Norland named top small or specialist provider in the UK by Whatuni
25 April 2024
Norland is delighted to announce it has been crowned winner at the Whatuni Student Choice Awards (WUSCAs) for the fourth time.
The world-famous specialist provider of early childhood higher education and training won first place in the Small or Specialist Provider award category, having also won in the same category last year.
The WUSCAs are an annual celebration of the best university and higher education institutions in the UK. The awards are unique from any other awards or league tables as all the universities are nominated and judged by students. This year, more than 38,000 student reviews were collected from 267 higher education institutions nationwide.
The 2024 award continues an outstanding success rate at the WUSCAs. It was Norland’s fourth WUSCA win and the seventh year in a row in the top two. In 2021, Norland was named the best university in the UK for enhanced graduate outcomes, beating many much larger universities to the top spot.
Last night’s win was the second accolade in recent months. In September, Norland received a Gold rating for the third consecutive time in the national Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023. Despite being one of the smallest degree-awarding providers in the country, Norland is one of only a small number of providers to achieve Gold in all categories – the highest standard possible – putting it in the top 12% of providers nationally.
The Bath-based institution is also one of the smallest providers in the UK to hold degree awarding powers from the Privy Council, a major step towards its ambition to become the first specialist early years university in the world.
Established in 1892 by early years pioneer Emily Ward, Norland is dedicated to providing high quality specialist early years higher education and training in order to cultivate exceptional early years practitioners. Fully qualified graduates, known as Norlanders or Norland Nannies, benefit from their own dedicated employment agency, the Norland Agency, which places them in nanny and maternity practitioner positions around the world and provides them with lifelong career support.
Dr Janet Rose, Principal of Norland, said: “We are absolutely delighted to win the top award in the UK for Small or Specialist Provider at the Whatuni Student Choice Awards for the 4th time. Once again, this demonstrates that our students appreciate the high-quality training and outstanding career opportunities for which we are world famous.
“Our focus on excellence and employability means our graduates enjoy the highest average graduate salaries in the UK and their pick of jobs. We often have over 5 jobs for every Norlander seeking one and an average starting salary of £47,600 within one year of qualifying through the Norland Agency.”
Vice Principal and Head of Quality and Standards and Registrar, Mandy Edmond, added: “We are particularly proud of this award as it is based entirely on the views of students. The way in which we integrate the degree and the skills-based Norland Diploma ensures that students are able to apply their learning in real-life working situations, something that sets them up for success in highly rewarding and responsible roles. Our graduates gain so much practical experience throughout their studies and the Newly Qualified Nanny year, and they are rightly recognised all over the world as the very highest quality nannies, making a genuine difference to the lives of the children and families with whom they work.”
To find out more about Norland’s unrivalled degree and diploma training, visit our course page.
