International students at the University of Glasgow are amongst the most satisfied in the UK with their choice of institution, according to the latest International Student Barometer (ISB) survey.

The Summer 2012 wave survey ranks international students at Glasgow the second-happiest in the UK amongst participating institutions with an overall satisfaction rating of 89% – just missing out on last year’s top spot – and an impressive third in the overall survey.

The survey, conducted by i-Graduate, canvassed the views of 27,841 international students at 56 universities across the world on their satisfaction with various aspects of their chosen university, ranging from the quality of lectures to how safe they felt in the town or city in which they are based.

The University of Glasgow has participated in the survey since 2006 and has once again performed very strongly. The top-line key figures showed overall satisfaction with the learning experience to be 87%, living experience at 89%, and support experience at 90%.

Importantly 85% of students would recommend Glasgow as a study destination – the highest recommendation rate for a participating Russell Group university and well above the ISB average score of 76%.

Some aspects and services of the University’s learning, living and support experience performed particularly well, including:

  • Online library – 93%, 1st in UK, 2nd in ISB (ISB average score: 86%)
  • Host culture – 88%, 1st in Scotland, 3rd in UK, 5th in ISB (ISB: 84%)
  • International student advisors – 94%, 1st in Scotland, 2nd in UK and ISB (ISB: 90%)
  • Barclay Medical Centre – 92%, 1st in ISB (ISB average 88%)
  • Students’ Representative Council – 96%, 3rd in Scotland and UK, 5th in ISB (ISB average 91%)

 

Professor Andrea Nolan, Senior Vice-Principal & Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Glasgow, said: “We are delighted to see another very strong performance in the ISB survey with international students indicating high satisfaction levels across the board.

“Staff across the University, as well as the SRC, are continually working to improve the student experience, from teaching to support as well as providing opportunities for international students to enjoy the cultural experience of Scotland during their time here.

“It is heartening to see our work being recognised and appreciated by our students. We are always listening to what our students have to say and will continue delivering improvements to the experience of studying at Glasgow.”

Other aspects with strong satisfaction levels included: expert lecturers (94%), Managing research (93%), academic’s English (92%), Library (91%), campus environment (93%), sports facilities (90%), faith provision (95%) and the Graduate School (92%).

A total of 1,313 students at Glasgow responded to the survey, a response rate of 20% against the ISB average of 17%.

First published: 19 November 2012

<< Nov