‘Academic snobbery’: Russell Group uni slammed by critics over axing of 48 courses

A Russell Group university is being slammed for axing 48 courses amid accusations the cuts amount to “academic snobbery”.

Critics say the University of Nottingham’s decision, which includes suspending two nursing courses, comes at a time when Nottinghamshire’s healthcare services are already under immense strain.

All modern language and music courses are being suspended for new students; however, students already on those courses will be supported by the university to complete their studies. 

A source familiar with NHS staffing circumstances told Nottinghamshire Live that employees at Nottinghamshire Healthcare and Nottingham University Hospitals trust have accused the cuts of being a partial result of “academic snobbery” towards nursing.

They added: “Now is an unforgivable time to pull away from the NHS trusts in Nottinghamshire – when they need it most. I’m appalled by it.”

A spokesperson for the University of Nottingham said they remain committed to training healthcare professionals and cited a lower demand for nursing disciplines, leading to “difficult decisions” to lower tariffs for courses.

The courses were ‘massive feeders’ for healthcare in Nottingham

via Canva

Elle Guerin, University and College Union (UCU) representative for the school of health sciences, has said the city will suffer from losing trained nurses from the university, with Elle herself having moved to Nottingham to study and deciding to stay afterwards.

She added that the courses were “massive feeders” for healthcare in Nottingham, and thousands of pounds may be lost for each placement that students will no longer undertake.

It’s unclear whether the cuts will result in job losses; however, Elle claimed “the writing was on the wall”.

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The University of Nottingham has said demand for its mental health nursing course has halved since 2022, although it did not comment on whether the same decline was being seen on its children’s nursing course, which is also being suspended.

A spokesperson said: “There has generally been lower demand for nursing disciplines and in order to fill places we have had to lower tariffs for some of these courses. Mental health nursing student numbers have halved over the past three years.

“These are really difficult decisions, but we need to respond to the government’s recent ask in the Post 16 Education and Skills White Paper for universities to specialise in areas of strength and collaborate with others for the benefit of students and society.”

The spokesperson added they will do “everything we can” to minimise the impact on students and are grateful for support from Trust partners.

On 25th November, the university’s council will decide whether to begin talks with trade unions and staff members on the proposed course cuts.

The Royal College of Nursing has “expressed deep concern” over the suspensions and has urged the university to reconsider its decision.

‘The closure leaves the East Midlands as a linguistic desert’

Professor Cecilia Goria, the university’s language centre director, told the BBC she is “profoundly dismayed” by the announcement.

Cecilia claimed “the closure leaves the East Midlands as a linguistic desert”, since the University of Leicester and Nottingham Trent University have both recently closed their modern languages departments.

“An entire generation of aspiring linguists, translators, and cultural mediators will find themselves geographically excluded from higher education in their chosen field,” she added. 

A spokesperson for the University of Nottingham said: “Over the past 18 months, we have been developing a clear set of proposals that will guide the size and shape of our organisation and ensure our university continues to be a global leader in education, innovation, student success and research.”

The announcement explained the “Future Nottingham” programme, which “aims to help us maintain our status as a global leader in education and student success, and to build resilience against the financial pressures that institutions across the country are facing”.

The University and College Union (UCU) has also criticised the proposed changes, with University of Nottingham staff beginning four weeks of strikes last Monday (10th November).

STRIKE RESUMES ON MONDAY!!!

On November 10th, we will commence with another 4 weeks of strikes. And we're kicking things off with a picket at the West Entrance of University Park. (Photo by @tregenza). pic.twitter.com/uVq0qfLnNK

— University of Nottingham UCU branch (@UoNUCU) November 5, 2025

Nottinghamshire Healthcare said it was working to support staff currently enrolled in courses at the university, and suggested it would work with other education providers to find replacements for University of Nottingham students.

Diane Hull, the chief nurse, said: “Training mental health nurses is critical to the continuous development of a workforce with the experience and expertise to deliver skilled interventions to the communities we serve. We want to assure people that the Trust continues to work with other local and national education providers offering mental health nursing courses and we will continue to offer a range of placements, support and opportunities.

“We value our longstanding partnership with the university and appreciate the way they have worked with us during this process. We are supporting colleagues currently enrolled in University of Nottingham courses during this transition.”

Paul Morris, the RCN East Midlands regional director, said: “The withdrawal of these programmes comes with significant and long-lasting consequences, both to the Midlands and to the safe and effective staffing of our local organisations. Decisions like these ultimately could mean fewer children’s nurses and fewer mental health nurses for the people of Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. That is not only a tragedy but deeply damaging to local health needs.

“Nottingham has a proud history of leading the way in nursing education, and the loss of these programmes sends a worrying signal at a time when NHS England’s 10-Year Workforce Plan sets a clear expectation to grow the nursing workforce.

“The University of Nottingham has strong, high-quality students and application numbers remain strong, attracting a high number of applications from a wide range of students and a higher proportion of students who have previously studied at A-Level compared to others in the UK.”

Paul added that local NHS organisations have expressed concern, as well as RCN members, and they are working to provide answers. He advised those seeking support to contact RCN East Midlands via email at [email protected].

A spokesperson for the University of Nottingham said: “Over the past 18 months, we have been developing a clear set of proposals that will guide the size and shape of our
organisation and ensure our university continues to be a global leader in education,
innovation, student success and research.

“Ahead of these proposals being put forward to the university’s Council later this month, we have taken the decision to suspend a small number of courses where demand is low or where they are not meeting the benchmark against a number of other criteria.

“Closure and creation of courses is a normal part of how we evolve as a university. It allows us to adapt our portfolio so that students – and the global workforce – gain the skills, knowledge, and adaptability needed for the future.

“While we cannot pre-empt the decision by Council over the future of these courses, it is
important we do not continue to recruit to courses which we are proposing to close. We will be notifying UCAS and suspending the courses from Monday 10th November.”

Nottingham University Hospitals has not yet responded to a request for comment.

Featured image via Canva