Roehampton's Transition into University Status

'Once the Polytechnics became Universities in 1992, Roehampton knew that it needed the title of University so that its students could be equal to other graduates in the sector. There were various hurdles to jump. We needed 20 PhD completions that had been supervised by our own staff, and a research culture which could support professors as well as generate articles in learned journals.

By the late 1990’s, there was a group of staff who felt that we would be ‘safer’ under the wing of the University of Surrey, whose courses we complemented. So on January 1st 2000, we became “University of Surrey Roehampton” for four years, and then in August 2004 we finally gained independent University status and could call ourselves “ Roehampton University” which had been a long-held dream.

Was the 12 years wait and hard work worth it? I think so. In that time we learnt a lot about the vision and mission of a University in the 21st Century. We created new courses in areas of Human Rights and Social Justice. We employed some fine staff and developed a reputation for research in areas such as Theology and Education. The campuses changed for the better. Southlands relocated to be contiguous with Digby Stuart, and Whitelands moved into the heart of Roehampton village. Each campus had some splendid new buildings, including the creation at Digby Stuart of a wonderful new Learning Resources Centre, and a ‘state-of -the-art’ teaching block known as the Duchesne Building. Students were able to enjoy new campus residences, with en-suite provision and self-catering facilities. Recruitment soared, and technological changes enabled new forms of teaching.

Today Roehampton University is a popular and self-confident institution which enables many first-generation higher education students to be educated in a wide range of Arts, Education, Business and Science subjects.

Bernadette Porter RSCJ, and former Vice-Chancellor