The 1994 Group
The 1994 Group is a coalition of smaller research-intensive universities in the United Kingdom, founded in 1994 to defend their interests as nineteen of the UK’s leading research-intensive universities, including many of those founded in the 1960s. The Group states that it is established to promote excellence in research and teaching, as well as to enhance student and staff experience within our universities and to set the agenda for higher education.
Its aim is to provide a central vehicle to help members promote their common interests in higher education, respond efficiently to key policy issues, and share best methods and practice.
The Group’s aims are to secure widespread recognition and a position of strength to influence decision and policy-making groups, achieve awareness and profile that underpins the ambitions of members in global markets, and promote the need for diverse, distributed centres of research and teaching excellence. The 1994 Group also looks to share good practice, so enhancing the experience of staff and students, and to provide services that help their members respond effectively to changing market conditions.
The Group believes that Research-intensive universities should play a full role at local, regional, national and international level, and that high-quality research and teaching are mutually supportive, serving to reinforce each other.
In addition, the Group focuses on maximising the Group’s influence in policy-and decision-making by increasing the visibility of the group and establishing teaching and research excellence. To this end, it supports services that allow members to adapt rapidly and flexibly with the dynamic market of higher education. They also stand for students and staff from diverse backgrounds being encouraged to realise their potential through the provision of a stimulating choice of academic, cultural and social opportunities.
The 1994 Group policy groups include (1) Research and Enterprise and (2) Strategic Planning and Resources. The policy groups provide an avenue through which the Group can strengthen inter-institutional activity and provide a forum for the development of longer-term policy positions and consultation responses. Informal networking groups for registrars, planning directors, communications directors, HR directors, development directors and librarians operate below Board level to exchange and develop best practice at group level.
The 1994 Group members describe themselves as “internationally recognised universities in Britain, who share common aims, standards and values”. The 1994 Group highlight 3 key distinguishing features/ strengths of their members – (1) High quality, internationally renowned research; (2) Research-led teaching; (3) High levels of student experience. In the Research Assessment Exercise for 2008, 57% of the 1994 Group’s research is rated 4* world-leading or 3* internationally excellent.
It has been noted by that The Russell Group and the 1994 Group share many features, but are distinguished chiefly by the fact that most members of the Russell Group have medical schools, and an emphasis on science and technology. Within the Russell Group a small number of institutions are outliers on the basis of the statistical information available, and if these were excluded from the analysis, the Russell Group and the 1994 Group would apparently show very similar characteristics.
