Huddersfield still top of UK table for best-qualified teachers

The latest data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) also demonstrate that 96 per cent of teaching staff at Huddersfield hold a higher degree, such as a Master’s or better

THE University of Huddersfield continues to top the table in a crucial official listing of the universities with the best-qualified teachers in the UK Higher Education sector.

Newly-released statistics show that 94 per cent of Huddersfield staff hold a teaching qualification, such as the Postgraduate Certificate in Education or a Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.  This is considerably higher than any other university.

The latest data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) also demonstrate that 96 per cent of teaching staff at Huddersfield hold a higher degree, such as a Master’s or better.  This is an increase of two percentage points since last year, meaning that Huddersfield remains ahead of any UK university, with only some small, specialist colleges returning better figures.

The new figures also show that 70 per cent of Huddersfield lecturers now have doctorates.  This has risen by almost four per cent over the past year, showing that the University’s strategy of requiring all lecturers to have a PhD or be registered to acquire one is bearing fruit.  It means that the proportion of staff with a doctorate is now on a par with that at Cambridge and ahead of institutions like Warwick, Birmingham, Leeds, LSE and UCL.  As more and more staff complete their research programmes, the figure – which has already more than doubled over the past seven years – will continue to rise.

The University of Huddersfield’s emphasis on highly-qualified lecturing staff has led to distinctions that include Gold status in the Teaching Excellence Framework introduced by the Government to “provide clear information to students about where the best provision can be found”.  Also, the University was the inaugural winner of the Global Teaching Excellence Award.

Delighted by the latest HESA figures, the University of Huddersfield’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Tim Thornton, said: “Our new strategy commits to inspiring global professionals – that’s why it matters that we are the leaders among UK universities for teaching-qualified staff, and ensure 100 per cent of academic staff hold or are registered for a doctorate so our students get a first-class education from people whose expertise includes original research in their subject areas.”