Media coverage of the University of Glasgow picked up considerably in September, following the traditionally quiet summer period. At the start of the month the Herald profiled the considerable efforts that have been made to encourage access from all backgrounds. Two substantial pieces commending our Top-Up scheme appeared in the Herald, along with an editorial which stated:

 “All universities should take encouragement from Glasgow’s Top-up success because it shows that disadvantaged 17 year-olds have the potential to become graduates of the highest calibre.” 

The launch of a new free and easy-to-access online resource on the People of Medieval Scotland site, formally launched by the Principal and the Cabinet Secretary for Education, drew extensive coverage and drove thousands of people to visit and use what is a remarkable site. On a related theme, September saw the first in a series of seminars that seeks to find out how the ordinary people of Scotland might have engaged in major historical events took place under the banner of Vox Populi. The Scotsman was chosen as our media partner for this.

There was also notable interest on the re-opening of the Hunterian and into research that found middle class teenagers identified with terms such as “ned” and “chav”, and on a study into missing persons which featured in a full page piece in the Guardian, other print and TV coverage and an interview on BBC Radio 5-Live.

International media coverage was also strong – for example, of the 21 stories that are currently listed on the Times of India’s education site’s UK section - http://www.myeducationtimes.com/section/95/UK - six are from the University of Glasgow.

Corporate communications staff offer guidance on all aspects of media engagement and would encourage colleagues to get in touch to discuss anything that might be of interest to a wider audience. The main office number is 0141 330 3535, but the following are the lead media officers for each college:

Stuart Forsyth, MVLS – 0141 330 4831; stuart.forsyth@glasgow.ac.uk

Ross Barker, Science and Engineering – 0141 330 8593; ross.barker@glasgow.ac.uk

Cara Macdowall, Social Sciences – 0141 330 3683; cara.macdowall@glasgow.ac.uk

Nick Wade – Arts – 0141 330 7126; nick.wade@glasgow.ac.uk

First published: 2 October 2012

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