The marketplace

Our values and characteristics, we aim to be:

• a champion for our students, dedicated to their development and wellbeing
• engaged with our graduates and rejoicing in their success
• tolerant, humane and liberal minded, with the pursuit of truth, openness and equality and diversity at the heart of what we do
• customer focused, providing the highest standards of service for students, alumni and external partners
• responsible, sustainable and ethical, meeting the needs of the present and leaving a better environment for future generations
• research intensive, recognised internationally for the excellence of our research
• offering challenging programmes at all levels of study, highly attractive to students from varied backgrounds
• providing an outstanding student experience which prepares students for meaningful employment and a fulfilling life
• offering a high-quality, campus-based living and learning environment

Exeter is a top 10 UK university which combines world leading research with very high levels of student satisfaction. It is one of the UK’s most popular and successful universities with campuses in Exeter, Devon, and near Falmouth in Cornwall.

Students and staff enjoy some of the finest campus environments in the UK and the University has achieved Investors in People and a consistently high student satisfaction rate in the National Student Survey. 

Under the leadership of Professor Steve Smith, appointed Vice-Chancellor in 2002, the University has invested heavily in new academic appointments and facilities.
Some 180 new academic staff were appointed in 2008/9. A £140 million investment programme has recently been completed, including major investment in student facilities. Many academic buildings also received a ‘makeover.’

The Peninsula Medical School, a partnership between the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth and NHS, opened in 2002 with its first students graduating in 2007. The new £28 million Peninsula Dental School opened in 2007, the first new dental school in the UK for 40 years. The £100 million Cornwall Campus opened in 2004 and now offers a ranged of degrees in areas such as Mining Engineering, Law, Politics, Geography, English and Biology. New buildings have also recently been provided for Drama and for Finance and Investment.

The University has recently begun an even more ambitious investment programme worth £450 million. This includes a £48 million new student services building, a £25 million investment in the Business School and a further £18 million for Biosciences.

Success has led to growth in student numbers: Exeter now has 15,000 students, 4,000 of which are postgraduates. The University secured new research funding of £48 million in 2008/9 and it has research strength in depth across all of its disciplines.

Find out more about studying at the university, research and business and community.