When following the leader can lead into the jaws of death

NOTE TO NEWSDESK:
For more information contact:

Professor Paul J B Hart
Department of Biology
University of Leicester
University Road
Leicester LE1 7RH UK
Tel: +44 (0)116 252 3348
Fax: +44 (0)116 252 3330
http://www.le.ac.uk/biology/staff/blpbh.htm

UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER

A member of the 1994 Group of universities that share a commitment to research excellence, high quality teaching and an outstanding student experience.

Ranked top for student satisfaction in England (jointly with Oxford) among mainstream universities (average score of 4.4 out of 5 for overall satisfaction)

Ranked as a Top 20 university by The Sunday Times University Guide, The Guardian University Guide and the UK Good University Guide

One of just 23 UK universities to feature in world’s top 200- Shanghai Jiao Tong International Index, 2005-07.

Ranked in top 200 world universities by the THES (Times Higher Education Supplement)

Short listed University of the Year in 2007 by The Sunday Times and Short listed Higher Education Institution of the Year - THES awards 2005 and 2006

Ranked top 10 in England for research impact by The Guardian

Students’ Union of the Year award 2005, short listed 2006 and 2007

Founded in 1921, the University of Leicester has 19,000 students from 136 countries. Teaching in 18 subject areas has been graded Excellent by the Quality Assurance Agency- including 14 successive scores - a consistent run of success matched by just one other UK University. Leicester is world renowned for the invention of DNA Fingerprinting by Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys and houses Europe's biggest academic Space Research Centre. 90% of staff are actively engaged in high quality research and 13 subject areas have been awarded the highest rating of 5* and 5 for research quality, demonstrating excellence at an international level. The University's research grant income places it among the top 20 UK research universities. The University employs over 3,000 people, has an annual turnover of £184m, covers an estate of 94 hectares and is engaged in a £300m investment programme- among the biggest of any UK university.

The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) funds world-class science, in universities and its own research centres, that increases knowledge and understanding of the natural world. It is tackling major environmental issues such as climate change, biodiversity and natural hazards. NERC receives around £400 million a year from the government's science budget, which is used to provide independent research and training in the environmental sciences. www.nerc.ac.uk