bigger fish to fry at York than Cantor’s ability to appease the guardian’s table-makers. Maybe he’s diverting his attention to the disgraceful graduate employment situation (which I predict is set to hit an all-time low next year……..)
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