Exeter is one of Britain’s most popular universities in terms of first-choice applications, not only in its traditional strong suit of the arts, but increasingly in the sciences and social sciences as well.

More than a quarter of the undergraduates come from independent schools – a much higher proportion than the national average for the subjects Exeter offers, although this figure has been dropping.

Professor Steve Smith, the Vice-Chancellor, has put broadening the social mix at the top of his agenda, particularly targeting schools and colleges in the rural South West.

Location is partly responsible for the relatively rarified social mix. There is no large industrialised centre of population and despite sophisticated shopping and a lively entertainment scene, South West cathedral cities are not what every teenager is looking for.

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A dip in applications in the first year of top-up fees was reversed in 2007, with a 24 per cent increase, and the university outperformed most others at the official deadline for courses beginning in 2008. The biggest boom has been at the £100-million campus at Penryn, in Cornwall, where new degrees in law, history and politics and a range of combined honours degrees not available in Exeter have seen applications more than double.

The Camborne School of Mines, which has been a department of the university since 1993, is also based on the Cornwall campus, on a site shared with University College Falmouth. The other big development of recent years was the opening of Peninsula Medical School, in association with Plymouth University, in 2002.

Recruitment has been strong and Peninsula was the only successful bidder for a new dental school in 2006. The four-year Bachelor of Dental Surgery has an annual intake of 64 science graduates or health service professionals. The last research assessments were an improvement on 1996: only German was considered internationally outstanding, but another 18 areas reached the next highest grade.

Development

Physics and the biosciences are among the beneficiaries in the first phase of a £140-million investment programme to accompany the restructuring which saw the controversial closure of chemistry and music in 2004. The University made 182 new academic appointments in 12 months, including some 30 professors in a range of disciplines. Exeter is also leading a £14- million partnership of southwest universities, including Bristol and Bath, to boost research in areas of economic importance. Arabic and Islamic studies have benefited from support from the Middle East and in 2006 Exeter opened an office in Dubai as its Middle East base.

International

A longstanding international focus is exemplified by the popular European law degree. All students are offered tuition in foreign languages in the recently refurbished Foreign Language Centre and even some three-year degrees include the option of a year abroad. Language degrees scored well in the teaching assessments, with German achieving a perfect score, as did education and archaeology. English literature, drama, law, history and psychology are among the most heavily subscribed courses in their fields, and successful applicants appear not to be disappointed.

The 5 per cent dropout rate is among the lowest in Britain, and Exeter was among the leading universities in the first three national student satisfaction surveys, finishing in the top five in 2007. There were particularly good scores in sports science, finance and accounting, management, business and maths. Flexible combined honours, previously available only from the second year, is now available to first-year students.

Careers

Career management skills are built into degree programmes and students can gain work experience through the university’s employability and business project programmes. The Careers and Employment Service has been expanded to increase the work experience and placement opportunities available to students, 7,000 of whom undertook employability training in 2007. The main Streatham Campus, close to the centre of Exeter, is one of the most attractive in the country, with a lively campus social scene.

The highly rated schools of education, sport and health studies are a mile away in the former St Luke’s College. Some £38 million has been invested in new residential accommodation. The Students’ Guild had a £2-million revamp, and there has been a substantial investment in sports facilities. A new £2- million cricket centre will open in autumn 2008. Exeter is one of the UK’s top sporting universities and was placed 10th in the 2006–07 national rankings. The university’s students devote around 100,000 volunteering hours per year, the most in Britain, while participation in student societies and union activities is unusually high.

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