Queen Mary wins prestigious Student Experience Award

The award was presented at a gala dinner in Park Lane, London last night (Thursday 15 October) by Clive Anderson.

The award is the only prize to be judged by the students themselves. More than 11,000 full-time undergraduates participated in this year’s nationwide poll, which asked them to rate how their university performed in campus environment, extra-curricular activities, student/staff relationships, academic workload and quality of accommodation.

Queen Mary was the clear winner, recording better scores in 2009 than 2008 in almost every area.

The College’s biggest improvements were in students’ ratings for facilities, with high rankings for the institutions shops, bars and sports facilities, including the £6m health centre which opened at the Mile End campus last year. The College’s lecturers and connections with industry were also commended.

Professor Morag Shiach commented: "As Vice-Principal with responsibility for teaching and learning, I am delighted at this recognition of all the work we have done to ensure that students have an excellent academic and social experience while they are studying at Queen Mary."

The Times Higher Awards are higher education’s ‘Oscars’, and are attended by more than 1000 people from the sector.

The College was shortlisted for a record five awards this year, more than any other institution in the UK. The nominations, including the prestigious University of the Year award, reflected the breadth of the College’s achievements across the full range of research, teaching, student experience, knowledge transfer, physical infrastructure and innovation in international affairs.