Chinese students mull rankings' importance

Some Chinese students in Britain have said they will not be put off by a new United Kingdom government assessment of teaching standards at higher education institutions, after the study awarded low marks to some top schools.

Among the schools to miss out on a gold award in the Teaching Excellence Framework, or TEF, were elite Russell Group universities including the University of Liverpool, the School of Oriental and African Studies, and the London School of Economics - which is second in the prestigious QS global rankings for social sciences.

In the TEF report, the institutions received the lowest rating, a bronze award.

Some newer universities, including Coventry and Nottingham Trent, outperformed Russell Group counterparts and were awarded the highest grade for teaching, learning, and potential employment outcomes for students.

Oxford and Cambridge both received gold awards, as did Newcastle, Leeds, Imperial College London, Birmingham, and Exeter.

After the release of the report, some of the institutions that scored less well expressed concern that the report may impact recruitment.

But some students from China who are studying in the UK said the government rankings are not likely to dampen interests in universities that were awarded bronze grades.

Zeng Yawen, who will be studying at LSE in September, believes ratings are only a reference point. She also said she has not heard of the TEF.

And Shi Xiaoying, who will attend university in Leeds, said she looks at other factors."

The course design and professors are the most important," she said.

Some students said they favor checking out the QS world university rankings, and listings from The Times and Guardian newspapers.

King's College London student Chen Kun said students select some schools, such as SOAS and LSE, because of their specialist fi elds.

Yang Jing contributed to this story