Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) at Norwich University of the Arts

NUA has been awarded ‘Gold’ by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) in recognition of its excellent standard of teaching.

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) panel have identified teaching, learning and outcomes for students at NUA as being consistently outstanding. It is of the highest quality found in the UK, with only 26% of all providers awarded this accolade.

Vice-Chancellor, Professor John Last said: ‘We are absolutely delighted to have been awarded gold. It is an endorsement and recognition of the hard work and excellent teaching at NUA over a sustained period of time. Very high proportions of our students from all backgrounds consistently continue with their studies, achieve outstanding outcomes and progress to employment or further study, and most notably to highly skilled employment where we exceed the benchmark. We will continue to invest in the student experience and teaching excellence, contributing to the region and national and international arts.’

Alongside other universities in the UK, NUA’s undergraduate teaching has been assessed against ten criteria. The TEF Panel judged that, from the combination of evidence in the University’s metrics and written evidence, NUA merited a gold award. The TEF Panel found evidence of:

• Course design and assessment practices that provide outstanding levels of stretch for students through encouraging experimentation, creative risk taking and team-working skills that are most highly valued by employers.
• Exemplary employability initiatives that include the Ideas Factory^NUA.
• Investment in high quality industry-standard physical and digital resources that are actively and consistently used by students for creative work.
• A learning environment that is enriched by collaborative working, with staff who are professional practitioners in their own right, alongside frequent sessions provided by visiting lecturers and industry professionals.