The University of Newcastle has gained top marks in two categories in the 2019 Good Universities Guide, released on Monday, which placed UoN in the top twenty per cent of Australian universities for overall student experience and social equity.
According to the annual index more than a quarter of the university’s undergraduate students were from disadvantaged backgrounds, earning it a fourth place in the Guide’s ‘social equity’ ranking in Australia, first in NSW.
The Guide stated 27 per cent of the university’s domestic undergraduate cohort was from low socioeconomic backgrounds, based on Department of Education and Training figures from the 2016 academic year.
The university matched its high ‘overall experience’ rating gained in last year’s Guide, finishing in the top 20 per cent of Australian universities for overall student satisfaction.
Five Star Rating, Social Equity
UoN received its top score in the ‘Social Equity’ index in The Good Universities Guide 2019.
Source: The Good Universities Guide 2019
UoN also retained its place in the top ten universities for teacher qualifications, with 80 per cent of academic staff holding doctoral qualifications, according to figures from 2016 used by the Guide.
A spokesperson from the University of Newcastle said the results showed the institution’s dedication to providing education to “talented students from all walks of life”.
“We are a sector leader in terms of the proportion of students from non-traditional backgrounds enrolled in our degrees, so this result is even further evidence of our dedication to supporting motivated and talented students regardless of their pathway to university,” she said.
Despite dropping from the top twenty per cent of universities for the ‘learning resources’ and student retention ratings since last year, Ross White, the head of data and analytics for Good Education Group, which produces The Good Universities Guide, said Newcastle’s results were stable.
“University of Newcastle’s results have remained steady in The Good Universities Guide 2019 compared to last year’s edition,” he said.
“Newcastle retained five-star ratings for Overall Student Experience and Social Equity, with the highest proportion of students commencing from a low socioeconomic background in New South Wales.”
The University of Newcastle
Rating information on the University of Newcastle from the 2019 Good Universities Guide.
Source: The Good Universities Guide 2019
The university’s weakest result was in learning engagement, with student feedback placing it in the bottom six of Australian universities.
The Good Universities Guide is published annually by Good Education Group. For more information visit www.gooduniversitiesguide.com.au.
This article originally appeared in the Newcastle Herald – University of Newcastle ranks highly in social equity rating
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