University shakeup will help society and sector 'value our creative thinkers'
It is billed as the biggest creation of universities since 1992. This week universities and science minister David Willetts made the announcement that 10 higher education colleges have met the criteria to be awarded university title and he has recommended them to be put forward to Privy Council for formal approval. Norwich University College of the Arts (NUCA) is one of these.
The announcement is very significant for specialist institutions like ours. It removes the anomaly that granted a university title on the basis of size not quality, seeing those with fewer than 4,000 students granted the 'University College' designation.
On our campus there is a great deal of excitement among our 2,000 strong community and it is important news for Norwich, a creative city that will soon boast two universities. But will something that could be perceived as essentially a rebranding exercise change anything? Why is it so important to us that the Privy Council accepts our application to be Norwich University of the Arts?
We are a selective institution and this year, against the sector trend, recruited to the maximum number of students permitted. As a specialist arts institution, former NUCA tutors include fine artists such as Lucian Freud and Ana Maria Pacheco. Last year alone our graduates between them received one Oscar nomination, two BAFTAs and two D&AD Yellow Pencils. The Harry Potter film set, Rastamouse and Bob the Builder were all created or animated by our graduates. Some of our design students have gone on to lead successful agencies; others work in creative roles in organisations such as the Sunday Times, Tate and Sony.
So, what began as the Norwich School of Design has been contributing to creativity and innovation in the UK for almost 170 years and we achieve all this every day without being recognised as a university. The same is true of the other specialist institutions on the list – each one at the heart of their cities and our wider economy.
However, in an increasingly marketised environment for higher education, universities need absolute clarity and distinctiveness in their offer. There are already well established specialist universities of the arts in other countries and often with fewer than 4,000 students such as Tokyo University of the Arts or ZHdk in Zurich. Other world renowned universities are either specialist or relatively small. The term 'university college' is specific to the UK and the confusion it causes to students and parents both here and in the wider world has been very apparent. It's not clear to anyone why the university title was based on scale.
The clarity on title is also very much welcomed by current students and graduates who deserve recognition for their hard work and commitment to the creativity, innovation and academic rigour that makes the UK a world leader in advertising, culture, publishing, film, digital games and fashion. During these times of economic challenge we need to value our creative thinkers more than ever and this ruling helps us do just that.
John Last is the principal of Norwich University College of the Arts (NUCA), follow it on Twitter @NUCAnews
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