About Us

We are an exciting, friendly and purposeful college where we're committed to ensuring all our students' success. We have high expectations of our students and staff and each year their combined efforts result in excellent exam grades, outstanding training successes and brilliant music, art, sports and community achievements. We welcome students of all ages and abilities and our tutorial and learner support programmes are designed to meet their needs, challenging them to reach their full potential.

Exeter College was established in 1970 as the first tertiary college in the UK, providing all post-16 education and training for the city of Exeter, bringing together the former grammar schools’ sixth forms and Exeter Technical College.

Our recent successes

In 2012, Exeter College won two prestigious Times Educational Supplement Further Education Awards for Outstanding Provider of the Year and Outstanding Leadership of Learning and Skills Awards. Click here to find out more. These awards came just months after the college was graded 'Outstanding' in the first no-notice Ofsted inspection, as part of the Government’s pilot.

Exeter College has also been ranked the top performing college in the Devon Educational area by a staggering 14%! For more on our achievements and recent successes click here

What do we offer?

As a successful tertiary college we now offer a wide range of courses and students can choose those that reflect their individual ability, aspiration and interest.

In 2011/12 the college welcomed approx

  • 4,500 full time students,
  • 5,300 part time adult learners
  • 1,380 work-based learning students, including apprentices with over 800 employers.
  • 450 14 – 16 year olds drawn from secondary schools across Devon.

We offer over:

  • 40 AS and A2 subjects,
  • the International Baccalaureate,
  • a wide range of over 90 vocational and industry led courses (entry level to level 3) and
  • over 30 university-level courses, including Foundation Degrees, in partnership with Edexcel and the Universities of Plymouth, Exeter, Marjon and Kingston.

The college continues to serve the city of Exeter but we are now attracting students from across Devon with over 60% of our 16 - 18 learners coming from across the south west.

The college boasts a number of academies providing specialist training for sports, music, academically gifted and hospitality and catering students and we have developed very strong employer links with leading local and international employers, such as Flybe, Met Office, Michael Caines and many small and medium enterprises, ensuring our vocational courses and apprenticeship training mirrors current industry trends and initiatives.

We recognise the importance of working closely with local authorities, national, community and employer groups in order to support the local community and economy and we deliver key initiatives particularly with Princes' Trust, Careers South West and the local Chambers of Commerce.

View Our History page

Investing in the future

The college facilities are based in the city centre and in a number of specialist training centres on the outskirts of Exeter. We continue to invest in an ambitious property strategy which has seen, since 2005

  • New Centre for Creative Industries including theatre, TV and sound studios
  • New Hele Building for Health, Care and Public Services and new resource centre
  • New Lawrence Building for Hospitality, Hair and Beauty with commercial restaurant, salons and spa
  • Refurbished Ted Wragg Building providing first class accommodation for our expanding Foundation Studies
  • Additional Automotive workshops at Marsh Barton
  • New purpose-built nursery
  • New student social space at the Centre for Creative Industries
  • Extension to Construction facilities at Sowton
  • New Centre for Music and Performance at Queen Street with recording studios and performance space

Click here to find out more about our new developments.

View the Public Value Statement

View the College video

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