Argyll College UHI rises above national performance average

Argyll College UHI is preparing to kick off a new academic year with the most exciting and wide-ranging curriculum it has ever offered.

And the 2017/ 18 prospectus isn’t the only good news for existing and future students. Official statistics show that more Argyll College UHI students than ever before are successfully completing their courses.

The news was welcomed by its Principal, Fraser Durie, who stressed that achieving at college was often a springboard to further education and employment opportunities.

Statistics released by the Scottish Funding Council show the proportion of Further Education ( FE) students completing their full-time courses at Argyll College UHI in 2015/ 16 has increased by a huge 13.7% over the last three years.

The overall total of 74.9% is now nearly 7% above the national average, putting the college ahead of the pack in terms of successfully supporting its FE students through to the end of their chosen courses.

The statistics also show a 19.6% leap over the last year alone in the corresponding figure for part-time Argyll College UHI students (on courses taking up more than 320 hours), which is now 80.6%. This is 6% above the national average.

At the same time, the College has achieved its target of ensuring that 100% of its full time teaching staff hold teaching qualifications.

“We’re very pleased with the progress we’ve made over the last few years – particularly as regards the FE course completion rates,” Principal Fraser Durie said.

“We believe a significant factor in this success is our network of local learning centres, which enable students to study and achieve, with appropriate support, within their own communities.

“Successfully completing one of our FE courses is often not an end in itself but a means to progressing on to other courses or employment opportunities. We’re delighted such a high proportion of our students are putting themselves in the position of being able to move onwards and upwards.

“Our staff work extremely hard to help all our students reach their full potential, so it’s very rewarding for them when our performance is shown to measure up so positively against the national average. We’ll continue to work hard to further improve in the future.”

Anyone interested in finding out more about Argyll College UHI and the courses it offers should go to www. argyllcollege. ac.uk , email us at info@ argyllcollege. ac.uk, pick up a prospectus from one of our centres or ring us on 0345 2309969.

Argyll College UHI is one of 13 academic partners of the University of the Highlands and Islands, and is the main provider of further and higher education in Argyll and Bute.