Durham University has been awarded the highest possible accolade in the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework (TEF). This comes as the University continues to strive to deliver world-class teaching, with significant investment in new facilities and innovating teaching practices.
The TEF was developed by the Department for Education and is carried out by the Office for Students. The ratings are judged by an independent panel of students, academics and other experts.
In particular, the TEF Panel praised Durham University for the excellent rates of progression to highly skilled employment or further study for full-time students, and the University’s research-led education, which provides students with the employability skills which are most valued by employers. The institutional culture at Durham, which rigorously monitors and rewards excellence in teaching, was also highly commended by the Panel.
Professor Alan Houston, Durham University Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education), commented: “To be awarded Gold is a wonderful recognition of the talent and dedication of our staff. We strive to empower students through enquiry-based learning, and the impact of this can be seen through the remarkable achievements of our students.”
Durham, a world top 100 university, performs well in both national and international league tables, and was last week positioned fifth in the Guardian University Guide. The University was also reported as one of the top ten universities from which employers seek to recruit in the Graduate Market 2018.
Professor Houston added: “Whilst Durham University enjoys great success, we cannot allow ourselves to become complacent. We are constantly looking for ways to improve what we offer to our students and staff, and to continue to make Durham an inclusive place to study, this is reflected in our University Strategy.”
The University Strategy 2017 – 2027 set out to deliver a transformative education, which takes advantage of the latest digital technologies. The University has made significant investments to achieve this goal, including creating new facilities, and looking at cross-departmental curriculum reform.
The Teaching and Learning Centre, located on South Road, is due to open in September 2019. It will include new classrooms allowing students to share courses in real time with students from peer institutions from around the world. As well as teaching rooms and lecture theatres, there will also be an Education Laboratory, where new teaching and training methods will be developed.
Further information about Durham University’s TEF report is available on the University website: www.dur.ac.uk/study