National Teaching Fellowship

The purpose of the National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS) is to recognise, reward and celebrate individuals working in UK higher education (HE) who have made an outstanding impact on student outcomes and/or the teaching profession. 

The NTFS is organised and run by Advance HE. Coventry University Group can nominate up to three candidates each year for NTF.  This information page sets out the process by which Coventry University Group seeks and supports nominations.  The NTF process is separate to the categories of fellowship awarded through the University’s CUFPA scheme.

Applicants can hold any role that contributes to the enhancement of student outcomes and/or the teaching profession.  NTF is therefore open to academic and professional services staff.

NTF Criteria

The criteria on which NTF awards are made are:

• NTFS Criterion 1: Individual excellence
  • Evidence of enhancing and transforming student outcomes and/or the teaching profession; demonstrating impact commensurate with the individual’s context and the opportunities afforded by it.
• NTFS Criterion 2: Raising the profile of excellence
  • Evidence of supporting colleagues and influencing support for student learning and/or the teaching profession; including demonstrating impact and engagement beyond the nominee’s immediate academic or professional role.
• NTFS Criterion 3: Developing excellence
  • Show the nominee’s commitment to and impact of ongoing professional development with regard to teaching and learning and/or learning support.

Across these criteria applicants must evidence reach, value and impact.

• Reach - The scale of influence.  This might be at a department/ faculty/ institution/ national/ global level, or be evidence of how their practice has reached different groups of students, individuals and/or organisations (e.g. postgraduates, commuter students, BAME students, online learners, etc.).
• Value - The benefit derived for students and staff. This might include added value to the student learning experience or to teaching practice.
• Impact - The difference that has been made to policy, practice and/or student outcomes as the result of an activity. The focus here is on explicit evidence of positive change taking place. Impact evidence can be both quantitative and qualitative, but it is important to show how the activities described have changed teaching practice and/or learning outcomes.

Your Expression of Interest should provide an indication of the range of evidence, quantitative and qualitative, that you will be able to draw upon to support your claim against each criteria.  This evidence might include:

• Student feedback and evaluations (MEQs, NSS, PTES)
• Progression, achievement, retention data etc
• Peer feedback on your impact or on support provided
• Policy developments – changes and updates resulting from your work
• Use of nominee’s resources, approaches, publications etc that have been used to impact colleagues practice (NB this should not be a list of research specific publications)
• Work with partners/external organisations with an indication how this has impacted student learning or the teaching profession
• Awards, accreditations, funding successes (forms of external verification)
• Quantitative data to indicate scale, reach and impact ​​​​​

Further information and detail on the criteria for the NTFS is available at https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/awards/teaching-excellence-awards/national-teaching-fellowship.  The resources on this page include the Insight into the Award Criteria video series, with videos introducing each criteria.

Coventry University Group Selection and Support Process

The applications for the NTFS are co-ordinated and submitted centrally by the University.  Colleagues must submit an expression of interest and the selected nominees will be supported through the process of completing their application.

Dates of information sessions and deadlines will be updated and circulated across the University Group.

Submitting an Expression of Interest

In your expression of interest you will need to provide evidence of how you can meet the NTF criteria.  This must include indications of what evidence you have of impact and change you can draw upon to support your application; being able to evidence the reach, value and impact you have achieved. 

It is recommended that expressions of interest should be between 1500-2000 words.  The full NTF application has a word limit of 1500 words per criteria, your expression of interest must not therefore exceed this limit. 

Expressions of Interest should be emailed to Martin Jenkins, Academic Development Lead. 

The three criteria are:

• NTFS Criterion 1: Individual excellence
  • Provide evidence of how you have enhanced and transformed student outcomes and/or the teaching profession.  Include evidence of impact commensurate with your role and context and the opportunities afforded by it.
• NTFS Criterion 2: Raising the profile of excellence
  • Provide evidence of how you have supported colleagues and influenced support for student learning and/or the teaching profession.  Include evidence that demonstrates impact and engagement beyond your immediate role.
• NTFS Criterion 3: Developing excellence
  • Provide evidence of your commitment to and impact on you and practice of ongoing professional.

The selected University nominees will be provided with support in writing their submission and providing the supporting statements.

Any queries then please contact Martin Jenkins (ab5926@coventry.ac.uk)