TEACHING
QUALITY
Glasgow Caledonian University
84
th
NATIONAL
RANK
RANK
68.5%
FIRSTS
2:1s
2:1s
80.9%
COMPLETION
RATE
RATE
Key Stats
n/a
98th=
STUDENT
EXPERIENCE
EXPERIENCE
84th=
RESEARCH
QUALITY
QUALITY
53rd=
GRADUATE
PROSPECTS
PROSPECTS
Contact details
ADDRESS
Cowcaddens Road, Glasgow, G4 0BA View on map >
Telephone
Email
Website
Open days
November 6 (postgraduate only)
University Profile
Not content with having been the first Scottish university to open a campus in London, Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU) went one better last April by becoming the first in the UK to open in New York. The new outpost will offer executive education programmes and master-classes in areas of strength, including the business of fashion, luxury brand management, finance and risk management.
GCU London also offers fashion business education in luxury brand marketing and management, luxury retail management and international fashion marketing at its British School of Fashion, launched in 2013. The university’s international flavour was already well established through the co-founding of the Grameen Caledonian College of Nursing in Bangladesh, an affiliation with an engineering college in Oman and partnerships in China, India, USA and South America.
Students closer to home are not being neglected, however. Work has begun this year on the £30m Heart of the Campus development which will transform the Glasgow campus. There is to be a striking new glass reception area and atrium, a 500-seat teaching and conference facility, and a new eating mall. Two of the main buildings will be renovated and better connected
The university has already spent more than £70m transforming its facilities into a single campus that does justice to a thriving institution of 17,000 mostly Scottish students. Development of the £1.2m Doble Innovation Centre for Online Systems is under way, which will create new research and student placement opportunities in the engineering sector. The campus includes the only INTO centre in Scotland, running preparatory courses for international students.
The health building brings together teaching and research facilities that include a virtual hospital. Other learning resources include multimedia studios, a Fashion Factory and an eye clinic equipped with latest technologies for teaching and research. Student facilities include the Arc sports centre, 24-hour computer labs, an employability centre and a dedicated Students’ Association building.
Almost two-thirds of the undergraduate programmes are accredited by professional bodies and more than half include work placement opportunities. This contributes to good graduate prospects; GCU’s performance on this measure outstripping its overall ranking.
The university is one of the largest providers of health-related graduates to the NHS in Scotland, covering a wide range of professions. As the only Scottish university delivering optometry degrees, for example, it trains 90% of the country’s eye care specialists. GCU has also launched its new Scottish Ambulance Academy, the only education establishment in the UK to be formally endorsed by the College of Paramedics and certified by the Health Professions Council.
The School of Engineering and Built Environment teaches three quarters of Scotland’s part-time construction students. Glasgow School for Business and Society boasts more undergraduates than any other business school in Scotland, with almost 1,000 in each year group. The university pioneered subjects such as entrepreneurial studies and risk management and offers highly specialist degrees, such as tourism management, fashion marketing, leisure management and consumer protection.
Half of the 14 subject areas in which the university entered the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise contained at least some world-leading work, with 30% of all researchers judged to have produced world-leading or internationally excellent work. Health subjects registered the best results and entered the largest numbers for assessment. There were particularly good results in rehabilitative health sciences, which covers long-term health conditions such as arthritis and strokes.
Widening participation in higher education has always been one of the university’s main aims. The flagship initiative, the Caledonian Club, works with children as young as three and their families in Glasgow and London. More than one third of the undergraduates are from working-class homes and about three-quarters are the first in their family to attend university.
The Advanced Higher Hub, opened in 2013, offers students in their final year at schools across Glasgow specialist teaching, access to GCU’s facilities and preparation for university life. The university has introduced a series of measures – such as better academic, social and financial support – for those at risk of dropping out. The projected dropout rate of 10.5% in the most recent survey is better than the UK average for GCU’s courses and entry qualifications.
The university has enjoyed a run of good results in the International Barometer survey for overseas students. It ranks second in the UK for international student satisfaction and top in Scotland for student support, accommodation costs and visa advice.Undergraduates are encouraged to participate in international exchanges and study abroad.
Glasgow itself is a lively city with a large student population, where the cost of living is reasonable. The relatively small amount of university-run student accommodation – there are places for 660 – is not the handicap it might be were there not such a large number of students recruited from the immediate area. Many live at home and there is a plentiful supply of affordable rented accommodation in the private sector.
GCU London also offers fashion business education in luxury brand marketing and management, luxury retail management and international fashion marketing at its British School of Fashion, launched in 2013. The university’s international flavour was already well established through the co-founding of the Grameen Caledonian College of Nursing in Bangladesh, an affiliation with an engineering college in Oman and partnerships in China, India, USA and South America.
Students closer to home are not being neglected, however. Work has begun this year on the £30m Heart of the Campus development which will transform the Glasgow campus. There is to be a striking new glass reception area and atrium, a 500-seat teaching and conference facility, and a new eating mall. Two of the main buildings will be renovated and better connected
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to the campus centrepiece, the award-winning Saltire Centre.The university has already spent more than £70m transforming its facilities into a single campus that does justice to a thriving institution of 17,000 mostly Scottish students. Development of the £1.2m Doble Innovation Centre for Online Systems is under way, which will create new research and student placement opportunities in the engineering sector. The campus includes the only INTO centre in Scotland, running preparatory courses for international students.
The health building brings together teaching and research facilities that include a virtual hospital. Other learning resources include multimedia studios, a Fashion Factory and an eye clinic equipped with latest technologies for teaching and research. Student facilities include the Arc sports centre, 24-hour computer labs, an employability centre and a dedicated Students’ Association building.
Almost two-thirds of the undergraduate programmes are accredited by professional bodies and more than half include work placement opportunities. This contributes to good graduate prospects; GCU’s performance on this measure outstripping its overall ranking.
The School of Engineering and Built Environment teaches three quarters of Scotland’s part-time construction students. Glasgow School for Business and Society boasts more undergraduates than any other business school in Scotland, with almost 1,000 in each year group. The university pioneered subjects such as entrepreneurial studies and risk management and offers highly specialist degrees, such as tourism management, fashion marketing, leisure management and consumer protection.
Half of the 14 subject areas in which the university entered the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise contained at least some world-leading work, with 30% of all researchers judged to have produced world-leading or internationally excellent work. Health subjects registered the best results and entered the largest numbers for assessment. There were particularly good results in rehabilitative health sciences, which covers long-term health conditions such as arthritis and strokes.
Widening participation in higher education has always been one of the university’s main aims. The flagship initiative, the Caledonian Club, works with children as young as three and their families in Glasgow and London. More than one third of the undergraduates are from working-class homes and about three-quarters are the first in their family to attend university.
The Advanced Higher Hub, opened in 2013, offers students in their final year at schools across Glasgow specialist teaching, access to GCU’s facilities and preparation for university life. The university has introduced a series of measures – such as better academic, social and financial support – for those at risk of dropping out. The projected dropout rate of 10.5% in the most recent survey is better than the UK average for GCU’s courses and entry qualifications.
The university has enjoyed a run of good results in the International Barometer survey for overseas students. It ranks second in the UK for international student satisfaction and top in Scotland for student support, accommodation costs and visa advice.Undergraduates are encouraged to participate in international exchanges and study abroad.
Glasgow itself is a lively city with a large student population, where the cost of living is reasonable. The relatively small amount of university-run student accommodation – there are places for 660 – is not the handicap it might be were there not such a large number of students recruited from the immediate area. Many live at home and there is a plentiful supply of affordable rented accommodation in the private sector.
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Detailed Statistics
PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE
CATEGORY
SCORE
RANK
Ranking
-
84 (81)
Student experience
79.2
98th=
Research quality
3
84th=
Ucas entry points
370
46th
Graduate prospects
67.9
53rd=
Firsts and 2:1s
68.5
55th
Completion rate
80.9
99th
Student-staff ratio
20.9:1
103rd=
Services/facilities spend (£)
1,588
56th
VITAL STATISTICS
Undergraduates
(Full-time)
10,855
Undergraduates
(Part-time)
2,530
Postgraduates
(Full-time)
1,450
Postgraduates
(Part-time)
1,090
Applications/places
21,850/3,695
Applications/places ratio
5.9:1
STUDENT CITIES
Michael Stephenson, students’ association president
Big city with a friendly atmosphere: on my first day, someone went a mile out of their way to show me where the local shop was.
There isn’t any student parking on campus, but the public transport links are good.
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Cost of living
Nightlife
Transport
Culture
ACCOMMODATION
FEES
Scots/EU fees
£0-£1,820
RUK fees
£7,000 (£25,000 max)
Fees (international)
£10,200-£14,500
Finance website
Graduate salaries
£19,673
BURSARIES/SCHOLARSHIPS
>
For RUK students, household income below £25K, £2,000 a year fee waiver to total of £6,000. £1,000 a year fee waiver to total of £3,000 for students with at least ABB at A Level or equivalent. Principal's Common Good Scholarship: 5 awards of full fee waiver for first-generation, talented students from low income households.
>
A range of scholarships and bursaries are available.
SPORT
Sports points/rank
161, 92nd
Sport website
Student satisfaction
90.0%
90.0%
88.6%
86.8%
83.9%
82.4%
82.3%
82.1%
80.8%
80.6%
79.9%
79.3%
77.2%
77.2%
75.7%
74.4%
74.0%
64.1%