16 universities have been awarded Accreditation by the Royal Society of Biology in recognition of the high standards of education provided by their undergraduate or postgraduate bioscience degree programmes.

A parliamentary reception celebrating the latest cohort of universities to receive Accreditation took place on the Pavilion Terrace at the Houses of Parliament on 27th April, with academics, industry representatives and policymakers, and graduates from the institutions in attendance.

The RSB Accreditation programme champions excellence in the biosciences, by not only identifying degree programmes that offer a high standard of teaching, curriculum provision and practical skill set development, but also those that enhance graduate employability skills.

Professor Dame Jean Thomas Hon FRSB, president of the RSB, said: “We are delighted to announce that bioscience courses in 16 more institutions have been granted Accreditation status by the Royal Society of Biology. Accreditation recognises institutions that offer an outstanding bioscience education and equip their graduates with the skills needed to thrive in a global market.

"It is especially encouraging to be able to award Accreditation to two international organisations for the first time. Championing high standards in education is critical to providing a foundation for a collaborative, international biosciences community and we are proud that the RSB can play a part in recognising and supporting this.”

12 universities have received Accreditation for their undergraduate bioscience degrees. Newcastle University has received Advanced Accreditation for their integrated Master’s degree programmes that offer a significant research component.

The University of Ghana has received International Advanced Accreditation and Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University in Suzhou, Jiangsu, China has been awarded International Accreditation. The universities are the first institutions to receive such recognition since the launch of the International Accreditation programme in September 2016.

The University of Kent is the first university to receive Master's Accreditation for its Master's degree programmes.

Including these awards there are now over 200 programmes that have been awarded Advanced Accreditation from 22 universities, and 189 programmes that have been awarded Accreditation from 28 universities across the UK.

Photos from the awards ceremony can be viewed on the RSB Facebook page.

Universities that received Accreditation:

• University of Birmingham
• Coventry University
• Edinburgh Napier University
• Keele University
• Kingston University London
• Sheffield Hallam University
• University of South Wales
• University of Suffolk
• Swansea University
• University of Warwick
• University of Westminster
• University of Worcester

University to receive Advanced Accreditation:

• Newcastle University

 University to receive Master's Accreditation:

• University of Kent

University to receive International Accreditation:

• Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

University to receive International Advanced Accreditation:

• University of Ghana