The 2018 National Student Survey reveals that 88 per cent of Lancaster University students are satisfied overall compared with a national average of 83 per cent, putting Lancaster in the top 10 of UK universities.

The national survey captures the views of over 320,000 students after 70 per cent of eligible students from 413 universities and colleges across the UK took part. Lancaster is in the top ten of UK universities excluding colleges and specialist institutions.

Professor Mark E. Smith, the Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University, said: “This is another excellent result for Lancaster but although we continue to be in the top ten of UK universities for overall satisfaction, we will not be resting on our laurels. We continually strive for improvement as part of our efforts to ensure that every student who comes to Lancaster is given a world class experience.”

The results of the survey, carried out by the Office for Students and the UK higher education funding bodies, are used by universities and colleges as well as student unions and guilds to improve students’ academic experience.

The Universities’ Minister Sam Gyimah said: “The student voice is the most important voice, and the National Student Survey is a vital tool that provides an invaluable insight into the student experience.

“It is brilliant to see continually high satisfaction rates but we need to keep improving. That is why I want to see universities and colleges using this data to enhance and develop their offer for those choosing to study there.”

The 2018 National Student Survey results are available on the Office for Students website. The results will also be published on the Unistats website in August 2018, providing valuable evidence to inform potential students’ choices about where and what to study.

Nicola Dandridge, Chief Executive of The Office for Students, said: “We run the NSS to help ensure that students’ voices are heard and understood – so that universities and colleges can work to give all students a positive experience of higher education. The NSS is a highly credible and long-established survey which continually achieves a very high response rate. The results are an invaluable tool for universities and colleges to improve students’ experience of higher education.”

The NSS covers mainly final-year undergraduates studying for higher education qualifications at UK higher education providers and at further education colleges in England, Northern Ireland and Wales.

The survey is funded by the four UK higher education regulatory/funding bodies (the Office for Students, the Scottish Funding Council, the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales and the Department for Economy Northern Ireland), and Health Education England.