This ranks it higher than all other Greater Manchester FE colleges – and is also 12.5 per cent above the HE sector average.
The NSS – overseen by the Office for Students (OfS) – asks students questions about a range of factors related to their academic experience.
The OfS highlighted UCO as significantly above benchmark in four of the eight categories: Assessment and Feedback, Academic Support, Learning Community and Student Voice.
Alun Francis, Oldham College Principal and Chief Executive, said: “The NSS results are the benchmark of success and this is an outstanding endorsement from UCO students – the people who know us best.”
“We’re delighted to see such high satisfaction levels confirming the fantastic academic experience and support our staff provide across all courses. Learners gave UCO scores of 90 per cent and above on a range of questions about the opportunities, help, inspiration, challenge and advice they get.*
“Most UCO students are from Oldham and surrounding boroughs and these results show how distinctive our offer is compared with residential-based courses at universities, for example, where you can be just one student in a cohort of hundreds.
“Smaller classes allow our expert tutors to give an exceptional experience centred around one-to-one and personalised support that you won’t get elsewhere. We help learners to fit their studies around family life and other commitments, and studying locally also helps make significant savings on costs like accommodation and travel.
“We’re still recruiting for courses starting this September. If you haven’t already considered UCO, then please get in touch – come and see for yourself why our learners are so satisfied and successful.”
UCO has a great track record of producing high-achieving students**, plus fantastic links with local and regional employers to help develop the next generation of highly-skilled graduates in courses that are aligned to the economy.
One example is Ian Kenworthy who has just got a First Class BA (Hons) in Business and Management: a course which is rated 87 per cent for overall satisfaction in the NSS 2022.
Ian had an EHCP throughout previous education but progressed to making almost no use of additional learning support at UCO – and was recently crowned ‘Higher Education Student of the Year’ by the Association of Colleges.
He said: “I am not at all surprised by these results because my experience of UCO was so positive.”
“What I really benefited from was the broad range and personalised nature of the academic and pastoral support available. The staff guided me to continually develop different skills and extract my full potential to apply to all types of assignments.
“In addition, the student representation and external challenge opportunities provided added greater value to my experience and directly contributed to my First Class degree award.”
UCO opened in 2005 and has been Oldham College’s Higher Education provision since 2012, helping thousands of students to achieve their goals at both Foundation Degree and full Honours Degree level.
It is expanding to include an exciting new range of qualifications for September 2022 in areas including mental health, counselling and psychotherapy, management and leadership, project management, computing and illustration. There are also still places available on the Masters in Education (Teaching and Learning) for teachers and other educational professionals seeking to enhance and develop their professional knowledge.
The easiest way to find out more, or apply for a place, is to go direct to UCO either through the website at uco.oldham.ac.uk or by emailing the HE Admissions team at info@uco.oldham.ac.uk or calling 0161 344 8800.
UCO partners with globally recognised universities and institutions to deliver accredited qualifications at its town centre campus, including the Open University, Pearson, the Chartered Management Institute, University of Huddersfield, Sheffield Hallam University and UCLan.
* HIGHEST-SCORING RESPONSES IN NSS 2022 FROM ALL UCO COURSES
| I have had the right opportunities to work with other students as part of my course | 93% |
| I have received helpful comments on my work | 93% |
| My course has provided me with opportunities to apply what I have learnt | 92% |
| I have been able to contact staff when I needed to | 92% |
| My course has challenged me to achieve my best work | 91% |
| My course has provided me with opportunities to explore ideas or concepts in depth | 91% |
| Staff value students’ views and opinions about the course | 90% |
| Good advice was available when I needed to make study choices on my course | 90% |
NSS 2022 | UCO RATINGS IN CORE AREAS:
| CORE AREA | UCO rating | CORE AREA | UCO rating |
| The Teaching on my Course | 86.2% | Learning Opportunities | 90.9% |
| Assessment and Feedback | 87.9% | Academic Support | 89.2% |
| Organisation and Management | 83.2% | Learning Community | 88.3% |
| Student Voice | 86.9% | Learning Resources | 85.8% |
| Overall Satisfaction | 88.79% | 12.5% above sector average |
** In the last three academic years the percentage of learners achieving a First-Class honours degree has improved year on year – and is consistently above 25 per cent.