Durham University

HISTORY

Durham University is a residential collegiate university with long traditions and modern values.

The oldest of the university’s 16 colleges, University College, was founded in 1832 at the same time as the establishment of the university (which is England’s third oldest Higher Education Institute after Oxford and Cambridge). The most recent is Josephine Butler College, founded in 2006.

In 1987 Durham Cathedral and Castle became a World Heritage Site, of which the university is a joint guardian.

In 2012 the opera singer, Sir Thomas Allen was appointed as the university’s 12th Chancellor.

The university is currently ranked 4th to 6th by recent national league tables of the British universities and in the top 100 in two of the three major global tables. In terms of average UCAS points of new entrants in 2014, Durham ranked 4th with the average entrant amassing 524 UCAS points.”Long established as the leading rival to Oxford and Cambridge”, the university attracts “a largely middle class student body” according to The Times‘s Good University Guide.

COURSES

The teaching departments of the university are divided into three faculties:

Faculty of Social Science & Health ·         Department of Anthropology ·         School of Applied Social Sciences ·         Department of Archaeology ·         Durham University Business School (Including the Economic, Finance and Business Departments) ·         School of Education ·         Department of Geography ·         School of Government and International Affairs (Including the Politics Department and the Institute for Middle East and Islamic Studies) ·         School of Medicine, Pharmacy and Health ·         Durham Law School

Faculty of Arts and Humanities ·         Department of Classics & Ancient History ·         Department of English Studies ·         Department of History ·         School of Modern Languages and Cultures (Includes Arabic, Chinese & Japanese, French, German, Italian, Russian and Hispanic Studies Departments) ·         Department of Music ·         Department of Philosophy ·         Department of Theology and Religion ·         English Language Centre ·         Centre for Foreign Language Study

Faculty of Science ·         School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences ·         Department of Chemistry ·         Department of Earth Sciences ·         School of Engineering and Computing Sciences ·         Department of Mathematical Science ·         Department of Physics ·         Department of Psychology

 

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Durham asks for a range of different entry requirements, depending on the programme applied for.

More information on entry standards at Durham University is available on the website.

ACADEMIC STRENGTHS

In the Complete University Guide 2016 Durham had 90% of its subjects ranked in the top 10.

In the Research Excellence 2014 (REF) departments that were highly rated include: Anthropology, Archaeology, Chemistry, Classics, Education, English, Law, Music, Physics, Theology.

TEACHING STANDARDS

Durham’s Business and Economics courses are accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the Association of MBAs (AMBA) and the European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS).

Other accrediting bodies include the Engineering Council and the British Psychological Society (BPS).

100% of their Education students said they were satisfied with the quality of their course in the National Student Survey three times in the last five years.

Durham’s primary education provision was rated as ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted at the last inspection.

88.4% of UK and EU graduates from Durham University secured employment or went on to further study in 2014.

CAREERS GUIDANCE

The Careers, Employability and Enterprise Centre (CEEC) provides a wide range of services including central programmes of and careers, employability and academic skills development alongside programmes within subject departments and in partnership with colleges and the student union. In addition, the service’s website and social media activity gives access to wide ranging resources, information, development activity and career planning support at all times.

Enterprise skills development and business start-up advice are also an integral part of the mainstream activity, and the service also provides a study skills programme.

In the 2015, the Careers, Employability and Enterprise Centre have organised 158 employer events, 83 skills development sessions and have had 182 individual organisations attending fairs. An online vacancy service provides access to thousands of job, placement, internship and work experience opportunities throughout the year.

The 2015 The Student Crowd survey rated Durham’s Careers Employability and Enterprise Centre as being in the top 3 in the country, with the best average rating for career opportunities. Many students left 5 start reviews for the level of support received.

According to the 2013/14 Destination of Leavers in Higher Education Survey, 88.4% of Durham students went into work or further study within six months of graduating (87.8% or first degree leavers, 91% of postgraduate research leavers and 89.7% of post graduate taught programmes).

The Careers Centre was also shortlist in the 2015 Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services Awards for Excellence for the employability programme for the Durham International Student Employability Programme, developed and delivered in partnership with the English Language Centre.