We are proud to be an internationally recognised and award winning institution with a heritage of quality education going back more than 100 years. We appear in the Times Higher Education World University rankings, ranked as one of the top 300 universities in the world under 50 years old in the Young University rankings. In 2021 we were extremely proud to have received a first class award in the People and Planet University Green League, retaining our position of 8th place out of 154 UK institutions. In 2020 we launched our Target Zero campaign with the aim to become carbon neutral by 2050 and our commitment to sustainability has been recognised with an Eco Campus Platinum award for two years running. At Bedfordshire we have a vibrant and cosmopolitan student population that includes around 20,000 students from over 100 countries. We are a modern university that believes in nurturing our students to become educated, employable and entrepreneurial global citizens. We lead the way in expanding educational opportunity; with more than 40% of our students coming from families with no history of participation in higher education. Around 70% are mature returners to education and over half are from Black or ethnic minority backgrounds, under-represented in higher education. In 2021, we were named in a report by the Sutton Trust as one of England’s Top 25 universities to have successfully contributed to an increase in social mobility amongst disadvantaged young people in England. We have also rated highest in the East of England for ‘access to education’ and are in the Top 10 of this category for the whole country – one of only two universities situated outside of London.The University of Bedfordshire is a public research university with campuses in Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire, England. The University has roots from 1882, however, it gained university status in 1993 as the University of Luton. The University changed its name to the University of Bedfordshire in 2006 by the approval of the Privy Council, following the merger of the University of Luton and the Bedford campus of De Montfort University. It is spread across five campuses: there are three in Bedfordshire, in Bedford and Luton; and two in Buckinghamshire, in Aylesbury (for students studying Nursing and Midwifery), and in Milton Keynes. It is also active in London and Birmingham, as well as globally, with a growing portfolio of international partnerships as far afield as Egypt, Vietnam, Oman and Mauritius. The University entered the Research Assessment Exercise in 2014 and achieved an improvement of 22 places in the REF Power Ranking – the fourth largest improvement in the sector with nearly half of its research considered to be world leading or internationally excellent. In 2012 it achieved FairTrade status. The University has also come eighth in the UK in the People and Planet University Green League in 2019 and received the Eco Campus Platinum award in 2020. The University of Bedfordshire has a vibrant and cosmopolitan student population that includes more around 20,000 students from over 100 countries, working collaboratively with around 40 academic partners, both in the UK and overseas, to deliver a range of course from foundation degrees to doctorates. More than 40% of its student population come from families with no history of participation in higher education. Around 70% are mature returners to education and over half are from black or ethnic minority backgrounds. Appointed in 2020, the current Vice Chancellor is Professor Rebecca Bunting. The most recent Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire was John Bercow, the former Speaker of the House of Commons.We have two main campuses in Luton and Bedford, with a large health teaching provision in Aylesbury at the world renowned Stoke Mandeville Hospital. We are also active in Milton Keynes, London and Birmingham, as well as globally, with a growing portfolio of international partnerships as far afield as Egypt, Vietnam, Oman and Mauritius. We support our students in all aspects of their life and encourage through the excellent services we provide:Superb, modern facilities across all our subject areasStudy skills developmentCareer and job-seeking guidanceVolunteer and work experienceHealth and wellbeing servicesModern accommodationPersonal tutorsInternational education partners with opportunities to study overseasOur pioneering research into child sexual exploitation was named as one of the UK’s 100 best breakthroughs for its significant impact on people’s lives, as was our work on an international research project to develop the world’s first culturally aware robots. Our Research Institutes work to tackle real-world problems and challenges faced by our communities, providing an evidence base for changes to government legislation. Some of our more recent projects include Home Office funding to undertake work on modern slavery, the policing of cyber-harassment, and research commissioned by the Children’s Society showing the impact of excluding separated migrant children from legal aid. Over the past three years we have worked with over 1,500 organisations, including other universities, charities, Government organisations and local businesses on areas of research and knowledge exchange generating a 49% increase in research and knowledge exchange income since 2013.Why Bedfordshire?Commended by the QAA for the high quality and standards of our higher education provision (QAA 2015)Top 300 University under 50 years old (THE 2021)One of 21 Business Schools awarded the Bronze Award for start-up and business growth advice (Small Business Charter)8th in the country in the University Green League (People and Planet 2021)Eco Campus Platinum award (2021)Continued investment in facilities for our students. Most significantly we opened a £40m STEM building at our Luton campus in 2019.At the University of Bedfordshire we recognise our potential to make a real impact within our communities. We contribute significantly to the financial and social regional economic growth, both locally and nationally (around £370m Gross Value Added from our core economic footprint). In addition to our role as a large employer and educator, we are committed to working in partnership with our local area, boosting skills and productivity through knowledge exchange, skills provision, expertise in research and consultancy and also by associating ourselves with many community organisations, projects and initiatives. We help to attract regeneration and development funding into the region and have grown this income by 25% in the past five years. In 2021 we were named as one of the top universities in the UK for fostering start-ups. Using data collected by HESA and analysed by Tide business bank, we celebrated being ranked 4th out of 50 higher education institutions to have produced the most graduate start-ups since 2014/15 and, over the past seven years, Bedfordshire has helped to create 870 start-ups in and beyond the East of England region.In 2000, the University of Luton was ranked 83 out of 93 British universities by The Times in their annual university ranking, rising to 72 out of 101 two years later. The Sunday Times awarded the University of Luton the title of Best New University in 2004 (prior to the purchase of the Bedford campus and rebranding). The QAA conducted a thorough institutional audit of the university as a whole in 2005 (prior to the merger of the University), which resulted in the audit team's questioning of the academic standards of its awards and its lack of confidence in the university's quality standards. However, after the audit was taken, the QAA was provided with information that indicates that appropriate action was taken by the university in response to the findings of this report. As a result, the audit was signed off in July 2007. The University was subsequently commended by the QAA for the high quality and standards of our higher education provision in 2015. The University appears in Times Higher Education World University rankings, is ranked as one of the top 300 universities in the world under 50 years old in the Young University rankings, and was awarded Silver in the first ever Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) in 2017. The University hosts the National Centre for Cyberstalking Research, opened in 2012, which carried out the first British study of cyberstalking and other forms of harassment online. In 2012, it established a UNESCO chair in New Media Forms of the Book to analyse trends in the use of electronic media, mobile media, and Internet technologies through research and practice.
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With one week to go until A Level Results day (18th August), the University of Bedfordshire has helped to make the Clearing process clearer by offering VIP Access for all prospective students so they can go on to ‘Defy Expectations’.
Read more →The July graduation ceremonies for the University of Bedfordshire’s Class of 2022 have concluded with a traditional Civic Ceremony in Luton.
Read more →An undergraduate student from the University of Bedfordshire has landed a year-long internship with The Walt Disney Company, working across the company’s vast video game portfolio.
Read more →Applications are now open for a new undergraduate degree from the University of Bedfordshire which aims to give future teachers,
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