Measures of Success
2030 Strategy
We have established measures of success and introduced a comprehensive and rigorous strategy management system through which we will plan, monitor and communicate our progress. This will enable us to accurately monitor and manage the progress we are making towards achieving our vision, strategic objectives and outcomes.
The table below shows our measures of success with aspirational targets for 2030.
| OUR STUDENTS | ||
| Measure | 2021-22 Performance | 2030 Target |
| 1. Student Positivity (NSS - National Student Survey) | 76% | Top quartile (85% and above) |
| 2. Student Voice (NSS - National Student Survey) | 72% | Top quartile (85% and above) |
| 3. Postgraduate Taught Experience (PTES) | 82% | Top quartile (85% and above) |
| 4. Postgraduate Research Experience (PRES) (Biennial) | 81% | Top quartile (85% and above) |
| 5. Access (OfS - Office for Students); Polar4 (Q1)* | 9.30% | Top decile |
| 6. Continuation (B3 / OfS) | Above benchmark | Above benchmark |
| 7. Completion (B3 / OfS) | Above benchmark | Above benchmark |
| 8. Progression (B3 / OfS) | Above benchmark | Above benchmark |
| 9. Ethnicity Awarding Gap | White - Black 11.1 pp White - Asian 8.2 pp White - other 10.6 pp White - mixed 9.8 pp | No gap (0) |
| 10. Graduate Employability (Career after 15 months) | Top 27% | Top Quartile (With less than 1% gap across all students) |
| 11. Percentage of programmes with professional accreditation / certification / endorsement | 62% | 100% |
| 12. Percentage of programmes with professional practice embedded | 60% | 100% |
| 13. Number of students completing Aston Power Skills | - | 100% |
*This measure and target will be subject to change as the university finalises its Access and Participation plan in 2023-24.
| OUR PEOPLE AND PLACE | ||
| Measure | 2021-22 Performance | 2030 Target |
| 14. Staff engagement | 77% | 80% and above |
| 15. Best Companies to work for certification | - | Achieve Best companies to work for certification and Best place to work award by 2030 |
| 16. International academic staff ratio (QS) (world rank) | 131 | 100 |
| 17. Industry staff ratio (Innovation Fellows, Industry Fellows, Professors of Practice) | <20 |
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| 18. Diversity in leadership and governance roles |
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| 19. Number of staff completing Entrepreneurial Bootcamps | - | 100 staff per annum, 700 by 2030 |
| 20. Number of staff undertaking leadership and management development | - | 100 staff per annum, 700 by 2030 |
| 21. Community engaged on campus on university business | 5,000 | 25,000 |
| 22. Companies incubated / embedded on campus / Hubs | 8 (live spin outs) 41 (graduate starts incubated) | 50 (live spin-outs) 100 (graduate starts incubated) |
| 23. Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Aston University estsate) | Gas consumption per year (3,900 MWh.y-1 ) Emissions per floor area per year (45.3kgCO2e.sqm.y-1) | Net zero emissions by end of 2030 25% reduction of per floor area emissions by end of 2030 |
| OUR IMPACT | ||
| Measure | 2021-22 Performance | 2030 Target |
| 24. Research Excellence Framework (REF) / Times Higher Education GPA Ranking | 58th | Top 35 for research quality |
| 25. Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF) | Placed in second quintiles nationally (e.g. very high or high engagement) in three out of four key areas aligned with strategy | Top quintile in all 7 categories |
| 26. International reputation - QS World University Ranking | QS 561-570 | Top 300 |
| 27. International reputation - Times Higher Education Impact Ranking | THE 401-500 | Top 300 |
| 28. International reputation - Times Higher Education Impact Ranking | - | Top 100 |
| 29. National reputation - Guardian | 22 | Top 20 |
| 30. National reputation - The Times / Sunday Times | 44 | Top 30 |
| 31. Number of revenue generating business partnership agreements | 380 | 500 (Focus on larger scale contracts) |
| 32. Number of community partnership agreements | 5 | 50 |
| 33. Number of revenue generating international partnerships agreements (JVs) | 5 | 25 |
| 34. Number of commercial / corporate Joint Ventures | 1 | 25 |
| 35. Number of active Knowledge Transfer Partnerships | 30 (£7m total portfolio value) | 50 (£15m total portfolio value) |
| 36. Digital inclusion - Digital Skills Academy provision | - | 1000 p.a. |
| 37. Health equity - Health Services Hub community access to clinical services on campus (external, staff, students) | 1,500 p.a. | 22,000 p.a. |