Recent reviews and assessments of teaching and research

The University of Essex is one of the UK’s leading academic institutions, rated ninth nationally for research excellence.

Institutional Audit

In the most recent audit of the University of Essex, carried out in 2008, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education confirmed its confidence in the management of academic standards and the quality of learning opportunities, the highest possible outcome. Four areas of good practice were highlighted including the effective support for learning and teaching and the structured approach to the enhancement of student learning opportunities. The system replaced earlier subject-specific audits, the most recent of which included ratings of 24/24 for Economics, Government, Sports Science and Philosophy.

Research Assessment Exercise

The 2008 national Research Assessment Exercise confirmed Essex's top ten position as one of the UK's elite research universities, and the best in Britain for research in the social sciences. Essex was ranked ninth in the UK in tables published in The Times, The Guardian and The Independent newspapers, second only to Cambridge in the East of England. The results reveal that almost a quarter of the University’s research is rated as ‘world-leading’ in terms of originality, significance and rigour.

Essex was ranked in top place for Politics and Sociology, third for Economics and fourth for Linguistics. History’s second place crowned a strong performance in the arts and humanities, with History of Art ninth and Philosophy joint 10th. Essex Business School, based on both our Colchester and Southend campuses, ranked second nationally in the Accounting and Finance subject area. More than 90 per cent of our research was graded as being recognised internationally for its quality.