What if we judged universities by the progress students make?

This blog was kindly authored by Professor Nick Braisby, Vice-Chancellor of University of Bradford.

When people ask me what makes the University of Bradford different, I point to a simple idea: we judge success in part by ‘social distance travelled’. In other words, it means we focus on the progress students make. That is why I’m delighted that the University has again been ranked first in the HEPI and LSBU English Social Mobility Index, an index that looks past headlines to measure access, continuation rates and outcomes. 

The Social Mobility Index matters because it aligns with how change really happens. Since launching the index in 2021, HEPI has continued to refine its measures so they better reflect the difference universities actually make. That resonates with Bradford’s purpose. It also comes at a time when some are questioning the value of higher education in general, which is why it is more relevant than ever. 

Many people may hear the words ‘social mobility’ and wonder what that phrase actually means. In practical terms, it means that people advance – in confidence, capability and opportunity – and that those advances ultimately affect outcomes – being able to get a better job or have access to greater opportunities. The SMI therefore measures, perhaps more accurately than any other index, a key purpose of universities and how they benefit society. 

To be ranked first is a significant achievement. To be ranked first five years in a row proves that this is no fluke or passing phase but is, rather, the result of a deliberate and sustained effort to create a culture – an ecosystem – that puts students first, widens access and enables them to thrive and go on to meaningful careers. 

Indeed, HEPI’s Social Mobility Index is not the only measure that confirms we are one of – if not the – best in the country at improving people’s life chances. 

The latest HESA Graduate Outcomes data (published in July 2025) tells the same story: Bradford now ranks 16th for highly‑skilled employment. The Guardian league table ranks Bradford eighth in the UK for ‘value added’, another measure of ‘distance travelled’. 

In other words, this means that you can come to Bradford from anywhere in the world, from any race or religion, from any socio-economic background and you can thrive given our emphasis on support and employability. 

For Bradford, this journey is grounded in support that is practical, personal and sustained. Equality, diversity and inclusion is ‘baked in’ through a series of carefully crafted policy frameworks that underpin how we operate. The same goes for our student support, programme design, teaching and careers support after graduation – which extends up to five years, because a career is a journey, not an event. Our approach even encompasses our relationships with external stakeholders and our research and innovation. 

We also invest in tools that make a difference day to day. The new UoB Digital app – developed with Santander Universities UK – brings timetables, maps, news and support into one place, and Bradford was the first UK university to launch it on Santander’s network.  

Over 80 per cent of our programmes are accredited, so students learn with professional standards in mind and step into work ‘career‑ready.’ Our strengths in AI and data analytics are recognised by industry; in a news article in January 2025, PwC’s new Regional Market Lead for the North praised the depth of AI skills coming out of Bradford. That kind of external validation matters because it connects learning to labour‑market demand. 

And while I am beating the Bradford drum, evidence of our approach shows up in other measures too. Last year, the Daily Mail University Guide named us University of the Year for Social Inclusion. 

Behind the data are people. If you want to understand what the University of Bradford does, look at stories like Mollie Browes, who overcame homelessness and trauma to graduate and pursue cancer research. Or Aimee Brannan, a care‑experienced student who found her way into a degree, then a Master’s. Or Sean Cahill, a Falklands veteran who discovered a new purpose in archaeology and now mentors other veterans. Or Gloria (Victoria) Ludlow, whose Sanctuary Scholarship helped her become an NHS nurse after unimaginable adversity. These are not exceptions. They epitomise the mission and purpose of the University of Bradford. 

As we mark 60 years since our inception in 1966, it feels poignant that we are – again – being recognised for helping our students and graduates reach their own milestones. 

What this index ultimately offers is something bigger than a single institution: it provides a national framework for understanding what higher education can do for individuals and society, and why it still matters. At a time when the value of universities is under scrutiny, when public debate too often reduces higher education to narrow questions of cost, the SMI offers a clearer lens. 

It shows that universities are engines of personal progress, civic contribution and long‑term prosperity, especially for those who start furthest from the finish line. In that sense, our success is part of a wider story: one that demonstrates the enduring power of education to expand opportunity and strengthen society.  And if the sector chooses to embrace measures that focus on distance travelled , then the national conversation about universities changes for the better. This is how we begin to articulate the value of higher education to society: not simply through research breakthroughs or economic impact, but through the lives that are shaped, redirected and opened up. While Bradford embodies that principle in its own way, the lesson is universal. Every university has the potential to transform lives; the Social Mobility Index simply helps us see that more clearly.