University of Nottingham
Nottingham
Is the University of Nottingham considered to be a "prestigious" university.
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River85
Back in the late 90s and early 00s it went through a period of great development which lead it to become a "leading alternative to Oxbridge" alongside the London unis, Durham and Bristol. All unis have their periods of popularity and Nottingham soon passed to Newcastle and then Newcastle to Manchester.
To compare the popularity that Nottingham reached to that of Newcastle is quite misleading at best. Newcastle never reached the popularity or garnered the recognition that Nottingham did in the 90s and early 00s. Nottingham is well-respected in important sectors like law and banking.
To answer the original question, yes, Nottingham is a prestigious university which in my opinion borders the top ten. For some reason since my time at unviersity modern applicants don't seem to view it in as high regard but these things change like the weather. In the early 00s Durham for example went through a period where it was not partuclarly highly thought of, but has now from reading this website more than regained its reputation.
University of Nottingham
Nottingham
MMA
To compare the popularity that Nottingham reached to that of Newcastle is quite misleading at best. Newcastle never reached the popularity or garnered the recognition that Nottingham did in the 90s and early 00s. Nottingham is well-respected in important sectors like law and banking.
I never once said that Newcastle had the same "reputation" or prestige as Nottingham. That's very subjective. I also never said that Newcastle went through that massive growth Nottingham did or that it became an "Oxbridge alternative".
My point was more that you also have "in" unis, those that are particularly popular with applicants. It was Nottingham, then Newcastle......it keeps changing every two or three years. This is quite important as many of those who are replying now are sixth form applicants who weren't really aware of Nottingham's status in the past (or its status now in areas like law and banking where it arguably equals UCL, Durham, Bristol). So you'll get conflicting responses from them and those who applied six years ago or so.
Although Newcastle is still a strong uni and well targeted. It's not far behind Nottingham in law. It's well respected in engineering. The gap in banking's more considerable but that's down to a lack of demand amongst Newcastle grads as much as anything.
It isn't an "Oxbridge reject" uni. Well, only amongst old Harrow students who couldn't get into Oxbridge (or UCL/Durham/Bristol)
It does have quite a significant private school intake, more than unis of a similar size and strength like many of the redbricks. Never really understood why (I have my theory that it's because it looks like some of Harrow's buidlings, with its posh looking quadrangle).
you're never going to have employers sneer at you for having a degree from there. it's prestigious, and very good too.
shame it's in nottingham
shame it's in nottingham
River85
My point was more that you also have "in" unis, those that are particularly popular with applicants. It was Nottingham, then Newcastle......it keeps changing every two or three years. This is quite important as many of those who are replying now are sixth form applicants who weren't really aware of Nottingham's status in the past (or its status now in areas like law and banking where it arguably equals UCL, Durham, Bristol). So you'll get conflicting responses from them and those who applied six years ago or so.
Fair enough, I have to admit that I have not paid much attention for a while now. When I was last active on this part of the forum Nottingham would have been included in most people's top tens and the thought that Newcastle was anything but a solid redbrick would have been laughable. Just more evidence that things do change. What I can say is that Nottingham still outstrips Newcastle's reputation in the City, at least from my experience. And just to clarify I have never actually attended Nottingham, I did my undergrad at Bristol so I don't have a bias towards them or anything like that.
Difficult one this. Nottingham seems to be the only university in the top 20 or so universities that is actually going backwards at the moment. When I applied it was definitely seen as a top ten, on the Warwick, Bristol, Durham level, and most students who have just left university would agree. Also, coming from a public school, it definitely has a lot of reputation there as its kind of the place you go (along with Bristol, Durham, Exeter, EDinburgh) if you dont get into Oxbridge. However, it had dropped badly in rankings and todays new university entrants dont seem to hold it in much regard. TBH, its average ranking since they began in 1993 across all the various league tables s 11th (yes I calculated it, and yes that is sad), so it is a borderline top ten in that respect, and has tended to have entry standards and selectivity in the top ten, so by that measure yes it is prestigious. Personally I would say that apart from Law, Medicine, and Economics it has just dropped off the Bristol, Durham, Warwick level in recent years, and is now in the 10-12 bracket along with York, Edinburgh etc. The people who say that is 20ish must know very little about HE.
Also, dont forget that it punches above its weight in the employability aspect, and is very highly targeted by big companies, so must be doing something right, and according to the Times is ''the nearest thing Britain has to a truly global university,'' so its international prestige is much higher than a lot of others
In short, yes it is still prestigious because to most people it was the university ''that was really hard to get into.'' However, it better stop its slide soon as it might lose what 'prestige' it gained in the 90's and early 2000's
River's right, universities reputations change alot. Universities like Durham, St Andrews, Kings werent very highly thought of when I applied because they ranked badly (15-20) but now people seem to love them on here. Now universities like Notts, York and Edinburgh seem to have had a slump in reputation recently. Take York, it was seen as rivaling Warwick a few years ago, but nobody mentions it now and that seems really odd to me. Trust me, just look at ''what are the top ten'' threads on here a few years ago, Nottingham, York, Edinburgh beat Durham, St Andrews etc regularly. In ten years time Nottingham might be even better than it was a few years ago, you never know. The only universities that have guaranteed status are Oxbridge, Lse, Imperial
The fact that there are so many of these 'is Notts still prestigious'' and ''is it still a top ten'' are quite telling, as a lot of students are worried that they might have made the wrong choice in coming here. Looking at the university's response on its website to last years student satisfaction scores is quite revealing, as apparently one of the most frequently mentioned complaints was that the university is now doing **** in rankings, and that it is letting a 'lower class' of student in.
Also, dont forget that it punches above its weight in the employability aspect, and is very highly targeted by big companies, so must be doing something right, and according to the Times is ''the nearest thing Britain has to a truly global university,'' so its international prestige is much higher than a lot of others
In short, yes it is still prestigious because to most people it was the university ''that was really hard to get into.'' However, it better stop its slide soon as it might lose what 'prestige' it gained in the 90's and early 2000's
River's right, universities reputations change alot. Universities like Durham, St Andrews, Kings werent very highly thought of when I applied because they ranked badly (15-20) but now people seem to love them on here. Now universities like Notts, York and Edinburgh seem to have had a slump in reputation recently. Take York, it was seen as rivaling Warwick a few years ago, but nobody mentions it now and that seems really odd to me. Trust me, just look at ''what are the top ten'' threads on here a few years ago, Nottingham, York, Edinburgh beat Durham, St Andrews etc regularly. In ten years time Nottingham might be even better than it was a few years ago, you never know. The only universities that have guaranteed status are Oxbridge, Lse, Imperial
The fact that there are so many of these 'is Notts still prestigious'' and ''is it still a top ten'' are quite telling, as a lot of students are worried that they might have made the wrong choice in coming here. Looking at the university's response on its website to last years student satisfaction scores is quite revealing, as apparently one of the most frequently mentioned complaints was that the university is now doing **** in rankings, and that it is letting a 'lower class' of student in.
People who say its 'top 15' and not good enough for a 'top10' dont know whay they are talking about - that is way too much of a generalisation - its average rank is 11th, and it has ranked in the top 10 in around 1/3 of all rankings, which means it has quite a case for being a top 10 - plus bar 1 or 2 years it was in the top 10 for entry standards every year - according to Wiki it averaged 6th highest during the 90's. Therefore, yes it is prestigious because most people who matter are older than the average teenager currently applying who knew nothing of universities until this or last year, and know what Nottingham was - ie really competitive to get into and the fashionable university. Granted yes it has slipped because of bad rankings recently and the newbees take these as gospel and because Loughborough ranks better they think its now 'officially' better.
MMA is right - when i applied to Notts and went there it was 'the' place to go and had the most applicants - that one of the reasons i rejected Warwick, York and Bristol to go there (which are now seen as better by some for some reason). It annoys me, and lot of other Notts grads from the late 90's and early 00's that people are so dismissive of Notts all of a sudden. I spoke to a student recently who when i said i went to Notts a couple of years ago said, 'Oh thats ok, couldn't u get into Bristol or something like that' - which just pissed me off, because at least back then, and im sure it is still the case, that many Notts students rejected those places to go there.
This is what annoys me in the various 'Notts v' threads, where students from Kings, Sheffield, Loboro and the like dont understand what Nottingham was for a long time and are so dismissive of it - and because it now ranks 16th and behind their university by one place, they cant get their heads around why it could possibly be better for any reason. For example i full ynderstand why a Durham student would be annoyed if a Kigns student compared their universities, because the Durham student knows it was more of an achievement to gain a place at Durham. This is what annoys many of the thousands of Notts grad nowadays. I know thats superficial but hey ho. Afterall, is it really true that Nottingham as a university has gotten any worse - i think no is the answer, and rubbish league table measures are to blame.
Alot of people on here would be gobsmaked if they looked at the statistics from the mid 90's to mid 2000's- ie Notts entry standards always being top 6 and conistantly ranking in the top 10 - and when i mention these stats people genuinely believe that i am lying through my teeth, when im not - they just cant believe the facts because their opinions are colored by this years uni guide. What Warwick is now, Notts was only a few years and people just cant accept that. Its the same with York and Edinburgh, which for no reason have slipped in peoples opinions, whereas St Andrews has magically gone up to a 'solid top 10' - even though when i applied it certainly wasn't.
At least employers aren't so dismissive as most people on this forum, and continue to target Nottingham more than other top 10's like York, St Andrew, Edinburgh, e.t.c because they know what it is actually like.
rant over
MMA is right - when i applied to Notts and went there it was 'the' place to go and had the most applicants - that one of the reasons i rejected Warwick, York and Bristol to go there (which are now seen as better by some for some reason). It annoys me, and lot of other Notts grads from the late 90's and early 00's that people are so dismissive of Notts all of a sudden. I spoke to a student recently who when i said i went to Notts a couple of years ago said, 'Oh thats ok, couldn't u get into Bristol or something like that' - which just pissed me off, because at least back then, and im sure it is still the case, that many Notts students rejected those places to go there.
This is what annoys me in the various 'Notts v' threads, where students from Kings, Sheffield, Loboro and the like dont understand what Nottingham was for a long time and are so dismissive of it - and because it now ranks 16th and behind their university by one place, they cant get their heads around why it could possibly be better for any reason. For example i full ynderstand why a Durham student would be annoyed if a Kigns student compared their universities, because the Durham student knows it was more of an achievement to gain a place at Durham. This is what annoys many of the thousands of Notts grad nowadays. I know thats superficial but hey ho. Afterall, is it really true that Nottingham as a university has gotten any worse - i think no is the answer, and rubbish league table measures are to blame.
Alot of people on here would be gobsmaked if they looked at the statistics from the mid 90's to mid 2000's- ie Notts entry standards always being top 6 and conistantly ranking in the top 10 - and when i mention these stats people genuinely believe that i am lying through my teeth, when im not - they just cant believe the facts because their opinions are colored by this years uni guide. What Warwick is now, Notts was only a few years and people just cant accept that. Its the same with York and Edinburgh, which for no reason have slipped in peoples opinions, whereas St Andrews has magically gone up to a 'solid top 10' - even though when i applied it certainly wasn't.
At least employers aren't so dismissive as most people on this forum, and continue to target Nottingham more than other top 10's like York, St Andrew, Edinburgh, e.t.c because they know what it is actually like.
rant over
AfghanistanBananistan
People who say its 'top 15' and not good enough for a 'top10' dont know whay they are talking about - that is way too much of a generalisation - its average rank is 11th, and it has ranked in the top 10 in around 1/3 of all rankings, which means it has quite a case for being a top 10 - plus bar 1 or 2 years it was in the top 10 for entry standards every year - according to Wiki it averaged 6th highest during the 90's. Therefore, yes it is prestigious because most people who matter are older than the average teenager currently applying who knew nothing of universities until this or last year, and know what Nottingham was - ie really competitive to get into and the fashionable university. Granted yes it has slipped because of bad rankings recently and the newbees take these as gospel and because Loughborough ranks better they think its now 'officially' better.
MMA is right - when i applied to Notts and went there it was 'the' place to go and had the most applicants - that one of the reasons i rejected Warwick, York and Bristol to go there (which are now seen as better by some for some reason). It annoys me, and lot of other Notts grads from the late 90's and early 00's that people are so dismissive of Notts all of a sudden. I spoke to a student recently who when i said i went to Notts a couple of years ago said, 'Oh thats ok, couldn't u get into Bristol or something like that' - which just pissed me off, because at least back then, and im sure it is still the case, that many Notts students rejected those places to go there.
This is what annoys me in the various 'Notts v' threads, where students from Kings, Sheffield, Loboro and the like dont understand what Nottingham was for a long time and are so dismissive of it - and because it now ranks 16th and behind their university by one place, they cant get their heads around why it could possibly be better for any reason. For example i full ynderstand why a Durham student would be annoyed if a Kigns student compared their universities, because the Durham student knows it was more of an achievement to gain a place at Durham. This is what annoys many of the thousands of Notts grad nowadays. I know thats superficial but hey ho. Afterall, is it really true that Nottingham as a university has gotten any worse - i think no is the answer, and rubbish league table measures are to blame.
Alot of people on here would be gobsmaked if they looked at the statistics from the mid 90's to mid 2000's- ie Notts entry standards always being top 6 and conistantly ranking in the top 10 - and when i mention these stats people genuinely believe that i am lying through my teeth, when im not - they just cant believe the facts because their opinions are colored by this years uni guide. What Warwick is now, Notts was only a few years and people just cant accept that. Its the same with York and Edinburgh, which for no reason have slipped in peoples opinions, whereas St Andrews has magically gone up to a 'solid top 10' - even though when i applied it certainly wasn't.
At least employers aren't so dismissive as most people on this forum, and continue to target Nottingham more than other top 10's like York, St Andrew, Edinburgh, e.t.c because they know what it is actually like.
rant over
MMA is right - when i applied to Notts and went there it was 'the' place to go and had the most applicants - that one of the reasons i rejected Warwick, York and Bristol to go there (which are now seen as better by some for some reason). It annoys me, and lot of other Notts grads from the late 90's and early 00's that people are so dismissive of Notts all of a sudden. I spoke to a student recently who when i said i went to Notts a couple of years ago said, 'Oh thats ok, couldn't u get into Bristol or something like that' - which just pissed me off, because at least back then, and im sure it is still the case, that many Notts students rejected those places to go there.
This is what annoys me in the various 'Notts v' threads, where students from Kings, Sheffield, Loboro and the like dont understand what Nottingham was for a long time and are so dismissive of it - and because it now ranks 16th and behind their university by one place, they cant get their heads around why it could possibly be better for any reason. For example i full ynderstand why a Durham student would be annoyed if a Kigns student compared their universities, because the Durham student knows it was more of an achievement to gain a place at Durham. This is what annoys many of the thousands of Notts grad nowadays. I know thats superficial but hey ho. Afterall, is it really true that Nottingham as a university has gotten any worse - i think no is the answer, and rubbish league table measures are to blame.
Alot of people on here would be gobsmaked if they looked at the statistics from the mid 90's to mid 2000's- ie Notts entry standards always being top 6 and conistantly ranking in the top 10 - and when i mention these stats people genuinely believe that i am lying through my teeth, when im not - they just cant believe the facts because their opinions are colored by this years uni guide. What Warwick is now, Notts was only a few years and people just cant accept that. Its the same with York and Edinburgh, which for no reason have slipped in peoples opinions, whereas St Andrews has magically gone up to a 'solid top 10' - even though when i applied it certainly wasn't.
At least employers aren't so dismissive as most people on this forum, and continue to target Nottingham more than other top 10's like York, St Andrew, Edinburgh, e.t.c because they know what it is actually like.
rant over
As one of my tutors explained to me, it all works on "trends".
I did some research and you are absalutely 100 percent right, Nottingham through the 90's was the 6th best university in the uk, it was a hip prestigious and popular place to go and in my opinion still is. yes it has slipped in the rankings slightly, but a uni that has been up there for so long wont lose prestige just because the rankings reflect a slightly lower position, and from what ive seen rankings wieght things like student satisfaction higher than other things nowerdays, fluctuating results ie. loughborough which many say is only in the top 20 because of its very good student satisfaction, all in all i think ive answered my own question that Nottingham university is a prestigious university.
Hedgehunter
No, but its not bad: Its top 15 I think!
I would say "prestigious" is Oxbridge, Imperial, LSE....and thats it. UCL, Bristol and Durham are only very very good.
I would say "prestigious" is Oxbridge, Imperial, LSE....and thats it. UCL, Bristol and Durham are only very very good.
I agree with Oxbridge, Imperial, LSE.. But Durham? lol.. Not quite sure on that.
Nottingham is quite good i say, i got an offer from them, but decided to reject them.
To answer the OP question, nottingham is a good uni, however i dislike the location. People are also quite nice.
at the end of the day an employer isn't going to refuse you a job because you went to nottingham, not bristol, durham, UCL etc (what some of you regard as more prestigious unis)
yes, it is obvious that oxbridge and LSE are in a league of their own but people get too caught up in league tables
it's going to come down to what you get at the end of it (i.e you need a 2:1 or better), and how you perform in an interview
yes, it is obvious that oxbridge and LSE are in a league of their own but people get too caught up in league tables
it's going to come down to what you get at the end of it (i.e you need a 2:1 or better), and how you perform in an interview
BTW doesnt Nottingham have the worst rates of violent crime outside of South London?
omg i just remembered, nottingham is reffered to as shottingham 
lyrical17
As one of my tutors explained to me, it all works on "trends".
I did some research and you are absalutely 100 percent right, Nottingham through the 90's was the 6th best university in the uk, it was a hip prestigious and popular place to go and in my opinion still is. yes it has slipped in the rankings slightly, but a uni that has been up there for so long wont lose prestige just because the rankings reflect a slightly lower position, and from what ive seen rankings wieght things like student satisfaction higher than other things nowerdays, fluctuating results ie. loughborough which many say is only in the top 20 because of its very good student satisfaction, all in all i think ive answered my own question that Nottingham university is a prestigious university.
I did some research and you are absalutely 100 percent right, Nottingham through the 90's was the 6th best university in the uk, it was a hip prestigious and popular place to go and in my opinion still is. yes it has slipped in the rankings slightly, but a uni that has been up there for so long wont lose prestige just because the rankings reflect a slightly lower position, and from what ive seen rankings wieght things like student satisfaction higher than other things nowerdays, fluctuating results ie. loughborough which many say is only in the top 20 because of its very good student satisfaction, all in all i think ive answered my own question that Nottingham university is a prestigious university.
Wrong, Loughborough's excellent teaching record and QAA teaching scores placed it 2nd overall behind Cambridge. That’s one good reason why it ranked so highly. It has done very well in the latest RAE being just about equal to Nottingham. It won the prestigious Sunday Times University of the year. Also This year Loughborough saw a 19% increase in applicants to the University and is getting increasingly much more competitive year on year. The University has been awarded six Queen's Anniversary Prizes – an achievement bettered by no other institution. To say Loughborough does not deserve it's league table place is naive since it has been in the top 15 for 8 years running. Thanks to an impressive RAE it isn't going to slip out of the top 15 anytime soon either.
Top 10 institutions have an ongoing trend of extremely strong research quality (RAE), high 430+ entry tariff, and superb teaching scores in the QAA. Nottingham has a good standard in all of these areas but none are strong enough to make it one of the Top 10 institutions in the UK. It's previous reputation is nothing that Edinburgh or KCL can't better tbh. It used to be very competitive for places, but that was more down to Nottingham being 'The' student city rather than purely academic prestige.
This is where you are wrong. You do realise that Nottingham, behind Cambridge and Manchester had the most number of highest rated QAA departments in the UK - and according to THES stats throughout the 90's was in the top 10 for teaching scores. Also it was never out of the top 10 from 1994 - 2007 for entry tariff. Granted its research was not top 10, but its does get the 4th highest research grants from private industry. Therefore, on 2 of the 3 measures you say, Nottingham is a top 10 university and was for over 15 years.
It has just slipped in rankings because universities like Loughborough have over taken due to student satisfaction - if you go to the independent rankings and take student satisfaction out Nottingham jumps right rom 16th to 11th or somehting like that because it overtakes all these universities again. People just see Nottinghams current rank of 13/16 and neglect to realise that it is its 2nd worse rank ever, and think this is where it usually is. Also they see that it's tariff has dropped below 427 for the first time and assume that it was always 406. which is just not the case (funnily enough Notts own stats say its 406 and so do the independent, whereas the tiems say 403 for some reason).
All i say is that places like Kings and Loughborough have never perforemd as well as Nottingham in rankings and competivness of entry over the years - yes Kings did this year (only according to times stats) - but people forget that the only reason for Notts drop was the Shottingham thing and a 35% drop in applicants in 2 years - which inevitably dropped its tariff. I emailed Notts staff member and he said the university is really annoyed by that and as applicants are going up again now he expects the tariff go go back into the top 10 - i guess we will have to wait and see.
I suggest you look up the statistics i mention because you will realise that these stats are right - the THES has an archive if i remember and this is where i got all the stats from the early 90's to mid 00's,
It has just slipped in rankings because universities like Loughborough have over taken due to student satisfaction - if you go to the independent rankings and take student satisfaction out Nottingham jumps right rom 16th to 11th or somehting like that because it overtakes all these universities again. People just see Nottinghams current rank of 13/16 and neglect to realise that it is its 2nd worse rank ever, and think this is where it usually is. Also they see that it's tariff has dropped below 427 for the first time and assume that it was always 406. which is just not the case (funnily enough Notts own stats say its 406 and so do the independent, whereas the tiems say 403 for some reason).
All i say is that places like Kings and Loughborough have never perforemd as well as Nottingham in rankings and competivness of entry over the years - yes Kings did this year (only according to times stats) - but people forget that the only reason for Notts drop was the Shottingham thing and a 35% drop in applicants in 2 years - which inevitably dropped its tariff. I emailed Notts staff member and he said the university is really annoyed by that and as applicants are going up again now he expects the tariff go go back into the top 10 - i guess we will have to wait and see.
I suggest you look up the statistics i mention because you will realise that these stats are right - the THES has an archive if i remember and this is where i got all the stats from the early 90's to mid 00's,
130ss
I agree with Oxbridge, Imperial, LSE.. But Durham? lol.. Not quite sure on that.
What do you mean? Durham's deserves to be considered prestigious (when Bristol and UCL don't). I find that highly questionable and complete crap in my opinion. If you mean Durham isn't very, very good (and that UCL, Bristol, Durham, Warwick etc. are fairly equal) then this is also crap
Hedgehunter
BTW doesnt Nottingham have the worst rates of violent crime outside of South London?
It has some high rates of violent crap, specfically gun crime, yes. But then all major cities have a high rate of crime, particularly deprived areas. I'd say cities like Newcastle and Sheffield, possibly Bristol, are the exceptions (being major cities who, overall, have compartively low crime rates).
There are far worse areas than any part of Nottingham (especially around the uni) and it's unlikely that any Nottingham student will ever witness a violent crime (particularly shooting or stabbing) let alone be the victim of one.
It's not really that special (that one of our top unis can match or better Oxford or Cambridge (or both) in research. It happens in almost every discipline. Not just your LSEs, Imperials, Durhams, Bristols, Warwicks etc. but also Cardiff, Sheffield, Newcastle, Manchester down to even small, less "prestigious" unis like Reading.
Oxford and Cambridge aren't head and shoulders above the rest like some think. Not in terms of research quality (and arguably teaching quality and resources).
Not that I'm saying Nottingham's economics department isn't good, it's one of the top in the country.
This is a long post, so bear with me.
Not reputation as such, just popularity (the two aren't interchangeable as I'll explain). Nottingham experience a massive rise in popularity and then the inevitable dip. Newcastle then experienced a significant rise in applications (due largely to its party city image) then fell. It'll probably happen to two or three unis over the next ten years.
Durham, KCL and St Anderws were perhaps not well thought of by applicants (though I could still contest this). But then they are generally cluless about unis and their history and strength and rely too much on league tables. But even back then (2002) Durham must have been popular with applicants as, along with LSE, Warwick, Nottingham and Bristol, Durham had the highest typical offers outside Oxbridge.
Back in the late 90s, when Durham was only around 19th and had modest typical offers, it will still recognised as being one of the top unis in the country by academic peers and the establishment in general. To quote a newspaper article from 1999, when Prince William allegedly placed Durham on his uni shortlist: -
"Despite slipping five places to 18th in this year's university league table, Durham is still regarded as one of Britain's best."
Now, applicants who only really go by league tables may not have seen it like that (I imagine it would have been different amongst the privately educated who'd be more informed, especially as their parents attended uni and possibly even Durham). But the point is Durham graduates were well represented in the elite sections of society and this was recognised. Many members of the public had some vague idea of it being a top, prestigious uni.
Now I'm not using this as an opportunity to "big up Durham" as it's important I set this out before turning to Nottngham.
I really don't see why you're so upset about Nottingham's standing. We both know that it's only really been during the 90s and early part of this decade that it really built up this popularity and "prestige". So it's achieved a hell of a lot in such a short time. It's still very recent and hasn't had the same time that Durham, London or Bristol have to establish themsleves or curry favour with the upper classes and the establishment. But it has still built such a name for itself that it's arguably right up there alongside UCL, Durham and Bristol in law and also in IB (possibly even has the edge over some of those in IB). This is during a shorter time frame. As they years go buy and its representation in the bar, banking and business (politics and the media too as these are quite influential) then
It's gone down a few places in a league table. I don't think its teaching quality has suffered. Its research quality hasn't (as far as I'm aware), I don't think its peer reviews have and it's still one of the most heabily targeted universities in the country. So why the fuss over a few places in league tables (whose measures can change year on year)? I really don't think they've been lowering standards and have a academically inferior students when compared to UCL's, Warwick's, Durham's and Bristol's.
If it continues to establish itself in law, banking the media and politics it will continue to be influential. Just like Durham had most positions in the first few years of the league tables, but was still considered to be an excellent university, Nottingham hasn't suddenly fallen out of favour. It's lost some of its favour amongst applicants but this is inevitable. They probably couldn't sustain it. I don't think the quality of student has significantly declined post 2006.
Broadsword
River's right, universities reputations change alot. Universities like Durham, St Andrews, Kings werent very highly thought of when I applied because they ranked badly (15-20).
River's right, universities reputations change alot. Universities like Durham, St Andrews, Kings werent very highly thought of when I applied because they ranked badly (15-20).
Not reputation as such, just popularity (the two aren't interchangeable as I'll explain). Nottingham experience a massive rise in popularity and then the inevitable dip. Newcastle then experienced a significant rise in applications (due largely to its party city image) then fell. It'll probably happen to two or three unis over the next ten years.
Durham, KCL and St Anderws were perhaps not well thought of by applicants (though I could still contest this). But then they are generally cluless about unis and their history and strength and rely too much on league tables. But even back then (2002) Durham must have been popular with applicants as, along with LSE, Warwick, Nottingham and Bristol, Durham had the highest typical offers outside Oxbridge.
Back in the late 90s, when Durham was only around 19th and had modest typical offers, it will still recognised as being one of the top unis in the country by academic peers and the establishment in general. To quote a newspaper article from 1999, when Prince William allegedly placed Durham on his uni shortlist: -
"Despite slipping five places to 18th in this year's university league table, Durham is still regarded as one of Britain's best."
Now, applicants who only really go by league tables may not have seen it like that (I imagine it would have been different amongst the privately educated who'd be more informed, especially as their parents attended uni and possibly even Durham). But the point is Durham graduates were well represented in the elite sections of society and this was recognised. Many members of the public had some vague idea of it being a top, prestigious uni.
Now I'm not using this as an opportunity to "big up Durham" as it's important I set this out before turning to Nottngham.
I really don't see why you're so upset about Nottingham's standing. We both know that it's only really been during the 90s and early part of this decade that it really built up this popularity and "prestige". So it's achieved a hell of a lot in such a short time. It's still very recent and hasn't had the same time that Durham, London or Bristol have to establish themsleves or curry favour with the upper classes and the establishment. But it has still built such a name for itself that it's arguably right up there alongside UCL, Durham and Bristol in law and also in IB (possibly even has the edge over some of those in IB). This is during a shorter time frame. As they years go buy and its representation in the bar, banking and business (politics and the media too as these are quite influential) then
It's gone down a few places in a league table. I don't think its teaching quality has suffered. Its research quality hasn't (as far as I'm aware), I don't think its peer reviews have and it's still one of the most heabily targeted universities in the country. So why the fuss over a few places in league tables (whose measures can change year on year)? I really don't think they've been lowering standards and have a academically inferior students when compared to UCL's, Warwick's, Durham's and Bristol's.
If it continues to establish itself in law, banking the media and politics it will continue to be influential. Just like Durham had most positions in the first few years of the league tables, but was still considered to be an excellent university, Nottingham hasn't suddenly fallen out of favour. It's lost some of its favour amongst applicants but this is inevitable. They probably couldn't sustain it. I don't think the quality of student has significantly declined post 2006.
River85
What do you mean? Durham's deserves to be considered prestigious (when Bristol and UCL don't). I find that highly questionable and complete crap in my opinion. If you mean Durham isn't very, very good (and that UCL, Bristol, Durham, Warwick etc. are fairly equal) then this is also crap
.
.
Durham is not a prestigious uni.. UCL and warwick are good > durham.. but still not prestigious.. Imperial, oxbridge, LSE... these are prestigious..
130ss
Durham is not a prestigious uni.. UCL and warwick are good > durham.. but still not prestigious.. Imperial, oxbridge, LSE... these are prestigious..
Whenever anyone tries to say uni x > uni y I always know that either they're trolling or just ignorant. Higher education is complex, you can't just boil it down to such simplified terms.
Oxford, Cambridge
LSE and Imperial (as specialist institutions)
UCL, Warwick, Duham, Bristol, Nottingham......I really don't think the difference between them is particularly great overall. UCL gives some advantages due to its size it can offer a wider range of programmes that many others can't. It's also in London which doesn't do any harm reputation or facilities-wise. But for undergraduate education really don't think it's stronger amongst most of its students, weaker in some (particularly engineering).
Warwick doesn't even offer many social sciences (a tiny number compared to Durham's and Nottingham's with most of Durham's "top three to five" departments and Nottingham are no slackers, especially in economics) and it's no stronger than unis like Durham or Bristol in the arts and sciences. Actually, Durham, Bristol and probably Nottingham have more than an edge in the sciences and engineering. Warwick's saving grace is its economics and maths departments. It's top class in these, especially maths, but outside those it's no stronger than the other provincial unis (and weaker in some respects).
Stop bandying terms like "prestigious" around unless you define them first and then are willing to back your arguments up. Many would say Durham (or UCL, Warwick etc.) are prestigous and many don't. Doesn't that tell you it's all just subjective, abstract crap?
Durham and UCL are prestigious in law, and, most importantly Nottingham too. Warwick is, but arguably slightly less so (it's not helped by its lack of age compared to the other unis).
Broadsword
The fact that there are so many of these 'is Notts still prestigious'' and ''is it still a top ten'' are quite telling, as a lot of students are worried that they might have made the wrong choice in coming here. Looking at the university's response on its website to last years student satisfaction scores is quite revealing, as apparently one of the most frequently mentioned complaints was that the university is now doing **** in rankings, and that it is letting a 'lower class' of student in.
Where did you find that information about the Student Satisfaction scores? I've been on unistats.com, but they don't go into much info.
Hiphopopotamus
Where did you find that information about the Student Satisfaction scores? I've been on unistats.com, but they don't go into much info.
go to www.nottingham.ac.uk/planning (I think)
there they have the mintues to meetings where they discuss the universities performance in things like rankings student satisfaction scores etc...
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