TEACHING
QUALITY
University of East London
119
th
NATIONAL
RANK
RANK
54.2%
FIRSTS
2:1s
2:1s
67.4%
COMPLETION
RATE
RATE
Key Stats
n/a
78th=
STUDENT
EXPERIENCE
EXPERIENCE
73rd=
RESEARCH
QUALITY
QUALITY
117th=
GRADUATE
PROSPECTS
PROSPECTS
Contact details
ADDRESS
Docklands Campus,
University Way, London, E16 2RD View on map >
Telephone
Email
Website
Open days
October 4
University Profile
The University of East London (UEL) opened its new campus in Stratford – a joint venture with Birkbeck, University of London, in 2013, and stemmed what had been a serious decline in applications and enrolments since the introduction of £9,000 fees.
The £33m University Square development houses a selection of departments from UEL and Birkbeck – two institutions with differing approaches but a common mission to widen access to higher education – and incorporates a range of flexible teaching and administrative spaces, alongside teaching accommodation for subjects including law, performing arts, dance, music and information technology that are offered as daytime or evening courses.
The opening of the new campus saw applications stabilise, although there was another small decline in enrolments on full-time courses. As one campus opened, another closed. An ill-fated venture in Cyprus lasted only six months, costing the university hundreds of thousands of pounds.
UEL remains close to the bottom of our league table with scores for graduate prospects and entry standards that are among the lowest in the UK. While student satisfaction rates have been improving, albeit from a low base,
The student charter urges undergraduates to adopt the ’35-hour attitude’, which means studying for at least 35 hours a week, making good use of the Learning Resources Centre and handing work in on time.
The university is building on the legacy of the London 2012 Olympics, which took place on its doorstep. Indeed, it hosted the United States team at its new £21m sports and academic centre at the Docklands Campus, called the Sports Dock. The campus, which opened in 2000, was the first such venture in London for 50 years and gave the university a new focal point, with its modern version of traditional university features like cloisters and squares.
The university spent more than £190m on the campus in the shadow of Canary Wharf, where student residences and recreational facilities sit side by side with academic buildings in a prize-winning waterside development. The business school and Knowledge Dock, a support centre for local companies, are also there and a £40m student village by the Royal Albert Dock added 800 more beds.
The focus of new developments has now shifted to nearby Stratford, the original headquarters in UEL’s days as a pioneering polytechnic. The Great Hall in University House boasts a high-tech, 230-seat fully retractable lecture theatre, while the health and bioscience laboratories have been refurbished.
The Cass School of Education has now opened and law is next on the development agenda. In addition to University Square, a new £14.7m library opened in Stratford in 2013, housing extensive digital resources and a 24-hour café.
Extending access to higher education is UEL’s top priority. Barely more than half of first years arrive with A-levels and very nearly half are 21 or older on entry – many choosing to start courses in February rather than in the autumn. More than half of the undergraduates come from working-class homes, many from the area’s large ethnic minority populations. A successful mentoring scheme for black and Asian students has become a model for other institutions, while a guidance unit advises local people considering returning to education.
The Noon Centre for Equality and Diversity in Business, which opened in 2013 at UEL’s Royal Docks Business School, gives extra help to its black ethnic minority students to prepare for a successful career in business. UEL is also strong on provision for disabled students and houses the Rix Centre for Innovation and Learning Disability.
Most degrees are vocational and almost 1,000 businesses are involved in mentoring programmes and/or a work-based learning initiative which offers accredited placements. All but one of the nine subject areas in which UEL entered the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise contained at least some world-leading research. Communication, culture and media studies, produced particularly good results, while art and design and sociology also did well.
Centres of excellence include an Islamic Banking and Finance Centre, launched in 2011 and partly funded by one of Saudi Arabia’s biggest banks, which has become a hub for international scholars who are looking to conduct research in this field. The Centre for Clinical Education is London’s only provider of clinical facilities and training in podiatry.
University housing is not plentiful, although there are now 1,200 bedspaces and the rents are good value for London. The social mix means that UEL has not been the place to look for the archetypal partying student lifestyle, although the Docklands campus has changed this to some extent and Stratford has been transformed since the Olympics.
Sports facilities and new students’ union premises have been added at both Stratford and Docklands. Three UEL sports scholars were selected to compete in track events at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, with Adam Gemili winning the silver in the blue riband event, the men’s 100m.
The £33m University Square development houses a selection of departments from UEL and Birkbeck – two institutions with differing approaches but a common mission to widen access to higher education – and incorporates a range of flexible teaching and administrative spaces, alongside teaching accommodation for subjects including law, performing arts, dance, music and information technology that are offered as daytime or evening courses.
The opening of the new campus saw applications stabilise, although there was another small decline in enrolments on full-time courses. As one campus opened, another closed. An ill-fated venture in Cyprus lasted only six months, costing the university hundreds of thousands of pounds.
UEL remains close to the bottom of our league table with scores for graduate prospects and entry standards that are among the lowest in the UK. While student satisfaction rates have been improving, albeit from a low base,
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the completion rate of under 70% is well short of the national average for UEL’s courses and entry qualifications and one of the lowest in Britain.The student charter urges undergraduates to adopt the ’35-hour attitude’, which means studying for at least 35 hours a week, making good use of the Learning Resources Centre and handing work in on time.
The university is building on the legacy of the London 2012 Olympics, which took place on its doorstep. Indeed, it hosted the United States team at its new £21m sports and academic centre at the Docklands Campus, called the Sports Dock. The campus, which opened in 2000, was the first such venture in London for 50 years and gave the university a new focal point, with its modern version of traditional university features like cloisters and squares.
The focus of new developments has now shifted to nearby Stratford, the original headquarters in UEL’s days as a pioneering polytechnic. The Great Hall in University House boasts a high-tech, 230-seat fully retractable lecture theatre, while the health and bioscience laboratories have been refurbished.
The Cass School of Education has now opened and law is next on the development agenda. In addition to University Square, a new £14.7m library opened in Stratford in 2013, housing extensive digital resources and a 24-hour café.
Extending access to higher education is UEL’s top priority. Barely more than half of first years arrive with A-levels and very nearly half are 21 or older on entry – many choosing to start courses in February rather than in the autumn. More than half of the undergraduates come from working-class homes, many from the area’s large ethnic minority populations. A successful mentoring scheme for black and Asian students has become a model for other institutions, while a guidance unit advises local people considering returning to education.
The Noon Centre for Equality and Diversity in Business, which opened in 2013 at UEL’s Royal Docks Business School, gives extra help to its black ethnic minority students to prepare for a successful career in business. UEL is also strong on provision for disabled students and houses the Rix Centre for Innovation and Learning Disability.
Most degrees are vocational and almost 1,000 businesses are involved in mentoring programmes and/or a work-based learning initiative which offers accredited placements. All but one of the nine subject areas in which UEL entered the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise contained at least some world-leading research. Communication, culture and media studies, produced particularly good results, while art and design and sociology also did well.
Centres of excellence include an Islamic Banking and Finance Centre, launched in 2011 and partly funded by one of Saudi Arabia’s biggest banks, which has become a hub for international scholars who are looking to conduct research in this field. The Centre for Clinical Education is London’s only provider of clinical facilities and training in podiatry.
University housing is not plentiful, although there are now 1,200 bedspaces and the rents are good value for London. The social mix means that UEL has not been the place to look for the archetypal partying student lifestyle, although the Docklands campus has changed this to some extent and Stratford has been transformed since the Olympics.
Sports facilities and new students’ union premises have been added at both Stratford and Docklands. Three UEL sports scholars were selected to compete in track events at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, with Adam Gemili winning the silver in the blue riband event, the men’s 100m.
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Detailed Statistics
PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE
CATEGORY
SCORE
RANK
Ranking
-
119 (120)
Student experience
81.1
78th=
Research quality
4
73rd=
Ucas entry points
278
113th
Graduate prospects
50.5
117th=
Firsts and 2:1s
54.2
111th
Completion rate
67.4
122nd=
Student-staff ratio
26.3:1
122nd
Services/facilities spend (£)
1,451
69th
World ranking
-
701= (701=)
VITAL STATISTICS
Undergraduates
(Full-time)
12,725
Undergraduates
(Part-time)
2,300
Postgraduates
(Full-time)
2,345
Postgraduates
(Part-time)
2,220
Applications/places
18,605/4,255
Applications/places ratio
4.4:1
STUDENT CITIES
Imran Hossain, students’ union president
We have a large and beautiful campus, a rarity for London universities.
There’s only one food provider on campus, the price is high and let’s just say I’ve tasted better.
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Cost of living
Nightlife
Transport
Culture
ACCOMMODATION
FEES
UK/EU fees
£9,000
Fees (placement year)
£800
Fees (overseas year)
£800
Fees (international)
£10,400
Finance website
Graduate salaries
£19,998
BURSARIES/SCHOLARSHIPS
>
Household income below £25K, bursary of £250 a year; household income £25K–£30K, £200 ah year.
>
Sports scholarships, free textbook offer and enhanced study skills support.
SPORT
Sports points/rank
487, 63rd
Sport website
Student satisfaction
93.3%
87.9%
86.8%
86.5%
86.4%
86.4%
85.4%
85.1%
85.1%
84.8%
84.5%
83.2%
81.7%
79.1%
78.5%
78.4%
78.2%
74.5%
73.1%
71.3%