The Government will make the changes as part of a drive to make institutions more “transparent” for would be students.
In a move to be announced later this month, universities will be forced to set out the guaranteed minimum number of lectures, teaching hours, levels of personal support and student accommodation standards.
Vice-chancellors will also be expected to publish "employability statements" setting out students’ chances of getting a graduate job after completing certain courses.
The move is being seen as a trade off for universities that impose far higher tuition fees – ensuring students gain maximum value for their additional investment.
It follows claims that some students are being misled by vague promises made in glossy prospectuses handed out as teenagers apply to different universities.
Last year, students at Bristol University staged a tuition fees rebellion after complaining about reduced teaching hours and attempts to have essays marked by undergraduates.
Some 600 students reading economics and finance signed a complaint arguing that the university had failed to improve its teaching since tuition fees were raised to more than £3,000 in 2006.
David Willetts, the Universities Minister, has warned universities against “relegating the importance of teaching”.
In a recent speech to vice-chancellors, he said: “The balance between teaching and research has gone wrong.
“This is not because universities have suddenly made some terrible mistake. We have strengthened the incentives for everyone to carry out research with no change in the regime for teaching.
“It should be a source of pride for an institution to be an excellent teaching university. That is what most students rightly see as the backbone of their university experience.”
Earlier this year, Mr Willetts appointed an 11-strong group to develop new “student charters” which all universities must produce.
The agreements – updated every year – will set out students’ minimum entitlement to teaching and standards of facilities.
The charters, due to be introduced in autumn next year, are widely seen as an attempt to prepare the ground for a hike in tuition fees.
They will also make it easier for students to lodge complaints about a poor university experience.
--By Graeme Paton,09 Oct 2010