Top 10 by 2012
The challenge for Exeter is to position itself as a top UK institution, one that in its activities is also a leading university internationally. The data used for ‘final assessment’ will mostly be captured in 2011/12, which will then inform assessment made at 2012 year end. A revision of the parameters has been undertaken to complement the main ‘Top 10 by 2010’ initiative, including a new ‘Super Key Performance Indicator’ (KPI) set and peer group. Details of both can be found below:
Super KPIs
The Super KPI set is a slim-lined version of the old metric set, containing 10 key performance areas.
The KPIs were derived on the principles that:
- they capture the most important areas of performance recognised both internally and externally as critical for a leading UK and international university
- they are applicable to all Colleges
- they are based on easily accessible data sources (e.g. HESA, HEFCE)
- they reflect, to a certain extent, indicators featured in credible national rankings and to a lesser extent, performance areas featured in international rankings.
The 10 KPIs will be supported by additional contextual measures, via a balanced scorecard approach, that will inform their assessment.
Peer Group
As Exeter nears the top level of institutions in the country, it inevitably narrows the choices for appropriate competitors. The peer group has been recently updated and now includes Lancaster (in light of recent progressive performance improvements) at the expense of Southampton. The group is listed below with their positions in the latest Times GUG and THE-Thomson Reuter world league tables.
- St Andrews (6, 108)
- Durham (5, 80)
- Warwick (8, 124)
- York (13, 103)
- Lancaster (12, 145)
- Edinburgh (14, 32)
- Bath (9, -)
- Bristol (11, 74)
- Loughborough (16, -)
- University College London (7, 17)
The competitor group is important for assessing Exeter’s performance against the top flight of UK institutions. Attaining an overall middle standing within the competitor group when assessing performance across all KPIs is considered a good indicator of a Top 10 performance.
The underlying principles for identifying the new competitor group were as follows:
- Institutions must be regarded as serious top 10/100 (UK/International) competitors, or placed similarly to Exeter and have shown consistent improvements in performance levels over time
- They should perform to a high standard across all or almost all the measures that currently appear in domestic league tables
- They should represent the company we wish to keep - and the company we realistically believe we can keep
Balanced Scorecard Reporting
The balanced scorecard will introduce additional measures to guide and gauge the University’s performance. Some of these measures will be similar in look and feel to the super KPIs, based on publicly available data and offering comparisons to peers. Others will focus on data that is specific to Exeter or for which data from peers cannot be reliably or effectively found.
The balanced scorecard will continually evolve with internal and external demands placed on the University and will aim to monitor and plan against these demands.
Proposed KPI
| Critical Areas of Performance | Recommended KPI | Primarily Facing:UK and/or Internationally | Key Contextual Measures |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research * | 1. RAE Outcomes | UK & International | See note * below i.e. citations etc. |
| 2. Research income per staff FTE | UK | % of staff who are holding a research council award, research earnings (fEC) | |
| 3. PGRs per staff FTE | UK & International | Completion and submission (time taken) rates | |
| UG Students and Student Experience | 4. UG entry qualifications (entry tariffs, weighted by subject mix as per Times GUG) | UK | Raw entry tariffs (i.e. unweighted by subject). Performance over 3 A Levels. A* performance once in place |
| 5. Progression & Achievement (composite measure, equally weighted) [HESA PI - projected to successfully complete/transfer - per Times methodology, % of graduates with 1st/2:1 - per Times methodology] | UK | Main internal measure will be student retention/progression, and % gaining 1st and 2:1s. Assessment of % gaining 1st also. | |
| 6. National Student Survey (performance across the 7 question areas) | UK & International | Internal pre NSS survey, esp. penultimate year survey. | |
| 7. Graduate Employment (% of graduates in graduate destination/study, as per Times methodology) | UK & International | ||
| Diversifying Student Population | 8. % of student population that is international (by fee payers) | International | Growth by volume from baseline. Progression from INTO (joint venture) programmes. |
| 9. % of student population studying at postgraduate taught level | UK & International | Growth by volume from baseline | |
| Earned Income | 10. Definition to be confirmed | UK | Student fees, research grants & contracts, consultancy, and other non-state income (excludes residential income) |
Notes: the research metrics will be revised once the post RAE framework is approved by HEFCE; it is intended that the RAE outcomes be maintained alongside these metrics within our self-assessment until the REF system is embedded across all disciplines
