Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) has been shortlisted for the prestigious 'University of the Year' award at the Times Higher Education 2023 awards
ARU's nomination recognises our “exceptional performance during the 2021-2022 academic year,' and highlights our success in delivering high-impact projects during a time when the Covid-19 pandemic was still causing disruption.
ARU has also been shortlisted for 'Outstanding Contribution to the Local Community' (for the creation of ARU Peterborough) and 'Outstanding Contribution to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion' (for our SHoKE project).
ARU is dedicated to serving the region and the communities in which we are based. Our significant achievements in 2021-22 included the successful launch of ARU Peterborough, a new university designed from the ground up to meet the needs of local students, employers, and the regional economy.
In May 2022 our progress in growing the range, quality and impact of our research was recognised by its best ever ranking in the Research Excellence Framework 2021, with every subject area including research rated as ‘world-leading’. This followed the award of The Queen’s Anniversary Prize, which acknowledged the globally important work of ARU’s Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research.
And in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2022, ARU was ranked 1st in the UK and 20th globally for health and wellbeing. Our submission also highlighted the interdisciplinary Ruskin Modules and the Students at the Heart of Knowledge Exchange initiative, which in 2021-22 saw over 1,000 students tackle 60 complex challenges facing society, each set by local public sector partners. A fantastic achievement during a difficult year.
We also opened the UK’s first Samaritans university hub on our Cambridge campus, which sees fully trained student and staff volunteers deliver support to the public, and ARU’s Chelmsford campus hosted the most sustainable British Science Festival ever staged, attracting thousands of visitors.
ARU also continued to serve and enrich our region by being the largest university provider of initial police education and the largest provider of health and social work graduates in the UK (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2021).
This recognition clearly demonstrates how we deliver on our mission to serve our region and transform lives through innovative, inclusive and entrepreneurial education and research.
Visit THE University of the Year shortlist - ARU for more information. A short film showcasing our achievements can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/9ct3syztzsw
The Times Higer Education 2023 award winners will be announced at a special ceremony in Liverpool on 7th December 2023.
