IoD Dining Club with Prof Andrew Wathey CBE
As Vice Chancellor of Northumbria University for more than 14 years, and one of the longer-serving in the University sphere, Prof Andrew Wathey was in a unique position to share his experiences and thoughts on Higher Education to IoD Dining Club guests.
An overriding message was how delivering quality has made the most significant impact to Northumbria’s position. Putting students at the centre of the strategy with a research led approach, has ensured that standards have driven upwards during his tenure. The University’s rise in the Research Excellence Framework in 2014 – likely to be continued in the results announced next month – speaks volumes. To do so with limited additional money said even more.
Northumbria’s role in the development of the regional economy is evident, and combined with the region’s other universities they constitute a research powerhouse that – on researchers submitted to the 2021 Research Excellence Framework exercise – is the biggest of any city-area outside London. Collaborating on a global scale, the reach and significance of Northumbria University’s impact is evident. The reversing of the “brain drain” is helping boost the regionally economy across the spectrum from IT through to healthcare.
