Double success in the Times Higher Awards
Loughborough University has won two prestigious awards, for Best Student Experience and Outstanding Support for Overseas Students, in the Times Higher Awards 2007.
It is the second successive year that the University has picked up the hotly contested Best Student Experience title. The awards presented to Loughborough were the only two to be voted for by students.
The awards, organised by The Times Higher Education Supplement newspaper, aim to raise awareness of and reward the huge contribution British universities make to the economic and cultural health of the country.
Commenting on Loughborough’s success, Professor Shirley Pearce, the University’s Vice Chancellor, said: “These awards are testimony to the hard work and enthusiasm of all our staff at Loughborough and the excellent working relationship we enjoy with the Students’ Union.”
The Best Student Experience award recognises universities’ outstanding contributions to the learning experience. Loughborough was rated highly by its students for the community atmosphere, extracurricular activities and societies, and the good environment on campus and around the University.
Loughborough Students’ Union President David Gerty said: “It is an honour and privilege to have received such prestigious awards. They are particularly special because they were voted for by students, and it is a reflection of the well-rounded academic and social experience enjoyed by all of us at Loughborough.”
The Outstanding Support for Overseas Students award is presented to the university that helps international students to gain the maximum benefit from their study. International students were asked, via an independent survey, to rate various aspects of their university experience. The careers service, students’ union and visa advice were among the services that international students rated highly at Loughborough.
Tony Westaway, director of the University’s International Office, commented: “It is really fantastic that Loughborough's international students clearly believe that the support offered by staff and the Union is the best in the UK. This will continue to enhance Loughborough University's growing worldwide reputation.”
The awards came just a couple of months after the results of the 2007 National Student Survey, in which Loughborough was ranked fourth in the UK for student satisfaction, providing further confirmation of the high quality learning experience the University provides for its students.