STUDENTS have ranked the University of Kent as the best university in the South East.

Results of the National Student Survey also show that the university was ranked 26th out of a total of 128 higher education institutions across the UK.

The independent survey, which is the first of its kind, showed that students who study on the Chatham and Canterbury campuses are overwhelmingly satisfied with the quality of the courses on offer.

Vice-Chancellor Professor David Melville is delighted. "This is excellent news. We are pleased to see that the feedback from this survey is so overwhelmingly positive," he said.

"We already encourage our students to let us know what they think of every aspect of university life.

"The results of this survey confirm what they have been saying in our own surveys and we are currently looking at new ways to further improve the quality of the student experience.

"The results are a real tribute to the hard work of staff here at the University of Kent."

Jeff Brown, director of operations at the University of Kent at Medway, agreed.

He said: "This is fantastic news and a confirmation of something we have been working towards for the last few years. It is a very positive development for Medway and Canterbury.

"This accolade is the sort of thing that really does inspire staff here to strive towards greater things for the students. The news is great timing to coincide with the opening of the new Medway building."

The survey aims to help prospective students decide where they want to study and which courses they are most interested in.

More than 170,000 students took part in the survey performed by the Higher Education Funding Council England.

It is the latest good news for Medway’s universities. Last week, the University of Greenwich at Medway revealed that a record number of students have applied for its courses.

More than 8,000 students are joining the Chatham Maritime campus this month. The intake has more than doubled in the past four years.