NOT FOR BROADCAST OR PUBLICATION BEFORE 00.01HRS SATURDAY 19 th SEPTEMBER 2015 This is the third Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey. This survey covers 89 institutions where comparable data is available. Data has been gathered from a number of sources, including the HEFCE, HESA, The Times Higher Education Supplement, British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) and the Complete University guide. Loughborough University retains top spot in the 2015 Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey For the second year running Loughborough University has come out on top in the Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey. As students head to university this month, the survey explores a range of factors which together make up the best overall student experience of university life including course quality, employment and earnings potential, accommodation cost, sports facilities, crime and social life. What makes Loughborough a great place to be a student? 93% of final year graduates find employment (or carry on studying), with an average starting salary of 23,000 85% of students are satisfied with their course As a leading sports university, Loughborough has some of the best facilities amongst British universities for budding athletes Loughborough students rate their social life as one of the best in Britain, with access to affordable shops, bars and other amenities Crime rate around the university is low meaning students are living in a safe environment On the flip side, rents in university owned properties are just above the national average In second place is the 2013 winner Durham, which had the joint highest score of all the universities (88%) for course satisfaction. An affordable and convenient social life, and a robust employment track record, also helped Durham into the second spot. The University of Edinburgh takes third place scoring strongly on crime, sport and employment. Student Life Survey Top Ten There are some regional hot spots arising in the top ten this year with Scottish universities taking a prominent place; alongside Edinburgh in third place, are Glasgow (ranked 5 th ) and Dundee (ranked 6 th ) all scoring strongly on employment and further studies, course satisfaction and excellent sports facilities. The North East also stands out with Northumbria and Newcastle taking 8 th and 9 th place respectively. Bath came in at 4 th place, followed by Oxford (7 th ) and Cambridge (10 th ). (See Table 1). There are some common factors which received high scores across the universities in the top ten. These include employability, with an average of 94% finding employment (or another course) on completion; earnings potential the average
starting salary is estimated to be around 23,700, which is over 2,000 more than the national average; a safe location and a highly rated social life. Financial considerations when choosing a university The Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey includes a number of factors which impact on students finances; including a look at local accommodation costs, crime rates and accessibility and affordability of amenities and social activities. Loughborough University has kept its top spot in the Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey for the second successive year. The university scored consistently highly across most indicators, such as course satisfaction, high employment prospects, affordable shops and low crime rate. For many young people, university is their first taste of independent living and so it s important to weigh up a range of factors including costs. comments Claire Garrod, Head of Personal Current Accounts at Lloyds Bank. KEY FACTS Universities of Durham, Glasgow, Oxford, Cambridge and Bristol were all rated as providing the most satisfactory university experience with 88% of final year students satisfied with the quality of the course 1 ; above the national average of 85%. Students at the University of Northumbria have the least expensive institution owned or sponsored accommodation 2, paying an average 1,550 per academic year; followed by the universities of Swansea ( 2,500), Teeside ( 2,800) and Staffordshire ( 2,900) all significantly below the UK average of 4,283. The five universities with the most expensive university owned or sponsored accommodation are all in London; with the average annual cost ranging from 5,900 at University College to 8,250 at City University. Undergraduates at Swansea University had the least expensive rooms in private rentals 3 with an average annual cost of 2,250. The most expensive private rooms are occupied by students at the London School of Economics ( 7,000). The national average is 4,011. 95.4% of graduates from Dundee University find employment or further studies 4 after completing their final year the highest proportion. Dundee is followed by King's College London (95.3%), and University of Glasgow (95.0%). On average 93.1% of UK graduates went found employment (or went into further studies) The highest full time salaries are earned by students from the London School of Economics (LSE) where graduates reported a median salary (after 6 months in employment) of 28,646 5. The earning power of LSE students is followed by those from London South Bank ( 27,708), Cambridge ( 26,981) and King's College, London ( 26,954). The average median starting salary is an estimated 21,564.
The quality of sports facilities 6 is measured indirectly by where the university ranked in the British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) Overall championship 6 in 2014/15; the higher the ranking the better the facilities are assumed to be. Loughborough University had the highest number of points, followed by Durham, Edinburgh and Bath. The average points for all participating universities is 964.7. Both Sheffield University and Newcastle University came out top for the best social life 7 in a survey on student experience (6.3 out of 7). Followed by the universities of Dundee, Loughborough and Leeds. The UK average is 5.5. Also in the same survey, students at Dundee University had access to the least expensive shops, bars and other amenities 8 (6.0 out of 7; the UK average is 4.7). Whilst students in Keele, Bath and Cambridge are the most satisfied with their library and opening hours 9 (6.6 out of 7; the UK average is 6.1) The area around Robert Gordon University and University of Aberdeen have a crime rate (burglary, robbery and violence) of 4.7 per 1,000 residents 10 the lowest amongst university towns. They are followed by the University of Dundee (5.5 per 1,000 residents). Amongst English universities the lowest crime rate is in Durham (12.3 per 1,000 residents), followed by Winchester (13.6 per 1,000 residents) and the University of West of England (15.8 per 1,000 residents). The average crime rate across all universities is 25.8 per 1,000 residents. Table 1: Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey rankings the top 30 universities 2015 University Town/City Ranking 2015 Loughborough University Loughborough 1 Durham University Durham 2 University of Edinburgh Edinburgh 3 University of Bath Bath 4 University of Glasgow Glasgow 5 University of Dundee Dundee 6 University of Oxford Oxford 7 Northumbria University Newcastle 8 Newcastle University Newcastle 9 University of Cambridge Cambridge 10 University of Aberdeen Aberdeen 11 University of Nottingham Nottingham 12 University of Exeter Exeter 13 University of Sheffield Sheffield 14 Swansea University Swansea 15 University of Birmingham Birmingham 16 Southampton University Southampton 17 Keele University Keele 18 University of Warwick Warwick 19
University of Leeds Leeds 20 University of East Anglia Norwich 21 University of Bristol Bristol 22 University of York York 23 Bangor University Bangor 24 Lancaster University Lancaster 25 University of Reading Reading 26 University of Surrey Guildford 27 University of Portsmouth Portsmouth 28 Sheffield Hallam University Sheffield 29 University of Manchester Manchester 30 Source: Lloyds Bank Table 2: Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey rankings the top 10 in 2015 and 2014 University 2015 Ranking 2014 Ranking Loughborough University 1 1 Durham University 2 3 University of Edinburgh 3 11 University of Bath 4 2 University of Glasgow 5 5 University of Dundee 6 9 University of Oxford 7 8 Northumbria University 8 7 Newcastle University 9 4 University of Cambridge 10 6 Source: Lloyds Bank Table 3: University with the best student quality of life in each category Variable University Town/City Durham, Glasgow, Oxford, Cambridge and Bristol Durham, Glasgow, Oxford, Cambridge and Bristol % of students satisfied with their course (88%) Least expensive institution owned or sponsored accommodation (average 1,550 per academic year) Northumbria Newcastle Least expensive private rental rooms (average 2,250 per academic year) Swansea Swansea % of students indicating they are working (or in further studies) 95.4% Dundee Dundee Median full time earnings 28,646 (after six months) London School of Economics London Sports facilities BUCS score (5,878 points) Loughborough Loughborough Good social life (survey score 6.3 out of 7) Sheffield and Newcastle Sheffield and Newcastle Cheap shops, bars and other Dundee Dundee
amenities (survey score 6.0 out of 7) Good library and library opening hours 2015 (survey score 6.6 out of 7) Crime rate per 1,000 residents 4.7 Source: Lloyds Bank Keele, Bath and Cambridge Aberdeen and Robert Gordon Ends Keele, Bath and Cambridge Aberdeen and Edinburgh For further information Chris Tuttlebee 0207 356 1343 / 07850 723184 christopher.tuttlebee@lloydsbanking.com Notes to editors: The Lloyds Bank Student Life Survey was previously known as the Lloyds Bank Quality of Student Life Survey. The survey aims to quantify where student satisfaction and living standards are highest by ranking individual institutions' performance across a range of indicators covering the course quality, employment and earnings potential, accommodation cost, sports facilities, social life and crime. The survey covers 89 universities where consistent data is available. Helping Britain Prosper Plan As well as focusing on the student population via its Student Account, the Group has also underscored its ambition to provide a range of educational support and, within its Helping Britain Prosper Plan, has committed to creating 5,000 new apprenticeship positions with permanent employment by 2017, with 30% of these positions taken up by external candidates from the UK's most disadvantaged areas in 2017. At the same time, it has also committed to support 720 undergraduates from low income families through its Lloyds Scholars Programme by 2017 and that 90% of Scholars will have secured a job within six months of graduating from university. The Group recognises that people across Britain are facing some big issues. The Helping Britain Prosper Plan is its response to those. 1 National Student Survey 2015 Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The % of respondents who 'definitely' or 'mostly' agreed they were satisfied with the quality of their course. Figures are based on institutions where the majority of teaching is done. 2 Student accommodation costs from HEFCE. Lloyds Bank estimate on the mid-point between the upper and lower quartile annual cost of institution owned/sponsored beds for 2012/13. 3 Student accommodation costs from HEFCE. Lloyds Bank estimate on the mid-point between the upper and lower quartile annual cost of private sector beds for 2012/13. 4 Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA 2013/14; leavers with first degree indicating they are working (or in further study) as a percentage of all those who are working or studying or seeking work. Respondents can be in full or part time employment/further study, self employed, in voluntary unpaid work or starting work within the month. 5 HEFCE 2012 Salary survey data from registering institutions. Median salary information relates to those in full-time employment (after 6 months). Salary uprated by average earnings estimated index from the ONS by Lloyds Bank.
6 British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) is responsible for organising 50 interuniversity sports with a membership of 162 universities and colleges in the UK. It coordinates competitions and leagues for the 2.3 million students attending university. BUCS awards points in all its competitions towards the 'BUCS Overall Championship' - a ranking of member universities' sporting achievements. BUCS ranking is used as a proxy for sporting facilities; i.e. the higher the ranking, the better are the facilities available to students assumed to be. 7, 8 and 9 Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey 2015. Participants were asked to rate their institution, based on a seven-point scale, against 21 criteria, including good social life, cheap shops, bars and other amenities and the quality of university library. 10 The Complete University Guide on crime rates. The tables list the annual reported incidents per thousand all residents (i.e. includes the non-student resident population), May 2014 April 2015, within wards or electoral divisions of which parts are within 3 miles of the main campus. Due to a change in data source and methodology current figures are not comparable with those used in 2013. The British University Quality of Life index aims to quantify where student satisfaction and living standards are highest in Britain by ranking individual institutions' performance across a range of indicators covering the course quality, employment and earnings potential, accommodation cost, sports facilities, social life and crime. The index has been produced at a university level covering 89 institutions where consistent data is available. This survey does not take account of tuition fees and other course related costs (such as books, stationary and technical equipment).. The quality of life reading for each university has been created by summing scores across 10 variables within 6 broad groups. Each university is given a score out of 10 for each variable contained in the index. Scores within each of the broad groups are averaged and then the six group scores are summed to create an overall quality of life score. "This report is prepared from information that we believe is collated with care, however, it is only intended to highlight issues and it is not intended to be comprehensive. We reserve the right to vary our methodology and to edit or discontinue/withdraw this, or any other report. Any use of this report for an individual's own or third party commercial purposes is done entirely at the risk of the person making such use and solely the responsibility of the person or persons making such reliance. Lloyds all rights reserved 2015"