Vice-Chancellor Dominic Shellard has told Radio 4's Today programme that it is the student experience and graduate prospects on offer which will prompt students to choose De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) during Clearing.
Professor Shellard was interviewed on the station's flagship programme as part of a discussion about the growing competition between universities to secure student applications during the Clearing period.
On Thursday, A-level results will be released, with thousands of students across the country finding out whether their grades will allow them to confirm university places.
For those whose grades are not as high as they hoped, Clearing offers the chance to take one of the many opportunities on unfilled courses at UK institutions and at DMU, demand will be high, with hundreds of calls expected every hour by students looking to secure their place, which they can do by calling 0116 257 7000.
Presenter Matthew Price spoke to both Professor Shellard and Professor David Phoenix, Vice-Chancellor of London South Bank University.
In response to a question about some of the incentives offered by universities to entice students to apply in a competitive market, Professor Shellard said that university was a big investment for students and they needed to make a big decision.
He said: "Students want to know that if they come to DMU 96% of them will move on to a good graduate job but they also want to know about the value added that the university can offer and these things are very important in terms of the choice of potential applicants.
"I think there should be a range of offers to enhance the student experience. The focus of most applicants coming through Clearing on Thursday applying directly to universities - and 25% of all university students now come directly through Clearing - their main concern is the quality of the academic experience, the student a satisfaction they'll get and also the destination of some graduates."
Prof. Shellard spoke of the partnership DMU has with Premier League winners Leicester City and how the opportunities it offered students helped set DMU apart.
He said: "If you come to DMU you can apply to undertake one of 100 internships at the King Power stadium and if you are interested in football you can have your Freshers' trial up at the King Power stadium. And yes, we are unashamed to say that there's the opportunity to go and watch Leicester City and participate in the free ballot.
"But it's much more important to emphasise the nature of the course and if you want to study Film Studies, for example, you are going to be much more interested in the fact that we have the best film department in the country* rather than issues such as free tickets."
* Rated 100% for satisfaction in the 2016 National Student Survey. Communication, Cultural and Media Studies ranked joint 1st in the UK for the proportion of its research outputs rated as world leading (4*) by the Research Excellence Framework 2014
Posted on Wednesday 17 August 2016