The last university to retain the polytechnic title discarded it in 2005 to avoid confusion among employers and overseas applicants.

The former APU took the name of John Ruskin, who founded the Cambridge School of Art, which evolved into the university. Campus developments have continued apace since the change.

A new student centre on the larger of the university’s two main sites, in Chelmsford, houses support services as well as the normal union facilities, while the music and arts faculty building in Cambridge has new and enhanced teaching and practice facilities.

The university has also acquired the former Homerton College School of Health Studies in Cambridge, after a long period of partnership. A new health and social care building was added in Chelmsford in 2007, with bespoke counselling rooms, simulated hospital wards, operating theatres, and a complementary medicine suite.

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A £15-million faculty building, which includes a mock courtroom for law students, followed in September 2008. The 22-acre Rivermead campus also boasts an impressive business school and a sports hall.

Location

The region’s first polytechnic was an amalgamation of two well-established higher education colleges, but the twin bases in Chelmsford and Cambridge remain distinct. The two very different locations are far enough apart to limit contact, although electronic networking and a central administration mean that key academic facilities are available throughout the university.

The university has more than 24,000 full and part-time students who are taught primarily on the two main campuses, but also through a growing network of 16 regional partners. Anglia Ruskin has signed up to deliver higher-education courses in Peterborough, Harlow and King’s Lynn in partnership with local further education colleges.

East Anglia has always lagged behind other parts of England for participation in higher education and, although the university has continued to grow, it has sometimes struggled to fill its places.

Applications showed a spectacular 23 per cent increase in 2007 and have remained healthy since. Nearly all the students attended state schools or colleges and more than a third are from working-class homes.

Subjects

There were good reports, under the new healthcare assessments, for nursing and midwifery and allied health professions. Psychology, English and history produced the best grades in the latest research assessment exercise.

Management, biological sciences and social work were the best performers in the latest national student satisfaction survey.

The introduction of a benchmarking system to take account of the mix of subjects at each university saw Anglia Ruskin tumble down The Times League Table and it has made only a marginal recovery.

Each undergraduate has an adviser to help compile a degree package which looks at the chosen subject from different points of view to maximise future job prospects.

Jobs support

There is also an Employer Mentoring Scheme for second-year undergraduates planning for the transition from study to work. Each student is carefully matched with a mentor from their chosen career field who volunteers time to provide skills-building, support and encouragement.

Employers play a part in planning courses which are integrated into a modular system which extends from degree level to professional programmes, including a modest selection of vocational two-year Foundation degrees.

The Business School, for example, has developed a work-based course with Barclays Bank, where the students are sponsored and salaried for all three years. The programme is now being offered to other businesses in order to aid retention and staff development.

The social scene varies between the two campuses. There is limited collaboration with Cambridge University, for example on a new cricket academy and a base for Anglia Ruskin’s rowing club. Some students find Chelmsford dull, but the social scene is said to be improving. Neither base is far from London by train.

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