Behind that marketing-speak lies a deal between two huge academic institutions to cooperate on everything from the appointments of professors to research work and international opportunities.
Prof David Greenaway, Nottingham’s vice chancellor, said this morning that the agreement is not a merger.
But that in itself is an acknowledgement of the sheer scale of the collaboration.
The University of Nottingham is a massive asset to Nottingham – to its economy, to its future development, to its international profile and reputation. It attracts tens of millions in research funding (which is a measure of its track record), has produced a significant number of spin-out businesses, and was the first in China to build its own campus. Its Jubilee Campus (pictured) has become an icon of high-tech progress.
It’s no exagerration to say that without the university's contribution, Nottingham would be a smaller place in every sense.
Now, there is clearly a recognition in this deal that even at the top of the academic tree money is now significantly harder to come by – one area of collaboration is on management and administration, usually a euphemism for cost saving.
This is about making sure that even in tough times the two universities between them have the momentum to continue making waves on a national and international scale and to attract the kind of backing that keeps their research work in the international big league.
The two universities already work together on other initiatives – notably the Energy Technology Institute – and while Nottingham has a big presence in South East Asia, Birmingham has a bigger footprint in North America.
They certainly won’t call it the University of the Midlands. But it may still become the dominant force in the academic scene across the region.
