TEACHING
QUALITY
Newman University, Birmingham
104
th
NATIONAL
RANK
RANK
52.7%
FIRSTS
2:1s
2:1s
77.2%
COMPLETION
RATE
RATE
Key Stats
n/a
40th=
STUDENT
EXPERIENCE
EXPERIENCE
117th=
RESEARCH
QUALITY
QUALITY
100th
GRADUATE
PROSPECTS
PROSPECTS
Contact details
ADDRESS
Genners Lane,
Bartley Green, Birmingham, B32 3NT View on map >
Telephone
Email
Website
Open days
October 4; November 14; April 24, 2015; July 4
University Profile
Newman offers one of the most generous academic achievement scholarship packages in British higher education to students with good A-level grades. To qualify for £10,000 of support over a three-year single or joint honours degree course, students do not even need an A grade – BBB is sufficient or alternatively ABC from A-levels taken in a single year.
For students drawn from schools within the Newman University Catholic Higher Education Network, the John Henry Newman Scholarships are worth £12,000. Separate (smaller) scholarships are offered to teacher trainees, the specialism for which Newman was originally best known.
Newman increased its intake of undergraduates by almost 25% in 2013, following the award of full university status. The increase was among the five biggest at any university and more than made up for a 19% decline when higher fees were introduced in 2012.
The institution is one of two Catholic foundations among the latest crop of institutions to be upgraded (Leeds Trinity is the other), taking its name from John Henry Newman, the author of The Idea of the University and a Catholic cardinal in the 19th century.
His vision of a community of scholars guides the university, which was established in 1968 as a teacher training college, but now has a wider portfolio of degrees, mainly in the social sciences and humanities.
The influence of John Henry Newman is evident in the small class sizes and interactive teaching style adopted by the university. Among the 18 subject areas are criminology, counselling, sport science, business and theology.
The university’s Catholic affiliation is stressed in its literature, but so is its commitment to be inclusive in its recruitment and subsequent activities. It says it is proud to welcome staff and students of all religions and backgrounds.
Based in Bartley Green, eight miles southwest of Birmingham city centre, the campus is in a quiet residential area with views over the Bartley Reservoir and the Worcestershire countryside beyond.
The modern buildings are arranged around a series of inner quadrangles of lawns and trees. A £20m development programme is now complete and includes an impressive new library and entrance building. The project has also added more lecture theatres, a research centre and a state-of-the-art sport performance suite.
Community sports facilities have also been refurbished. Newman received one of eight national awards to bring about change in the strategic approach to technology in learning and teaching. The university’s successful bid involves students producing their own online resources while learning about their subject, and consequently also improving their digital literacy, as well as their graduate employment prospects. The project started in 2013 and is part of a larger initiative called "Newman in the Digital Age", which aims to improve students’ digital literacy.
All full-time degrees include work placements, with students working with a wide range of employers including Aston Villa Football Club, Capital FM and Warwick Castle. There are also opportunities to gain work experience abroad and undergraduates can opt to study at a partner university in Europe or further afield to broaden their horizons and boost their CVs.
The degree options include one of the first business studies programmes to have an emphasis on business ethics, early childhood education and care, sports coaching science and combined honours in maths or chemistry in association with Aston University.
There is also a range of part-time courses and Foundation degrees, most of which are taught at Newman, rather than partner colleges. Many of the courses are recognised by professional bodies such as the Chartered Management Institute and British Psychological Society.
Newman has done well over a number of years in the National Student Survey, doing particularly well on personal development. However, scores have slipped this year and taken together with falls in graduate prospects, the completion rate, and the proportion of firsts and 2:1s achieved, this has led to Newman slipping 31 places in our university rankings.
Three-quarters of the 2,800 undergraduates are female, almost all of them state-educated. More than half come from working-class homes – only Greenwich has a higher proportion – while 22% come from an area of low participation in higher education, also in the top 10 in the country.
Psychology, education, sport and the early years are the university’s main research areas. Fewer than a dozen academics were entered for the last Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), when a quarter of the submission in education was considered "internationally excellent".
A specialist research centre for Children, Young People and Families will form the backbone of a much larger entry in this year’s successor to the RAE.
Halls of residence provide single study-bedrooms for 225 students, close to the teaching areas and library. First-year students are given priority in their allocation, but those coming through Clearing may have to live off campus.
The newly refurbished fitness suite and performance room have improved sports facilities that already included an artificial sports pitch, sports hall, gymnasium and squash courts.
The small campus on the edge of the Birmingham conurbation is inevitably somewhat quiet but the city centre, with its abundance of cultural venues and student-oriented nightlife, is about 20 minutes away for those who want something more lively.
For students drawn from schools within the Newman University Catholic Higher Education Network, the John Henry Newman Scholarships are worth £12,000. Separate (smaller) scholarships are offered to teacher trainees, the specialism for which Newman was originally best known.
Newman increased its intake of undergraduates by almost 25% in 2013, following the award of full university status. The increase was among the five biggest at any university and more than made up for a 19% decline when higher fees were introduced in 2012.
The institution is one of two Catholic foundations among the latest crop of institutions to be upgraded (Leeds Trinity is the other), taking its name from John Henry Newman, the author of The Idea of the University and a Catholic cardinal in the 19th century.
SHOW MORE
/> His vision of a community of scholars guides the university, which was established in 1968 as a teacher training college, but now has a wider portfolio of degrees, mainly in the social sciences and humanities.
The influence of John Henry Newman is evident in the small class sizes and interactive teaching style adopted by the university. Among the 18 subject areas are criminology, counselling, sport science, business and theology.
The university’s Catholic affiliation is stressed in its literature, but so is its commitment to be inclusive in its recruitment and subsequent activities. It says it is proud to welcome staff and students of all religions and backgrounds.
The modern buildings are arranged around a series of inner quadrangles of lawns and trees. A £20m development programme is now complete and includes an impressive new library and entrance building. The project has also added more lecture theatres, a research centre and a state-of-the-art sport performance suite.
Community sports facilities have also been refurbished. Newman received one of eight national awards to bring about change in the strategic approach to technology in learning and teaching. The university’s successful bid involves students producing their own online resources while learning about their subject, and consequently also improving their digital literacy, as well as their graduate employment prospects. The project started in 2013 and is part of a larger initiative called "Newman in the Digital Age", which aims to improve students’ digital literacy.
All full-time degrees include work placements, with students working with a wide range of employers including Aston Villa Football Club, Capital FM and Warwick Castle. There are also opportunities to gain work experience abroad and undergraduates can opt to study at a partner university in Europe or further afield to broaden their horizons and boost their CVs.
The degree options include one of the first business studies programmes to have an emphasis on business ethics, early childhood education and care, sports coaching science and combined honours in maths or chemistry in association with Aston University.
There is also a range of part-time courses and Foundation degrees, most of which are taught at Newman, rather than partner colleges. Many of the courses are recognised by professional bodies such as the Chartered Management Institute and British Psychological Society.
Newman has done well over a number of years in the National Student Survey, doing particularly well on personal development. However, scores have slipped this year and taken together with falls in graduate prospects, the completion rate, and the proportion of firsts and 2:1s achieved, this has led to Newman slipping 31 places in our university rankings.
Three-quarters of the 2,800 undergraduates are female, almost all of them state-educated. More than half come from working-class homes – only Greenwich has a higher proportion – while 22% come from an area of low participation in higher education, also in the top 10 in the country.
Psychology, education, sport and the early years are the university’s main research areas. Fewer than a dozen academics were entered for the last Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), when a quarter of the submission in education was considered "internationally excellent".
A specialist research centre for Children, Young People and Families will form the backbone of a much larger entry in this year’s successor to the RAE.
Halls of residence provide single study-bedrooms for 225 students, close to the teaching areas and library. First-year students are given priority in their allocation, but those coming through Clearing may have to live off campus.
The newly refurbished fitness suite and performance room have improved sports facilities that already included an artificial sports pitch, sports hall, gymnasium and squash courts.
The small campus on the edge of the Birmingham conurbation is inevitably somewhat quiet but the city centre, with its abundance of cultural venues and student-oriented nightlife, is about 20 minutes away for those who want something more lively.
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Detailed Statistics
PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE
CATEGORY
SCORE
RANK
Ranking
-
104 (73=)
Student experience
83.1
40th=
Research quality
0.3
117th=
Ucas entry points
302
94th=
Graduate prospects
57.2
100th
Firsts and 2:1s
52.7
116th
Completion rate
77.2
113th
Student-staff ratio
18.1:1
68th=
Services/facilities spend (£)
1,370
84th=
VITAL STATISTICS
Undergraduates
(Full-time)
1,690
Undergraduates
(Part-time)
675
Postgraduates
(Full-time)
300
Postgraduates
(Part-time)
160
Applications/places
2,835/675
Applications/places ratio
4.2:1
STUDENT CITIES
James Westwood, students’ union officer
The lecturers present themselves as friends and know your name almost immediately.
We’re not based in the city centre and evening buses aren’t that regular. If you share a taxi, it will cost the same anyway.
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Cost of living
Nightlife
Transport
Culture
ACCOMMODATION
FEES
UK/EU fees
£9,000
Fees (international)
£9,700
Finance website
Graduate salaries
£18,441
BURSARIES/SCHOLARSHIPS
>
Academic achievement and progression scholarships from £2,000 to £10,000 over three years, subject to conditions.
>
Academic, sports and other scholarships available.
SPORT
Sports points/rank
6.5, 120th
Sport website
Student satisfaction
87.7%
85.2%
83.5%
80.5%
78.3%