Commitment to high quality teaching and positive student experiences – and full-time employment in good-paying jobs – is reflected in Flinders University’s excellent performance in The Good Universities Guide 2021.
Overall, the new Good Universities Guide rates Flinders the #1 university in South Australia for:
- Student-teacher ratio (18:1) + 5-star rating
- Full-time employment for postgraduates
- Starting salary for undergraduates
- Undergraduate student demand
Flinders University has also achieved a 5-star rating for undergraduate skills development in the latest guide, says Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Students) Professor Clare Pollock.
“This year’s Good University Guide results show Flinders’ student-centred ethos, exceptional staff and outstanding facilities are supporting ongoing student success, which is reflected in these rankings,” Professor Pollock says.
“Our high calibre of teaching, for both undergraduate and postgraduate study, includes options for innovation and entrepreneurship topics, industry and workplace engagement, and other partnerships that pave the way for skills development and career pathways.
“Our innovative approach to teaching, learning and research makes Flinders University the source of enterprising, in-demand graduates,” she says.
Flinders University is investing an additional $100m in education and $100m in research over the next five years to further strengthening student opportunities, and a major campus expansion – Flinders Village – aims to further enhance education and research facilities, student accommodation and community amenities.
Professor Pollock says Flinders performed strongly across The Good Universities Guide assessments of a range of subjects and courses. These include:
In Medicine, Flinders postgraduates were ranked No. 1 in Australia for full-time employment, with the highest median salary in South Australia. Flinders’ undergraduate experience also ranks highest in the state for student support and learning resources.
The Business and Management undergraduate experience was also high, with gold star and best-in-state ratings in learner engagement, teaching quality, skills development and overall quality of educational experience. Postgraduate Business studies were again rated No. 1 in Australia for overall educational experience – with gold stars and best-in-state for learner engagement, skills development, student support and teaching quality.
Flinders postgraduates in Humanities, Culture and Social Sciences recorded South Australia’s best results for full-time employment and median salary, and No. 1 in Australia for overall postgraduate educational experience.
In Science and Mathematics, Flinders University was rated best-in-state for undergraduate overall educational experience, along with median salary, student support, skills development, learning resources and learner engagement which also received gold stars. Flinders postgraduates in science and maths led the state in full-time employment outcomes.
In Creative Arts, Flinders was best-in-state and gold star rated for undergraduate teaching quality, student support, skills development and overall quality of educational experience, while undergraduate Communications at Flinders rated best in SA for overall educational experience and skills development.
In Teacher Education, Flinders rated best in SA for undergraduate learning resources, and best-in-state for overall educational experience, and student support, along with a gold star rating for median salary. Postgraduate learner engagement, learning resources and median salary also received gold stars, and were best in state along with overall educational experience and fill time employment.
In Health Services and Support, Flinders undergraduate rating was best-in-state for skills development and learner engagement, with gold star for full-time employment and median salary.
In Psychology, Flinders rated the best in SA for postgraduate teaching quality, skills development and overall educational experience, while undergraduates led the state in full time employment, median salary and overall educational experience.
In Teacher Education, Nursing and Social Work, Flinders was the state leader in postgraduate employment and median salary.
Flinders Computing and Information Systems undergraduates had best full-time employment prospects in SA.
Professor Pollock says the strong showing in gold star ratings in The Good Universities Guide 2021 placed Flinders in the top echelon of universities nationally.
“Overall Flinders was a state leader in both graduate outcomes and educational experience, gaining stars in 39 metrics across educational experience and graduate outcomes, and was rated best-in-state no less than 68 times – a stellar performance, and one we are actively building on,” Professor Pollock says.
Background
The Good Universities Guide is widely regarded as Australia’s most trusted resource on higher education rankings.
Its findings are consistent with other tertiary ratings that reflect Flinders University’s progression towards its goal of being a top 1% university in the world. These include ranking within the top 2% of universities globally by Times Higher Education; and home to outstanding research with 90 per cent rated world-standard or above by Excellence in Research for Australia.