The great relationship between lecturers and students is among the reasons De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) has been ranked in the top five UK universities to study Forensic Science.
Students and staff believe the relevant content and transferrable skills learned on the course have also contributed to this strong performance.
This is the first time the subject has been included in the influential Complete University Guide (CUG), with its ranking based on entry standards, student satisfaction, research quality and graduate prospects.
Principal Lecturer Dr Mark Fowler is delighted. He said: "It's great that Forensic Science is so well regarded.
"Ultimately it's all down to our students, but I think the programme team, the faculty and the university all come together well with the students in a professional but fun and engaging way, so that students can really shine and achieve their best.
"It's all about teamwork."
Third-year Stacey Atkinson believes student satisfaction is high because of the lecturers.
She said: "What I think makes the Forensic Science course good is how they present lectures and tutorials and how we all have such a good student-staff relationship with them.
"The content covered in all lectures is relevant and interesting and getting feedback for assignments and emails back from lecturers is quick."
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DMU's professionally-accredited course has been developed in collaboration with Leicestershire Police and has strong links with industry. Ninety-two per cent of students are in work or further study within six months of graduating, according to the most recent Destinations of Leavers in Higher Education report (2014/15).
PhD student Bhishak Pankhania credits the course with helping him further his education.
He said: "Studying Forensic Science enabled me to acquire the many transferable skills I needed to go into any field afterwards, be it research or within industry.
"Without studying at DMU, I wouldn't be on my way to achieving my Microbiology PhD."
Forensic Science graduate Suhaima Yusuf, who is now a teacher at South Wigston High School, believes the course offers many career options.
She said: "I think the Forensic Science course is brilliant because it covers all sciences, which means you are able to go into most, if not all, scientific or non-scientific fields.
"It is taught by lecturers who enjoy teaching, have a great forensic background and are willing to support their students!"
This ranking in the 2017 CUG is the latest in a series of national successes for the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences. DMU's Nursing courses were ranked first for graduate prospects in The Times and Sunday Times University Guide 2017, with Psychology securing top 10 spots for teaching quality and student experience in the same league tables.
Speech and Language Therapy, Midwifery, Psychology and Youth Work and Community Development all scored particularly well for overall satisfaction in the National Student Survey (NSS) 2016, based on data gathered from final-year students at universities across the country.
Posted on Tuesday 21 February 2017