Huddersfield holds top spot for best qualified staff

Almost all academic staff hold doctorates and other higher degrees, according to the latest data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency

NEW figures have cemented the University of Huddersfield’s position as a top teaching and research institution.  Its staff are amongst the best qualified in the UK, with almost all of them now holding doctorates and other higher degrees.

Study at Huddersfield

The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) has released its latest survey findings, covering the academic year that concluded in 2019.  One table sums up the qualifications held by academic staff.

This shows that of the University of Huddersfield’s 925 lecturers, almost all of whom also carry out academic research, 685 (74.05 per cent) hold doctorates.  A further 210 staff have other higher degrees, meaning that the percentage of lecturers with extra academic qualifications is now 96.76 – the highest in the country.

Not only is the proportion of Huddersfield staff with doctorates one of the largest in the UK sector, it has shown a continual increase over recent years, with the equivalent figure in 2019 being 70 per cent.  The growth in doctoral qualifications is the direct result of a strategy that requires all lecturers to have a PhD or be registered to acquire one.

HESA also researched the proportion of HE staff who have teaching qualifications, where Huddersfield is long established as the front-runner.  The latest findings show that once again, with 94 per cent of its staff holding a qualification such as the Postgraduate Certificate in Education or a Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy, the University is unsurpassed.

Commenting on the latest HESA figures, the University of Huddersfield’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Tim Thornton, said: “Not only are we leaders for the proportion of colleagues with teaching qualifications, Huddersfield now has a higher proportion of academic staff holding doctorates than universities such as Imperial and Cambridge.  This is a really secure foundation for our commitment to inspiring global professionals.”