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Convocation

Convocation . Report by the Vice-Chancellor 15 June 2013. Context over the past year: New Fee Regime, and Deregulation of Student Numbers. Our recruitment effort under heading of Project 2012 First cohort of students under new regime arrived Sept 2012

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Convocation

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  1. Convocation Report by the Vice-Chancellor 15 June 2013

  2. Context over the past year: New Fee Regime, and Deregulation of Student Numbers • Our recruitment effort under heading of Project 2012 • First cohort of students under new regime arrived Sept 2012 • “Core & Margin” model: strong competition for AAB+ students • Outcome: • Slightly increased our AAB+ proportion, to 56.22% • Stable numbers in overall full-time intake • In the sector: Some surprising ups and downs • Widening participation outcome: • Overall WP performance very similar to 2011 • Excellent WP profile for students from North East (ahead of benchmarks) • International Students outcome: • Undergraduate intake increased by 22.4%

  3. Learning and Teaching • Continued progress in student experience (Project 2012): • 10,000+ lectures recorded for re-access by students (“Recap” facility) • One million page-views per week on “Blackboard” electronic facility • Funding from Higher Education Academy for “Parity of Esteem” project • 2013 Access Agreement approved by Office of Fair Access • Deregulation of numbers at ABB+ for 2013 entry • Student experience indicators • National Student Survey overall satisfaction score stable at 89%; ranked 14th in UK • Ranked 14th in Times Higher Student Experience Survey: 17th in Sunday Times University Guide • International Student Barometer: 1st/15 RG for library, learning technology, careers advice, work experience, eco-friendly attitude, living costs and support overall • Employability performance improved • 95.2% of 2012 graduates employed • 80.4% in graduate level jobs

  4. Research • Research income: a slight decrease, ~2.5%, to ~£86M • Research awards: a 5% increase, to ~£97M • 7th out of 101 institutions in UK for number of Knowledge Transfer Partnerships • Excellent progress in European awards • Both Framework7 and ERC grants • Signal Successes • Neptune National Centre for Offshore and Subsea Engineering, £7m • Drug Trials, with NHS Trust: Ariad & CRUK, £21.9m over 10 years • Prof Sugata Mitra wins TED Wish: $1m for “The School in the Cloud” • “REF” preparation main current focus (Submission in November)

  5. Engagement and Internationalisation • 3 Societal Challenge Themes launched and operational • Ageing (Prof Tom Kirkwood) • Sustainability (Prof Phil Taylor) • Social Renewal (Prof Mark Shucksmith) • British Science Festival, Newcastle Sept 2013 • 40% of programme Newcastle University • Science Central ‘open for business’ • Working with Newcastle City Council to mitigate culture cuts • Regional developments: MoU with Northumberland Council • First ever Chinese Graduation ceremony – Shanghai • 2 Overseas campuses fully operational • Singapore (Engineering) • Malaysia (Medicine) • Launched: Xiamen Univ Partnership and Confucius Institute

  6. Hitting the Headlines

  7. Financial sustainability • 2011-12 a difficult year • 7% (£8m) reduction in HEFCE grants, cuts in operating costs recovery on research and pressure on our costs reduced surplus by 43% • However work in earlier years enabled us to absorb the bad news • 2012-13 is proving rather better • Significant growth in research income (up 12% year to date) • Good result on student recruitment • Better than expected HEFCE funding • 2013-14 looks reasonable • Opportunity to invest in academic and IT infrastructure • Long term funding concerns • Increasing dependency on achieving student recruitment targets • Further rounds of public expenditure cuts likely in 2015-16 and beyond • Need to convince BIS and Treasury that we deliver value for money • Forthcoming Treasury Spending Review

  8. Environmental Sustainability • People and Planet Green League 2013: First Class Award, 15th in UK (up from 26th in 2012), 2nd in Russell Group • Dual accreditation - Platinum EcoCampus and ISO140001 • Completion of £4.4m boiler scheme saved 1,500t CO2 • Energy consumption contained despite new buildings • Water use reduced by a further 3.9% - 23.9% since 2008/9 • Recycling rates ca 93% • Proportion of staff travelling to work by car reduced from 40% in 2004 to 20% in 2012 • Biodiversity projects, including reduction of pesticide / herbicide use and creation of allotments, woodland corridors and wildlife friendly areas. • Launched Green Impact awards

  9. Estate • New Student Forum, completed July 2012 • More students living on campus • INTO Teaching Building and Residences (543 beds), completed Sept 2012 • New build on Park Terrace, and redevelopment of Kensington Terrace (June 2014) • Refurbishment of Grand Hotel (August 2013) • Libraries: • 24/7 term-time opening in 2012/13 • 300 Additional study spaces in Walton and Robinson Libraries • Armstrong Building refurbishment, Phase 2 completed June 2013 • Fine Art refurbishment – complete Jan 2013 • Science Central development: video

  10. Thank you to all staff, students, alumni, donors and supporters for the successes enjoyed by the University

  11. Questions to the Vice-Chancellor • From Mr Horace Regnart: “What can our immigrant Vice-Chancellor do to restore intellectual sanity and exorcise bigotry in respect of the misclassification of overseas students as immigrants?”

  12. Armstrong Building Redevelopment

  13. Armstrong Building Redevelopment - Phase 1 (2011) Spence Watson Lecture Theatre Computer Cluster New Seminar Room

  14. Armstrong Building Redevelopment - Phase 2 (2013)

  15. Entrance to Fine Art

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