Arden University has won Education Business of the Year in the prestigious EducationInvestor Global Awards 2020 - the annual celebration of the very best education businesses in the UK.
Arden was one of 11 outstanding education providers shortlisted for the Grand Prix honour which was independently judged by esteemed industry professionals from across the sector.
The university’s winning submission showcased how brilliantly the university has continued to support its online and blended learning students and welcome more of them onto its courses in 2020 - despite the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Arden University’s Vice-Chancellor and CEO Professor Carl Lygo accepted the award in the EducationInvestor Global category of Education Business of the Year award in an interactive virtual ceremony on Dec 3.
He said: “This award is a testament to the tremendous hard work of all my colleagues and students at Arden University. We have been a pioneer of online learning for 30 years and during the pandemic we have grown by over 50%, developed nine new Schools, enhanced academic quality and invested in some great EdTech to help our students further. The judging panel comprises of industry experts so it is extra special to have their endorsement for all our hardwork. It is a great time to be at Arden University, we have ambitious plans and are really excited for 2021.”
The award judges said Arden was a 'clear winner" writing:
"We were hugely impressed by the performance of Arden University which, although small, has grown and evolved significantly over the past couple of years and despite the Covid-19 pandemic. This comes as no surprise due to the unparalleled leadership of Carl Lygo.
The reasons it stood out are: its incredible growth in student numbers, its rebranding achievement, its student and staff diversity, its performance during Covid, and the international expansion plan and performance in Berlin so far.
Despite the ‘sustainability’ challenge to all businesses during 2020, Arden managed an uninterrupted experience for its clients, alongside an impressive maintenance of its 50% year-on-year growth to date. Moving rapidly to a programme of webinars to replace its outreach work, Arden demonstrated agility in a crisis.
"Addressing and not limiting access to specific geo-political themes and students from specific groups, including BAME students, those from lower income brackets, mature students and those requiring additional support and motivation, Arden has invited a diverse population of students to its highly accessible programmes. The successful drives for international and national expansion and the creation of new partnerships makes Arden University the clear winner of this category."
Arden University supports more 12,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students in the UK and worldwide, delivering both fully online, as well as blended learning programmes which combine online learning with face-to-face, lecturer-led teaching at our six study centres in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Berlin.
The EducationInvestor Global Awards champion organisations and individuals that have made an outstanding commitment and contribution to the industry in 2019/20 as well as those who have showed agility and resilience in the face of a challenging year.
Successful entries were shortlisted by the EducationInvestor Global editorial team, and judged by a panel of high-profile independent judges before culminating in one of the biggest events for the industry to celebrate the final winners.
