Aberystwyth University Explained

Aberystwyth University
Native Name:Prifysgol Aberystwyth
Native Name Lang:cy
Motto:Welsh: Nid Byd, Byd Heb Wybodaeth
Mottoeng:A world without knowledge is no world at all
Established: (as The University College of Wales)
Former Names:University of Wales, Aberystwyth
Endowment:£33.5 million (2023)[1]
Budget:£130.8 million (2022/23)
Vice Chancellor:Jon Timmis[2]
Academic Staff:700 (2021/22)[3]
Administrative Staff:1,100 (2021/22)
Students:7,845 (2021/22)[4]
Undergrad:6,465 (2021/22)
Postgrad:1,380 (2021/22)
Campus Type:Campus[5]
Campus Size:[6]

Aberystwyth University (Welsh: Prifysgol Aberystwyth) is a public research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The university has over 8,000 students studying across three academic faculties and 17 departments.

Founded in 1872 as University College Wales, Aberystwyth, it became a founder member of the University of Wales in 1894, and changed its name to the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth. In the mid-1990s, the university again changed its name to become the University of Wales, Aberystwyth. On 1 September 2007, the University of Wales ceased to be a federal university and Aberystwyth University became independent again.[7] The annual income of the institution for 2022–23 was £130.8 million of which £22.2 million was from research grants and contracts, with an expenditure of £127.8 million.[1]

History

In the middle of the 19th century, eminent Welsh people were advocating the establishment of a university in the principality of Wales. One of these, Thomas Nicholas, whose book, Middle and High Class Schools, and University Education for Wales (1863), is said to have "exerted great influence on educated Welshmen".[8]

Funded through public and private subscriptions, and with five regional committees (London, Manchester, Liverpool, North and South Wales) guaranteeing funds for the first three years' running costs, the university opened in October 1872 with 26 students. Thomas Charles Edwards was the principal. In October 1875, chapels in Wales raised the next tranche of funds from over 70,000 contributors.[9] Until 1893, when the college joined the University of Wales as a founder member, students applying to Aberystwyth sat the University of London's entrance exams.[10] Women were admitted in 1884.

In 1885, a fire damaged what is now known as the Old College, Aberystwyth, and in 1897 the first 14 acres of what became the main Penglais campus were purchased. Incorporated by Royal Charter in 1893, the university installed Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, as chancellor in 1896, the same year it awarded an honorary degree to the former British prime minister, William Gladstone.

The university's coat of arms dates from the 1880s. The shield features two red dragons to symbolise Wales, and an open book to symbolise learning. The crest, an eagle or phoenix above a flaming tower, may signify the college's rebirth after the 1885 fire.[11] The motto is Welsh: Nid Byd, Byd Heb Wybodaeth ('a world without knowledge is no world at all').

In the early 1900s, the university added courses that included law, applied mathematics, pure mathematics and botany. The Department for International Politics, which Aberystwyth says is the oldest such department in the world, was founded in 1919.[12] By 1977, the university's staff included eight Fellows of the Royal Society, such as Gwendolen Rees, the first Welsh woman to be elected an FRS.

The Department of Sports and Exercise Science was established in 2000. Joint honours psychology degrees were introduced in September 2007, and single honours psychology in 2009.

The chancellor of the university is The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, who took up the position in January 2018. The visitor of the university is an appointment made by the Privy Council, under the Royal Charter of the university. Since July 2014, the holder of this office is Mr Justice Sir Roderick Evans KC.

In 2011, the university appointed a new vice chancellor[13] under whom the academic departments were restructured as larger subject-themed institutes.

In 2022, the university celebrated its 150th anniversary, being established in 1872 (known at the time as The University College of Wales).

Organisation and administration

Departments and Faculties

The university's academic departments, as well as the Arts Centre, International English Centre and Music Centre are organised in three faculties:

Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Faculty of Business and Physical Sciences
Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences

Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences

The Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS) is a research and teaching centre which brings together staff from the Institutes of Rural Sciences and Biological Sciences and the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research (IGER). Around 360 research, teaching and support staff conduct basic, strategic and applied research in biology.[14]

The institute is located in two areas; one at the main teaching Penglais campus and another rural research hub at the Gogerddan campus.[15]

Aberystwyth Business School

In 1998, the Department of Economics (founded in 1912), the Department of Accounting and Finance (founded in 1979) and the Centre for Business Studies merged to create the School of Management and Business. In 2013, the School joined the Department of Information Studies and the Department of Law and Criminology at a new campus at Llanbadarn Fawr. The school was shortlisted for "Business School of the Year" in the Times Higher Education Awards (2014).[16] In 2016, the institute, minus the Department of Information Studies, was renamed the Institute of Business and Law, the remaining departments being renamed Aberystwyth Business School and Aberystwyth Law School.

Department of Computer Science

The Department of Computer Science (founded in 1970), conducts research in automated reasoning, computational biology, vision graphics and visualisation and intelligent robotics.

AberMUD, the first popular internet-based MUD, was written in the department by then-student Alan Cox. Jan Pinkava, another graduate, won an Oscar for his short animated film Geri's Game.

Department of Geography and Earth Sciences

The Department of Geography and Earth Sciences (IGES) was formed, in 1989, from the former Departments of Geography (established in 1918) and Geology. It houses the E. G. Bowen map library, containing 80,000 maps and 500 atlases.[17]

Department of Information Studies

The College of Librarianship Wales (CLW) was established at Llanbadarn Fawr in 1964, in response to a recommendation for the training of bilingual librarians that was made in the Bourdillon Report on Standards of public library service in England (HMSO, 1962). The college grew rapidly, developing close links to the Welsh speaking and professional communities, acquiring an international reputation and pioneering flexible and distance learning courses. It claimed to be Europe's largest institution for training librarians.[18] The independent college merged with the university in August 1989 and the department moved to the Penglais campus a quarter of a century later. Following the merger, the new department took over responsibility for existing offerings in archives administration and modern records management.

Department of International Politics

The Department of International Politics is the oldest of its kind in the world. It was founded, shortly after the First World War in 1919, with the stated purpose of furthering political understanding of the world in the hope of avoiding such conflicts in the future. This goal led to the creation of the Woodrow Wilson Chair of International Politics, with Wilson having played a significant role in its creation.[19] The department has over 700 students from 40 countries studying at undergraduate, masters and PhD levels. It achieved a 95% score for student satisfaction in the 2016 National Student Survey, placing it as the highest-ranking politics department in Wales and within the UK's top ten.[20]

The department has hosted notable academic staff in the field including E. H. Carr, Leopold Kohr, Andrew Linklater, Ken Booth, Steve Smith, Michael Cox, Michael MccGwire, Jenny Edkins and Colin J. McInnes.

Department of Law and Criminology

The Department of Law and Criminology (founded in 1901) is housed in the Hugh Owen Building on the Penglais campus, and includes the Centre for Welsh Legal Affairs, a specialist research centre. All academic staff are engaged in research, and the International Journal of Biosciences and the Law and the Cambrian Law Review are edited in the department. In 2013, the department joined the Department of Information Studies and the School of Management and Business at a new campus at Llanbadarn Fawr, as part of a newly created Institute of Management, Law and Information Studies. In September 2018, the department moved back to the Hugh Owen Building, based in the Penglais campus, and its name changed from Aberystwyth Law School to the Department of Law and Criminology.[21]

The Guardian University Guide 2018 ranked the Law Department at 69th in the UK,[22] and "The Times" Higher Education Guide ranks it as 300th globally.[23]

Department of Modern Languages

Aberystwyth has taught modern languages since 1874. French, German, Italian and Spanish courses are taught at both beginners' and advanced levels, in a research-active academic environment. One of its research projects is the Anglo-Norman Dictionary,[24] based in Aberystwyth since 2001 and available online since 2005.

Department of Physics

Physics was first taught at Aberystwyth as part of Natural Philosophy, Astronomy and Mathematics under N. R. Grimley, soon after the foundation of the University College.[25] It became a department in 1877, under the leadership of F. W. Rudler. The department was located in the south wing of what is now the Old College, but later moved to the Physics Building on the Penglais Campus. The first chair in Physics was offered to D. E. Jones in 1885. Before the First World War, much of the early research in the department was undertaken in Germany. Early research in the 1900s was concerned with electrical conductivity and quantum theory, later moving into thermal conductivity and acoustics. In 1931, the department hosted the Faraday Centenary Exhibition. E. J. Williams was appointed to the Chair of Physics in 1938 where he continued his research into sub-atomic particles using a cloud chamber.[26] Following the Second World War, research was concerned with mechanical and nuclear physics, later moving into the fields of air density, experimental rocket launching equipment and radar.

Department of Psychology

In 2007, Aberystwyth established psychology as a "Centre for Applied Psychology" within the Department of International Politics. By 2011, psychology had moved into its current premises in Penbryn 5 on the Penglais Campus. The department has over 300 undergraduate students, with degrees accredited by the British Psychological Society.

Campuses

Penglais

The main campus of the university is situated on Penglais Hill, overlooking the town of Aberystwyth and Cardigan Bay, and comprises most of the university buildings, Arts Centre, Students' Union, and many of the student residences. Just below Penglais Campus is the National Library of Wales, one of Britain's five legal deposit libraries. The landscaping of the Penglais Campus is historically significant and is listed at Grade II* on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.[27] The CADW listing states,

Llanbadarn

The Llanbadarn Centre is located approximately one mile to the east of the Penglais Campus, near Llanbadarn Fawr, overlooking the town and Cardigan Bay to the west, with the backdrop of the Cambrian Mountains to the east. Llanbadarn Centre hosted Aberystwyth Law School and Aberystwyth Business School, which together formed the Institute of Business and Law. The Department of Information Studies is also based there. Additionally, the Llanbadarn Campus is the site of the Aberystwyth branch of Coleg Ceredigion (a further education college, and not part of the university).

Goggerddan

At Gogerddan, on the outskirts of town is located the university's major centre for research in land based sciences and the main centre for the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Science.

School of Art, Edward Davies Building

The School of Art is located between the Penglais Campus and the centre of Aberystwyth, in what was originally the Edward Davies Memorial Chemistry Laboratories. A listed building, the Edward Davies Building is one of the finest examples of architecture in Aberystwyth.

Old College

See main article: Old College, Aberystwyth. The site of the original university is the Old College, currently the subject of the "New Life for Old College" project which aims to transform it into an integrated centre of heritage, culture, learning and knowledge exchange. The university opened an international campus in Mauritius in 2016 operating as Aberystwyth University (Mauritian Branch Campus) and registered with the Tertiary Education Commission of Mauritius, but closed it to new enrolments two years later due to low enrolment numbers.[28]

Student residences

Most of the student residences are on campus, with the rest in walking distance of the campus and Aberystwyth town centre. Accommodation ranges from "traditional" catered residences to en-suite self-catered accommodation, and from budget rooms to more luxurious studio apartments. All have wired access to the university's computer network and a support network of residential tutors.

Penglais Campus

Pentre Jane Morgan (Student Village)

Fferm Penglais Student Residence

Town accommodation

The university also owns several houses, such as Penglais Farmhouse (adjacent to Pentre Jane Morgan) and flats in Waun Fawr, which are let on an assured shorthold tenure to students with families. Disabled access rooms are available within the existing student village.

Reputation and academic profile

Qs W:661–670
The N:39
The W:501–600
Line 1:0
Complete:44
The Guardian:45
Times/Sunday Times:39
Tef:Gold

Aberystwyth University is placed in the UK's top 40 universities in the main national rankings. It is ranked 38th for 132 UK university rankings in The Times/Sunday Times Good University Guide for 2023, and the first university to be given the prestigious award "University of the year for teaching quality" for two consecutive years, in 2018 and 2019.[38]

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings placed it in the 301—350 group for 800 university rankings, compared with 351—400 the previous year,[39] and the QS World University Rankings placed it at the 432nd position for 2019, compared with 481—490 of the previous year.[40] In 2015, UK employers from "predominantly business, IT and engineering sectors" listed Aberystwyth equal 49th in their 62-place employability rankings for UK graduates, according to a Times Higher Education report.[41]

Aberystwyth University was rated in the top ten of UK higher education institutions for overall student satisfaction in the 2016 National Student Survey (NSS).[42]

Aberystwyth University was shortlisted in four categories in the Times Higher Education Leadership and Management Awards (THELMAs) (2015).[43]

Aberystwyth University has been awarded the Silver Award under the Corporate Health Standard (CHS), the quality mark for workplace health promotion run by Welsh Government.[44]

The university has been awarded an Athena SWAN Charter Award, recognising commitment to advancing women's careers in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) in higher education and research.[45]

In 2007, the university came under criticism for its record on sustainability, ranking 97th out of 106 UK higher education institutions in that year's Green League table.[46] In 2012 the university was listed in the table's "Failed, no award" section, ranking equal 132nd out of 145.[47] In 2013 it ranked equal 135th out of 143, and was listed again as "Failed, no award".[48]

Following the university's initiatives to address sustainability,[49] it received an EcoCampus[50] Silver Phase award in October 2014.

In October 2015, the university's Penglais Campus became the first university campus in Wales to achieve the Green Flag Award.[51] The Green Flag Award is a UK-wide partnership, delivered in Wales by Keep Wales Tidy with support from Natural Resources Wales, and is the mark of a high quality park or green space.

In 2013, the University and College Union alleged bullying behaviour by Aberystwyth University managers, and said staff were fearful for their jobs. The university president, Sir Emyr Jones Parry, said in a BBC radio interview, "I don't believe the views set out are representative and I don't recognise the picture." He also said, "Due process is rigorously applied in Aberystwyth." The economist John Cable resigned his emeritus professorship, describing the university's management as "disproportionate, aggressive and confrontational". The singer Peter Karrie resigned his honorary fellowship in protest, he said, at the apparent determination to "ruin one of the finest arts centres in the country", and because he was "unable to support any regime that can treat their staff in such a cruel and appalling manner".[52]

Officers and academics

Presidents and chancellors

Principals and vice-chancellors

Academics

Alumni

Royalty

Academia

Law

Civil servants

Politics

Business

Sports

Arts and entertainment

Journalism

See also

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023. 1 February 2024. Aberystwyth University. 30.
  2. Web site: New Vice-Chancellor appointed to Aberystwyth University . Aberystwyth University . 9 October 2023.
  3. Web site: Who's working in HE? . www.hesa.ac.uk.
  4. Web site: Where do HE students study? HESA . www.hesa.ac.uk.
  5. Web site: Aberystwyth University. Complete University Guide. 2 September 2021.
  6. Web site: HE Provider Data: Estates Management. Higher Education Statistics Agency. 2 September 2021.
  7. News: BBC Mid Wales News – Three universities go independent. 3 September 2007. BBC News. 1 September 2007.
  8. Nicholas, Thomas (1820-1879) . John Austin . Jenkins . 40 . 433 . 1.
  9. Web site: Early Days . 7 February 2015 . 21 December 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161221095435/https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/university/history/timelinepart1/ . dead .
  10. Web site: Lists of students . Senate House Library . 11 March 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100914105055/http://www.shl.lon.ac.uk/specialcollections/archives/studentrecords.shtml . 14 September 2010 . dead .
  11. Web site: U.W.A. – Collegiate Identity. 12 July 2007. University of Wales, Aberystwyth. https://web.archive.org/web/20070126153310/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/collegiate-identity/section-01.php. 26 January 2007.
  12. Web site: Postgraduate Courses – International Politics . 26 April 2009 . Aberystwyth University . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081205182641/http://www.aber.ac.uk/interpol/en/welcome/HoDs%20welcome3.htm . 5 December 2008 .
  13. Web site: Aberystwyth names new head . Times Higher Education. 25 January 2011 . 22 January 2013. subscription.
  14. Web site: Aberystwyth About IBERS . 14 March 2012 . 2 May 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100504195557/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/ibers/. 4 May 2010 .
  15. Web site: Aberystwyth University - Facilities . 2010-05-02 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100323040941/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/ibers/facilities/ . 23 March 2010 . [IBERS New Building Developments]
  16. Web site: THE Awards 2014. The Awards. 26 October 2022.
  17. Web site: About DGES. Aberystwyth University. 31 May 2015. 2 October 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161002014029/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/iges/about/. dead.
  18. Coleg LLyfrgellwyr Cymru/College of Librarianship Wales (2004), p. 9
  19. Web site: Aber's Interpol. 15 January 2009. BBC. 13 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121113183407/http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/mid/sites/aberystwyth/pages/uwa_colinmcinnes.shtml. dead.
  20. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Student Satisfaction . Aberystwyth University . 2017-08-15 . 2017-09-27.
  21. Web site: Department of Law & Criminology . Aberystwyth University . 19 August 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210819105905/https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/lac/ . 19 August 2021.
  22. News: University guide 2018: league table for law. The Guardian.
  23. News: University guide 2018: league table for law. Times Higher Education.
  24. Web site: The Anglo-Norman Online Hub . https://web.archive.org/web/20040513010838/http://www.anglo-norman.net/ . dead . 13 May 2004 . 31 May 2015 .
  25. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Department of Physics. https://web.archive.org/web/20150205201252/https://archives.aber.ac.uk/index.php/university-of-wales-aberystwyth-department-of-physics-2. dead. 5 February 2015. 31 May 2015.
  26. Web site: National Library of Wales: From Warfare to Welfare 1939–59 . 17 November 2015 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151118111733/http://myglyw.org.uk/index.php?id=4368 . 18 November 2015 .
  27. Web site: University of Wales, Aberystwyth: Plas Penglais, Penglais Campus and Llanbadarn Campus; The National Library of Wales. 2021-08-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20200809222524/http://orapweb.rcahms.gov.uk/coflein//C/CPG164.pdf. 2020-08-09.
  28. News: 1 December 2017. Aberystwyth University's Mauritius campus set to close. BBC News. 21 May 2020.
  29. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Cwrt Mawr. aber.ac.uk. 2016-02-15. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160217162730/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/accommodation/types-accommodation/self-catered/cwrt-mawr/. 17 February 2016.
  30. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Accommodation : Pantycelyn. 2020-11-23. aber.ac.uk. en.
  31. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Penbryn. aber.ac.uk. 2016-02-15. https://web.archive.org/web/20160315090308/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/accommodation/types-accommodation/catered/penbryn/. 15 March 2016. dead.
  32. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Rosser. aber.ac.uk. 2016-02-15. 8 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170908015855/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/accommodation/types-accommodation/self-catered/rosser/. dead.
  33. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Trefloyne. aber.ac.uk. 2016-02-15. 27 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170927202259/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/accommodation/types-accommodation/self-catered/trefloyne/. dead.
  34. Web site: Pentre Jane Morgan. Aberystwyth University. 2016-02-15. 27 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170927155544/http://www.aber.ac.uk/en/accommodation/types-accommodation/self-catered/pentre-jane-morgan/. dead.
  35. Web site: History of Aberystwyth. 17 June 2019. Aberystwyth Guide.
  36. Web site: Arson not ruled out in promenade fire . dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110929055629/http://www.ceredigion.gov.uk/utilities/action/act_download.cfm?mediaid=30306&langtoken=eng. 29 September 2011. 26 October 2011.
  37. Web site: Accommodation : Seafront Residences. 2020-11-23. Aberystwyth University. 27 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201127181427/https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/accommodation/accommodation-options/self-catered/seafront-residences/#facilities-and-services. dead.
  38. Web site: Aberystwyth University scoops teaching award for second year running . 2018-10-31 . Cambrian News.
  39. Web site: Aberystwyth University. Times Higher Education (THE). 2017-09-26.
  40. Web site: Aberystwyth University. Top Universities. 2018-10-31.
  41. Web site: The best UK universities chosen by major employers. Times Higher Education . 12 November 2015 . 2016-02-15.
  42. Web site: NSS Results 2016. 26 September 2017.
  43. Web site: THE Leadership and Management Awards 2015. thelmawards.co.uk. 2016-02-16. https://web.archive.org/web/20160224032411/http://www.thelmawards.co.uk/thelma2015/shortlist. 24 February 2016. dead.
  44. Web site: Welsh Government website. 16 February 2016. 24 February 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160224062535/http://gov.wales/docs/phhs/publications/160205awardsen.pdf. dead.
  45. Web site: Athena SWAN members – Equality Challenge Unit. Equality Challenge Unit. 2016-02-16.
  46. Web site: People & Planet Green League 2007 . 12 July 2007 . People & Planet . https://web.archive.org/web/20070710135819/http://peopleandplanet.org/gogreen/greenleague2007/table . 10 July 2007 . dead .
  47. Web site: People & Planet Green League 2012. 1 July 2012. People & Planet.
  48. Web site: People & Planet Green League 2013. 25 October 2013. People & Planet.
  49. Web site: Aberystwyth University – Articles. 31 May 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150914203830/https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/sustainability/news/articles/title-158957-en.html. 14 September 2015. dead.
  50. Web site: EssentialMaintenance. 31 May 2015.
  51. Web site: Where is your nearest Green Flag park?. ITV News. 29 July 2013 . 2016-02-16.
  52. Web site: Former Phantom star resigns fellowship in protest over Aberystwyth Arts Centre suspensions . Merrifield . Nicola . 9 July 2013 . The Stage News . The Stage Media Co. Ltd. . 21 March 2014.
  53. Web site: Aberystwyth University appoints new vice chancellor. BBC News. 28 January 2017. 15 December 2016.
  54. Web site: New Vice-Chancellor appointed to Aberystwyth University . Aberystwyth University . 9 October 2023 . 11 October 2023 .
  55. Web site: Jones. R. Neil. Biographical Memoires. Royal Society. 28 May 2017.
  56. Web site: Southgate, Dr Vaughan Robert, (born 13 May 1944), OBE 2020; DL; FZS, FRSB; President, Linnean Society of London, 2009–12. WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U253953. 978-0-19-954088-4.
  57. Book: Perraton, Hilary . 1 October 2015 . Learning Abroad: A History of the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan . Cambridge Scholars Publishing . 168 . 978-1443880633 .
  58. Book: Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood. Burke's Peerage & Gentry . Mosley, Charles . Charles Mosley (genealogist) . 107 . 2003 . 1049–1050 . Burke . 0-9711966-2-1. Burke's Peerage .
  59. Web site: Biography. The Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Lithuania. 10 October 2017. lt.

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