Derby sees itself as a prototype for the modern university, providing courses at all levels from the age of 16 into retirement.

Although not as extensive as the original plans for spanning further and higher education in the same institution, a merger with High Peak College and the subsequent creation of the University of Derby College Buxton have stayed true to the model.

While accepting that Derby will never scale the heights in league tables such as ours, the university set itself the target of becoming the pre-eminent university of its type by 2020.

Its yardsticks are student satisfaction, employability and cost-effectiveness. As the only higher education college promoted to university status with the polytechnics, Derby had to run to keep up with its peers in its early days.

Expansion

Student numbers doubled in four years, the residential stock increased fivefold and extra teaching space was built.

The pace of expansion inevitably imposed strains, and at one time Derby was the only university with two Unsatisfactory verdicts in the teaching assessments, but scores improved subsequently. Indeed, after provision was rationalised, a failure in pharmacy turned into maximum points on re-inspection.

Business and theology also scored well, as did biosciences and other health subjects. The university takes pride in its record for widening access: it had the highest proportion state-educated undergraduates in 2005–06 in England – only 20 out of 2,795 entrants came from independent schools – and more than 4 in 10 are from working-class homes.

But the projected dropout rate was almost 23 per cent in the latest statistics, having recently dropped below the national average for the subjects and entry qualifications found at Derby.

University quarter

Development is still continuing, with a £21-million art and design campus bringing together courses previously spread around three different sites. The new site forms one part of a £55-million estates strategy that is creating a University Quarter for Derby.

The college already has a new home in the centre of Buxton, where the purchase of the Devonshire Royal Hospital for a nominal fee has provided an ideal centre for courses in tourism and hospitality management, as well as further education programmes.

The landmark building, which has a bigger dome than St Paul’s Cathedral, will house a 4-star training hotel and health spa, in addition to academic facilities. There are three main sites in and around Derby. The Kedleston Road campus, two miles north of the city centre, is the largest, catering for most of the main subjects as well as the students’ union headquarters and multifaith centre.

The £1.5-million Clinical Skills Suite was built to NHS “Red Book” standards, featuring hospital wards, counselling rooms and diagnostic radiography facilities. The Mickleover campus, which specialises in education and health, is also in a suburban location.

The university has also opened a new £400,000 centre in Chesterfield. Courses are modular and a foundation programme allows students to begin work at a partner college before transferring to the university. Derby has also awarded more work-based qualifications than any other UK university.

Placements

Distance learning is a growth area, either online or through Derby’s nine regional centres. Prospective students can even sample a virtual open evening. Business and management is by far the biggest academic area, but work placements are encouraged in all subjects. The accent on employability continues with an eight-week course on key skills, such as CV preparation and interview technique.

Derby has also been in the forefront of the adoption of new teaching methods, pioneering the use of interactive video for a national scheme. A variety of courses, from Foundation degrees to postgraduate qualifications, are available online. The School of Flexible and Partnership Learning, which spans the entire university, won an award for the imaginative use of distance learning.

The university has spent £30 million in five years to maintain its guarantee of accommodation for all first years. Students seem to appreciate the university’s efforts because Derby comes out well in its own satisfaction surveys, although this was not reflected in the latest national equivalent.

Law fared particularly well in the last two national surveys, with the most satisfied students in the country in the results published in 2007. The 3 per cent decline in applications at the start of 2008 was less than half the national average.

Times recommends

• Minister sacked over fake degree
• Student grant blunder will hit 80,000 families
• Half of Cambridge students admit cheating