Hereford’s New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering (NMITE) welcomed its largest-ever intake in September, with 75 students joining the institution’s growing portfolio of degrees, marking a significant progression for the higher education institution. Enrolments to NMITE increased by 63% for 2025 entry, with several milestones achieved, including the enrolment of NMITE’s first international students.
The intake marks a significant step forward for NMITE, which first opened its doors in 2021 with just 27 students on a single programme. Now offering four degree courses, including accelerated mechanical engineering and construction management degrees alongside its original integrated engineering courses and Foundation Year, NMITE continues to attract a diverse mix of learners.
Mature students make up a record proportion of this year’s intake, bucking the national trend that has seen a fall in mature applicants across much of the UK higher education sector. Local enrolments have more than doubled, signalling progress on NMITE’s founding goal of boosting skills and economic regeneration in Herefordshire.
Mat Poyner, a mature student aged 38 and one of this year’s intake on NMITE’s new BSc (Hons) Construction Management degree, explains: “I’ve been an electrician all my adult life, but after attending an NMITE open day in July on a whim, I was inspired to try something else. I’d not considered construction management before and thought it was a career out of reach for me, but I was so reassured by NMITE’s practical teaching style that I applied the next day. Six weeks later, I’ve started my first year at NMITE, and I feel that my life skills and knowledge are valuable here.”
The number of students admitted through Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning (RPEL), an initiative that allows students to join an NMITE degree using their work experience as an entry qualification instead of the traditional A Levels, has also risen sharply, with more learners than ever having their industry and life experience recognised as part of their route into higher education.
NMITE’s President and Chief Executive, James Newby, commented, “This year’s enrolment numbers are a testament to NMITE’s reputation for delivering a unique, skills-based learning model that produces ready-made engineering graduates. With the first NMITE graduates out in the workforce this year, proving their value to industry from the moment they started their jobs, we’re delighted with the increase in interest from students wanting to study at NMITE. As our intake period runs up to November, we anticipate getting very close to hosting 200 students at NMITE this year, across all cohorts. It is great to see more people, from more diverse backgrounds, make a journey that they could not before NMITE existed.”
NMITE’s first graduates secured roles with employers including Balfour Beatty, KIER, Mondelēz International and Oakwrights. The combination of graduate outcomes and an inclusive, hands-on approach to learning appears to be driving demand, a sign that NMITE’s distinctive model of skills-based, accelerated higher education is finding traction with students seeking strong career outcomes and value for money.
NMITE was appointed as a Knowledge Base by the Government’s Innovate UK in April this year and celebrated its first graduation ceremony on 10 May 2025.
Enrolment remains open until November 3rd for Foundation Year entry, and degree applications are open for 2026: https://nmite.ac.uk/c/apply2026