University of St Mark & St John
Coordinates: 50°25′14″N 04°06′36″W / 50.42056°N 4.11000°W
 | |
| Motto |
Abeunt studia in mores "out of studies comes character". |
|---|---|
| Type | Independent Church of England voluntary |
| Established |
1923 (joint college) St John's (1840) St Marks (1841) |
| Vice-Chancellor | Rob Warner |
| Students | 2,365 (2015/16)[1] |
| Undergraduates | 2,000 (2015/16)[1] |
| Postgraduates | 360 (2015/16)[1] |
| Location | Plymouth, United Kingdom |
| Website |
marjon |
Plymouth Marjon University, formerly the University of St Mark & St John, commonly referred to as Marjon is a university based on the northern edge of the city of Plymouth, England. It has a single campus, a long heritage and specialisms in creative arts, education, health sciences, speech and language therapy and sport.
Marjon is ranked best University in the South West for Education degree programmes[2] and fourth best university in the UK for sports facilities.[3]
Formerly called University College Plymouth St Mark & St John, the institution was awarded full university status in 2012.[4] The Acting Vice-Chancellor of the university is Dr Karen Cook. Plymouth Marjon University is a trading name of University of St Mark & St John
History
The university's history dates back to the foundation by the National Society (now National Society for Promoting Religious Education) of the constituent London colleges of St John's College in Battersea, London (1840) and St Mark's College in Chelsea, London (1841).
The St Mark's College was founded on the belief of Rev Derwent Coleridge, its first principal and son of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge that its primary purpose was to widen the educational horizons of its students. St John's College was established by Sir James Kay-Shuttleworth, together with Edward Carleton Tufnell, to provide teacher training to meet the social and economic needs of 19th-century industrialisation and promoted the concept of education as self-realisation. Both colleges stressed the importance of applied education, the interface between academic study and broader experience and the role of an enlightened teaching profession in furthering social and economic development. The two colleges were among the first to open access to degree level study outside the established universities.
The colleges merged in 1923, establishing a single institution in Chelsea which developed a wider reputation for academic excellence and commitment to teaching. The College of St Mark & St John then moved to Plymouth in 1973 when the Chelsea site became too small, and its educational activities have continued to evolve in response to local, regional, national and international needs.
In 1991 the college became affiliated to the University of Exeter, which accredited it to run undergraduate and postgraduate programmes leading to degree awards of the University of Exeter. In 2007, the College of St Mark & St John gained University College status and was able to award its own degrees. With the new status came the temporary name of University College Plymouth St Mark & St John. Plymouth Marjon University, which now awards its own undergraduate and taught postgraduate degrees, still enjoys a strong relationship with the University of Exeter which continues to award research degrees to students of the university.
Campus
The university campus is between Dartmoor National Park and the coast, a few miles from Plymouth city centre and next to Plymouth's teaching hospital and a range of sports facilities north of the city. There are frequent buses to the city centre.
In 2013 a major investment programme in campus facilities was completed. Students now enjoy some of the best sports facilities of any UK university, including sport and exercise science laboratories, a 90 station fitness suite, swimming pool, climbing wall, sports hall, gyms and outdoor pitches. There are new state-of-the-art teaching facilities for business innovation, theatre, JaM centre (Journalism and Media) and live music production studio. Library and dining facilities are also new and upgraded residential accommodation is provided on campus with all first year students guaranteed a place in residential accommodation. Other students tend to share rented accommodation in the popular student quarters of Plymouth such as Mutley which is close to the campus.
The university campus houses the Peninsula Allied Health Centre (PAHC) which enables 814 University of Plymouth students to study a range of allied health professions that complement the university's expertise in sports therapy, speech and language therapy and physical activity and health.
Academic profile
| Complete[5] (2018, national) |
126 | |
|---|---|---|
| Times/Sunday Times[6] (2017, national) |
105 | |
The university has over 70 taught programmes of study with teaching informed by research. There are three faculties. These are Sport & Health Sciences, Education & Social Sciences and Culture & Language Sciences. It has a reputation for teaching quality and student support and offers small classes. Programmes have links with employers. In 2013 the university became the first in Devon and Cornwall to be awarded Stonewall Diversity Champion status.[7]
In the news
In 2016, students gave the university 89% overall satisfaction, making the university joint 35th out of 160 universities across the country. Several of the courses received a 100% satisfaction rate (Acting Degree, Sport Development with Physical Education and Sport Journalism).[8]
The University as a whole scored well across a breadth of measures such as Teaching (90% satisfaction), Personal Development (89% satisfaction) and Learning Resources (88% satisfaction). This positioned it above eight of the 10 other universities in the South West including Plymouth, Bristol, UWE, Bath Spa and Falmouth. Out of the 24 Russell Group universities in the UK, only six came in higher than Marjon for student satisfaction[9]
The university has developed a collaboration with the University of Soran in Kurdistan in Iraq to develop a Centre for Language and Academic Development designed to support the delivery of degrees in English in Kurdistan. Other international collaborations include a 35-year partnership with the Ministry of Education in Malaysia to provide teacher training degrees, a range of business and management programmes with the University of Nicosia in Cyprus and programmes relating to the university’s specialisms in education and languages delivered in Vietnam and Mexico.
There are partnerships, including sport and exercise science support, with Plymouth Albion R.F.C., Plymouth Argyle and Exeter Chiefs. In 2013 and in collaboration with Plymouth College and funded by Sport England, the university is developing a new astro pitch for hockey to supplement existing astro and grass pitches.
Alumni
- Sharon Berry OBE, Founder Storybook Dads[10]
- Bob Brunning, Founder member of Fleetwood Mac[11]
- Joy Carroll, Inspiration for the Vicar of Dibley[12]
- Sir Lewis Casson, Established the Actors' Association which became the British Actors' Equity Association.[13]
- Bernard Cornwell, Historical novelist
- Helen Glover, London 2012 Olympic Gold medal-winning rower and 2013 World Championship Gold Medal winner
- Harry Greenway, Former MP for Ealing North
- Philip Kingsford, in 1912 held the best-ever triple jump record by an English-born athlete[14]
- George Leighton, Teacher, philanthropist, 1st Chairman of Georgewell Hall
- Ernest Millington, Labour member of Parliament for Chelmsford 1945–50
- Ron Pickering, Athletics coach and BBC sports commentator
- Paul Potts, English tenor. Winner of ITV's Britain's Got Talent 2007
- Andrew Salkey,author, activist, poet, film and documentary maker
- Sir Frederick Wall, secretary of the Football Association, responsible for the purchase of the first Wembley Stadium
- Anthony Willis, Paralympic games silver high jump and gold Pentathlon winner.[15]
References
- 1 2 3 "2015/16 Students by HE provider, level, mode and domicile" (XLSX). Higher Education Statistics Agency. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- ↑ "University rated best in South West for Education". Retrieved 5 November 2016.
- ↑ "Faculty of Sport & Health Sciences". Retrieved 15 November 2016.
- ↑ "Marjon officially the University of St Mark & St John". Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ↑ "University League Table 2018". The Complete University Guide. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
- ↑ "The Times and Sunday Times University Good University Guide 2017". Times Newspapers. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
- ↑ "University of St Mark & St John is first in Devon and Cornwall to sign up to Diversity Programme".
- ↑ "Marjon is the highest riser for student satisfaction in 2016 | The University of St Mark & St John, Plymouth". www.marjon.ac.uk. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Marjon is the highest riser for student satisfaction in 2016 | The University of St Mark & St John, Plymouth". www.marjon.ac.uk. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- ↑ "Starting new chapters". The Herald. Local World. 16 September 2008. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ↑ Laing, Dave (28 October 2011). "Bob Brunning obituary". The Guardian. London.
- ↑ "The real Vicar of Dibley gets her own TV role". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 8 March 2012.
- ↑ "Spartacus Educational". Retrieved 8 March 2012.
- ↑ "SR Olympic Sports". Retrieved 21 March 2012.
- ↑ "Cover Story". Marjon Today. 6. 1999.
External links
Media related to University of St Mark and St John at Wikimedia Commons
- See current degree courses available at the University of St Mark & St John
- Marjon Student Union website
