By Aalia Khan
Bradford university home to around 12-13,000 students has become one of the most well renowned universities not just in the UK but also worldwide.
The university, which will be celebrating their 50th anniversary next year, has gone from strength to strength over the generations and has put itself on the map with students attending the university from many countries such as; Nigeria, Kenya, China, Pakistan, Greece and France.
The Vice Chancellor of Bradford University Professor Brian Cantor says the main reasons that attract students from the UK and abroad to Bradford University are that “Bradford has been a university for a long period of time and become very well known worldwide; therefore people want to come here. It’s not the city that appeals to them; the primary reason is the quality of the university. And the secondary reason is the quality of the courses. We have particular programmes which are attractive to all students but particularly foreign students.”
Prof Cantor believes that the university has improved massively and this is evident with the amount of firsts and 2:1’s graduates are able to achieve. He says “We are a technology university, which is one that that delivers professional, vocational courses with good, strong job prospects. We also carry out applied research which is closely linked to activities in society. And we concentrate particularly on job producing courses for graduates which are professional and vocational ones, things like pharmacy, engineering, optometry and nursing where the qualification will get you into a job.”
The student satisfaction scores for the university have continued to improve as well as the ranking that the university received last year in the league tables in the Times, Guardian and the Independent. Prof Cantor says their scores in the ranking system went up by 5/10 places last year compared with the previous year. However Prof Cantor believes that these ranking systems do not measure as well as they should do as they do not take into account “Some of the things we do that that we are very good at.” He says at Bradford University they concentrate on “Getting jobs and doing research.” And as a technology university they use their research to help “Make things happen in society economically and by improving the society.”
The recognition of the university has enhanced with the several marketing campaigns they have carried out both within the UK and outside the UK, as the university is being promoted worldwide.
Within the UK the campaigns include a strong presence at higher education fairs across the country, open days, and raising awareness of “How attractive the city and campus is.” Outside of the UK they are also working on making links stronger and increasing the ongoing work to get the university well known. Professor Cantor says they aim to increase the number of students altogether that come to the uni by another 3-4000 over the next decade.
Around 15-20% of students who attend Bradford University are foreign students and the University has the “Highest employability record in Yorkshire” says Prof Cantor. According to the Professor the university is one of the best in the UK and their success over the 49 years has been proved, “In 50 years we’ve had 120,000 graduates who are now everywhere in the world doing every imaginable job, but all providing an impact on society. They are a massive force for good. And in the next 50 years we want to do more as we grow the amount of students and research we do.”
According to the Professor what makes Bradford University a great uni is that “Talented people can come and build their lives to then go out in the community, grow their own careers and do good things in the world.” He says “We would hope people have an enjoyable, exciting interesting and intellectual time here. And we also hope and believe that they will go on to get good jobs.”
Things you didn’t know about the Vice Chancellor of Bradford University:
- Favourite food – Anything and everything. If it’s well made I like it
- Favourite hobby – walking in the hills, mountaineering, playing the guitar and buying modern art
- Favourite place in Bradford? – Centenary Square
- Favourite film? – The Big Lebowski and Wages of fear which was made in the late 1950’s
- Favourite holiday destination? – Chamonix in the French Alps, Yosemite Park in California and cities with culture such as Paris, San Francisco and Sydney.
- What profession you wanted to go into as a kid? – rock climber or rock guitarist
