1. Imperial College London
Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine is a public research university in London. In 1907, Imperial College was established by a royal charter.
The Imperial College School of Medicine was formed by merging with ‘St Mary’s Hospital Medical School’ in 1988. “Queen Elizabeth II” opened the ‘Imperial College Business School’ in 2004. The main campus is located in South Kensington. Imperial College London has a large international community with more than 60% of students from outside the UK.
Campuses of Imperial College London
South Kensington
Imperial’s main campus is based in South Kensington. Notable buildings include the Business School, which is the college’s main entrance at the Queen’s Tower. The college has many restaurants and cafes. The campus is surrounded by many of London’s most popular attractions, including the ‘Royal Albert Hall’ and ‘Kensington Palace’. There are museums including the ‘Natural History Museum’, ‘Victoria and Albert Museum’, and ‘Science Museum’, and institutions including the ‘Royal College of Art’, ‘Royal College of Music’, and ‘National Art Library’.
White City
Imperial has a second major campus in White City providing a platform for innovation and entrepreneurship. It has research facilities and postgraduate accommodation. The White City campus also includes another biomedical center funded by “Sir Michael Uren”.
Silwood Park
Silwood Park is a postgraduate campus of Imperial located in the village of Sunninghill near Ascot in Berkshire. The Silwood Park campus includes a center for research and teaching in ecology, evolution, and conservation set. In more than 10,000 square meters of an area where ecological field experiments are conducted.
Hospitals
Imperial has teaching hospitals across London which are used by the School of Medicine for undergraduate clinical teaching and medical research. They also provide catering and sports facilities. College libraries are located on each campus, including the St Mary’s Fleming Library.
Faculties and Departments
Faculty of Engineering
- Aeronautical Engineering
- Bioengineering
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil & Environmental Engineering
- Dyson School of Design Engineering
- Earth Science & Engineering
- Electrical & Electronic Engineering
Faculty of Natural Sciences
- Centre for Environmental Policy
- Chemistry
- Life Sciences
- Mathematics
- Physics
Faculty of Medicine
- Brain Sciences
- Immunology and Inflammation
- Infectious Disease
- Metabolism, Digestion, and Reproduction
- Surgery and Cancer
- Institute of Clinical Sciences
- National Heart and Lung Institute
- School of Public Health
Imperial College Business School
- Finance
- Innovation & Entrepreneurship
- Management
Global Institutes
Imperial hosts global centers to promote inter-disciplinary work
- Energy Futures Laboratory
- Gandhi Centre for Inclusive Innovation
- Grantham Institute for Climate Change
- Institute for Security Science & Technology
- Centre for Health Economics & Policy Innovation
- Brevan Howard Centre for Financial Analysis & Technology
- Global Entrepreneurship & Development Index
- Data Science Institute
- Institute for Molecular Science and Engineering
- Institute of Global Health Innovation
- Francis Crick Institute
Sports
Imperial College has more than 60 sports clubs. Many students participate in the ‘British Universities and Colleges Sport’ Association leagues such as American Football, Rugby, Badminton, Lacrosse, Football, and Ice Hockey.
2. University College London
University College London is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. The London University was established in 1826 by founders inspired by the radical ideas of ‘Jeremy Bentham’.
It is a member institution of the federal University of London and is the second-largest university in the United Kingdom by total enrolment. It is the first university institution to be established in London and the third-oldest university in England. University College London is the first in England to be entirely secular and to admit students regardless of their religion.
Campus and Locations
Bloomsbury
University College London is primarily based in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, in Central London. The main campus is located around ‘Gower Street’. It includes the UCL Faculty of Engineering Sciences, economics, geography, history, languages, mathematics, management, philosophy, and physics departments. There is a preclinical facility at the ‘UCL Medical School’, ‘The London Centre for Nanotechnology’, and ‘The Slade School of Fine Art’. The area around Queen Square in Bloomsbury is a hub for brain-related research and healthcare, with the ‘UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience’ and ‘UCL Institute of Neurology’ located in the area along with the affiliated ‘National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery’. Several important institutions are based near the main campus, including the ‘British Library’, ‘British Medical Association’, ‘British Museum’, ‘Cancer Research UK’, ‘The Honourable Society of Gray’s Inn’, ‘Medical Research Council’, ‘Royal Academy of Dramatic Art’, ‘Royal Institution’, and ‘Wellcome Trust’.
UCL East
In 2014, it was announced that UCL would be building an additional campus at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. From 2018, UCL is offering degree courses at the Olympic Park, based at UCL at Here East at the northern end of the East Bank development.
Faculties and Departments
UCL’s research and teaching are organized within a network of faculties and academic departments. University College London is a comprehensive university with teaching and research across the full range of the arts, humanities, social sciences, physical, biological, and medical science, engineering, and the built environment.
UCL is currently organized into the following 11 constituent faculties
- UCL Faculty of Arts and Humanities
- UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences
- UCL Faculty of the Built Environment (The Bartlett)
- UCL Faculty of Engineering Sciences
- UCL Faculty of Laws
- UCL Faculty of Life Sciences
- UCL Faculty of Mathematical and Physical Sciences
- UCL Faculty of Medical Sciences
- UCL Faculty of Population Health Sciences
- UCL Faculty of Social and Historical Sciences
- UCL Institute of Education
Film and Television
UCL has been used as a location for several films and television productions, including ‘Doctor in the House’, ‘Gladiator’, ‘The Mummy Returns’, ‘The Dark Knight’, and ‘Inception’.
3. King’s College London
King’s College London is a public research university located in London, England. It was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington.
It is one of the oldest universities in England. King’s College London is often ranked among the best and most prestigious universities in the world. Its academic activities are organized into nine faculties, which are subdivided into numerous departments, centers, and research divisions. King’s College London is generally regarded as part of the “golden triangle” of universities located in the cities of Oxford, Cambridge, and London.
Campus
Strand Campus
The Strand Campus is the founding campus of King’s and is located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The original campus comprises the Grade I listed King’s Building of 1831 designed by “Sir Robert Smirke” and the King’s College London Chapel redesigned in 1864 by “Sir Gilbert Scott”. It includes the faculties of Arts & Humanities, Law, Business, Social Science & Public Policy, and Natural & Mathematical Sciences (formerly Physical Sciences & Engineering). The nearest Underground stations are Temple, Charing Cross, and Covent Garden.
Guy’s Campus
Guy’s Campus is situated close to London Bridge and the Shard on the South Bank of the Thames and is home to the Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine and the Dental Institute. Guy’s Campus is situated close to London Bridge and the Shard on the South Bank of the Thames and is home to the Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine and the Dental Institute. The nearest Underground stations are London Bridge and Borough.
Waterloo Campus
The Waterloo Campus is located across Waterloo Bridge from the Strand Campus, near the Southbank Centre in the London Borough of Lambeth. It has James Clerk Maxwell Building, the Franklin–Wilkins Building, and the Waterloo Bridge Wing Building. ‘The Franklin–Wilkins Building’ is named after Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins for their major contributions to the discovery of the structure of DNA. The nearest Underground station is Waterloo.
St Thomas’s Campus
St Thomas’ Campus in the London Borough of Lambeth, facing the Houses of Parliament across the Thames, houses parts of the School of Medicine and the Dental Institute. ‘The Florence Nightingale Museum’ is also located here. The nearest Underground station is Westminster.
Denmark Hill Campus
Denmark Hill Campus is situated in south London near the borders of the London Borough of Lambeth and the London Borough of Southwark in Camberwell and is the only campus not situated on the River Thames. The campus consists of King’s College Hospital, the Maudsley Hospital, and the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience. In 2015, The Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute was opened by Princess Royal. It is named after British philanthropist “Maurice Wohl”.
Sports
There are more than 60 sports clubs many of which compete in the University of London and British Universities & Colleges leagues across the South East. The students and staff have played an important part in the formation of the London Universities and Colleges Athletics.
Music
There are many music societies at King’s including Cappella groups, orchestras, choir, musical theatre, and jazz society. King’s has three orchestras ‘King’s College London Symphony Orchestra’, ‘King’s College London Chamber Orchestra’, and ‘KCL Concert Orchestra’.
4. London School of Economics and Political Science
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university located in London, England, and a constituent college of the federal University of London.
It was founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members like ‘Sidney Webb’, ‘Beatrice Webb’, ‘Graham Wallas’, and ‘George Bernard Shaw’. London School of Economics and Political Science is a member of the Russell Group, Association of Commonwealth Universities, and European University Association. It is often considered a part of the “Golden Triangle” of top universities in South East England. London School of Economics and Political Science has educated the most billionaires according to a 2014 global census of US dollar billionaires. LSE alumni and faculty have also won 3 “Nobel Peace Prizes” and 2 “Nobel Prizes in Literature” out of all European universities.
Academic Departments and Institutes
There are currently 27 academic departments or institutes.
- Department of Accounting
- Department of Anthropology
- Department of Economic History
- Department of Economics
- Department of Finance
- Department of Geography and Environment
- Department of Gender Studies
- Department of Health Policy
- Department of Government
- Department of International Development
- Department of International History
- Department of International Relations
- Department of Management
- Department of Mathematics
- Department of Media and Communications
- Department of Methodology
- Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method
- Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science
- Department of Social Policy
- Department of Sociology
- Department of Statistics
- European Institute
- International Inequalities Institute
- Institute of Public Affairs
- Language Centre
- LSE Law School
- Marshall Institute for Philanthropy and Social Entrepreneurship
- School of Public Policy
LSE Summer School
The original LSE Summer School was established in 1989. It has since expanded to offer more than 70 three-week courses in accounting, finance, economics, English language, international relations, government, law, and management each July and August. It is advertised as the largest and one of the most well-established university Summer Schools of its kind in Europe.
5. Queen Mary University of London
The Queen Mary University of London is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London.
Queen Mary College was named after “Mary of Teck”. In 1995 Queen Mary and Westfield College merged with St Bartholomew’s Hospital Medical College and the London Hospital Medical College to form the School of Medicine and Dentistry. Queen Mary has five campuses across ‘East and Central London in Mile End’, ‘Whitechapel’, ‘Charterhouse Square’, ‘Lincoln’s Inn Fields’, and ‘West Smithfield’. The Mile End campus is the largest self-contained campus of any London-based Russell Group university. Queen Mary is organized into three faculties ‘The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences’, ‘The Faculty of Science and Engineering and Barts’, and ‘The London School of Medicine and Dentistry’.
Campus
The main Mile End campus contains the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Faculty of Science and Engineering, the Queens’ Building, the main college library, the student union, Draper’s bar and club, several restaurants, several halls of residences, and a gym. The educational and research sites of the Arts Research Centre, Computer Science, the large Engineering building, G.E. Fogg Building, Francis Bancroft Building, G. O. Jones Building, Joseph Priestley Building, Lock-keeper’s Graduate Centre, and the Mathematical Science Building, are all located within the Mile End campus. The Centre for Commercial Law Studies and LLM teaching and postgraduate law research activities are based in Lincoln’s Inn Fields in Holborn. The Whitechapel campus encompasses the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, the Whitechapel Medical Library, the award-winning Blizard Institute of Cell and Molecular Science, and the Royal London Hospital. The West Smithfield campus of the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, the West Smithfield Medical Library, the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, the John Vane Science Centre, the Heart Centre, and St Bartholomew’s Hospital is based in Smithfield.
Harold Pinter Drama Studio
The Harold Pinter Drama Studio is the main teaching and performance space for the students and staff of the Department of Drama.
Schools, Faculties, and Departments
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
- School of Business and Management
- School of Economics and Finance
- School of English and Drama
- School of Languages, Linguistics, and Film
- School of Geography
- Global Shakespeare (in partnership with the University of Warwick)
- School of History
- School of Law
- Centre for Commercial Law Studies
- Department of Law
- School of Politics and International Relations
Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry
- Barts Cancer Institute
- The Blizard Institute
- Institute of Dentistry
- Institute of Health Sciences Education
- William Harvey Research Institute
- Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine
- The Centre of the Cell
Faculty of Science and Engineering
- Institute of Bioengineering
- School of Biological and Chemical Sciences
- School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science
- School of Engineering and Materials Science
- School of Mathematical Sciences
- School of Physics and Astronomy
- Materials Research Institute (MRI)
Life Sciences Institute
- Centre for Computational Biology
- Centre for Genomic Health
- Centre for Mind in Society
- Institute of Bioengineering
Sports
The Merger Cup is a series of annual sporting fixtures played between Queen Mary and Barts London sports clubs. The event has taken place since the merger of the two institutions in 1995. The results of several matches normally played on the same day are combined to determine the overall winner. Sporting fixtures include rugby, badminton, basketball, football, hockey, netball, squash, swimming, tennis, and rowing.
6. City, University of London
City, University of London, is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, and a member institution of the federal University of London.
It was founded in 1894 as the Northampton Institute and became a university when The City University was created by royal charter in 1966. The university has its main campus in Central London in the London Borough of Islington, with additional campuses in Islington, the city, the West End, and East End. It is organized into five schools, with around forty academic departments and centers. Including the Department of Journalism, the Business School, and City Law School which incorporates the Inns of Court School of Law.
Campus
City, University of London has sites throughout London with the main campus located at Northampton Square in the Finsbury area of Islington. The Rhind Building which houses the School of Arts and Social Sciences is directly west of Northampton Square. A few buildings of the main campus are located on nearby Goswell Road in Clerkenwell. Other academic sites are ‘The City Law School in Holborn, Camden’, ‘Bayes Business School in St Luke’s, Islington, and at 200 Aldersgate in Smithfield, City of London’, and ‘INTO City in Spitalfields, Tower Hamlets’.
Organization and Administration
The rector of City, University of London, is ex officio the Lord Mayor of the City of London.
Schools
City, University of London, is organized into five schools.
- The City Law School, incorporating The Centre for Legal Studies and the Inns of Court School of Law.
- School of Health Sciences, incorporating St Bartholomew School of Nursing & Midwifery.
- School of Arts and Social Science, including the Department of Journalism.
- School of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Engineering.
- Bayes Business School (Formerly Cass Business School).
Partnerships and Collaborations
CETL
Queen Mary, University of London, and City, University of London, were jointly awarded Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) status by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) in recognition of their work in skills training for 3,000 students across six healthcare professions.
City of London
City, University of London, has links with businesses in the City of London. The city has also joined forces with other universities such as Queen Mary and the Institute of Education (both part of the University of London) with which it jointly delivers several leading degree programs.
LCACE
London Centre for Arts and Cultural Exchange is a consortium of nine universities. It was established in 2004 to foster collaboration and to promote and support the exchange of knowledge between the consortium’s partners and London’s arts and cultural sectors. The nine institutions are ‘University of the Arts London’, ‘Birkbeck, University of London’, ‘City, University of London’, ‘The Courtauld Institute of Art’, ‘Goldsmiths, University of London’, ‘Guildhall School of Music & Drama’, ‘King’s College London’, ‘Queen Mary, University of London’, and ‘Royal Holloway, University of London’.
7. Birkbeck, University of London
Birkbeck, University of London is a public research university, located in Bloomsbury London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London.
It was established in 1823 as the ‘London Mechanics Institute’ by its founder “Sir George Birkbeck”. Birkbeck’s main building is based in the area of Bloomsbury in the London Borough of Camden in Central London. It offers more than 200 undergraduate and postgraduate programs that can be studied either part-time or full-time. Birkbeck’s academic activities are organized into five constituent faculties which are subdivided into nineteen departments. Birkbeck is a member of academic organizations such as the Association of Commonwealth Universities and the European University Association. The university is also a member of the Screen Studies Group, London. The university’s Centre for Brain Function and Development was awarded The Queen’s Anniversary Prize for its brain research in 2005.
Campus and Location
Birkbeck is principally located between Malet Street and Woburn Square in Bloomsbury, with several institutes, teaching hospitals, and scientific laboratories on nearby streets. A building on Euston Road has been refurbished by Penoyre & Prasad to be used by Birkbeck in 2021.
Organization
Faculties and Departments
The University consists of five schools that comprise a total of 19 diverse academic departments.
- Department of English, Theatre and Creative Writing
- Department of Cultures and Languages
- Department of History of Art
- Department of Film, Media and Cultural Studies
- Department of Computer Science and Information Systems
- Department of Economics, Mathematics, and Statistics
- Department of Management
- Department of Organizational Psychology
- Department of Law
- Department of Criminology
- Department of Biological Sciences
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
- Department of Psychological Sciences
- Department of Applied Linguistics and Communication
- Department of Geography
- Department of History, Classics, and Archaeology
- Department of Philosophy
- Department of Politics
- Department of Psychosocial Studies.
8. Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London is a public research university and a constituent college of the federal University of London.
It has six schools, 21 academic departments, and approximately 10,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students from over 100 countries.
Campus and Location
Royal Holloway’s campus is set in 135 acres of woodland, between Windsor and Heathrow. More than 200 species of shrubs, 150 different types of trees, and numerous wild flowering plants can be found in RHC’s parkland. The nearest station is ‘Egham’.
Founder’s Building
The Founder’s Building, which dominates the campus, has striking north and south towers and two large quadrangles and contains a chapel, kitchen and dining hall, lecture theatre, and the original reading room along with student rooms and offices.
Schools and Departments
School of Business and Management
- Department of Accounting and Financial Management
- Department of Digital Innovation Management
- Department of Human Resource Management and Organisational Studies
- Department of Marketing
- Department of Strategy, International Business, and Entrepreneurship
School of Law and Social Sciences
- Department of Economics
- Department of Law and Criminology
- Department of Politics, International Relations and Philosophy
- Department of Social Work
School of Engineering, Physical and Mathematical Sciences (EPMS)
- Department of Computer Science
- Department of Electronic Engineering
- Department of Information Security
- Department of Mathematics
- Department of Physics
School of Life Sciences and the Environment
- Department of Biological Sciences
- Department of Earth Sciences
- Department of Geography
- Department of Psychology
School of Humanities
- Department of Classics
- Department of English
- Department of History
- Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
School of Performing and Digital Arts
- Department of Drama, Theatre, and Dance
- Department of Media Arts
- Department of Music
Collaborations
Royal Holloway’s Department of Physics is a founding member of SEPnet, the southeast Physics Network, which supports collaboration between seven universities in southeast England on physics research, outreach, and postgraduate teaching. The John Adams Institute for Accelerator Research is a major collaboration in the field of particle physics between Royal Holloway and the University of Oxford.
9. Brunel University London
Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England.
It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer “Isambard Kingdom Brunel”. The university won the Queen’s Anniversary Prize in 2011. Brunel University London is ranked as one of the top 400 universities in the world by QS World University Rankings 2022 and the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2022.
Campus
The original Brunel campus was designed by Richard Sheppard, Robson, and Partners, with many buildings retaining the 1960s ‘Brutalist’ architectural style. It has appeared in the film ‘A Clockwork Orange’. It has featured in many UK television series like ‘Spooks’, ‘Silent Witness’, ‘The Sweeney’, and ‘Inspector Morse’.
Colleges
Brunel has three constituent Academic Colleges.
College of Engineering, College of Engineering, Design and Physical Sciences
- Brunel Design School
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Computer Science
- Electronic and Electrical Engineering
- Mathematics
- Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
College of Business, Arts and Social Sciences
- Arts and Humanities
- Brunel Business School
- Brunel Law School
- Economics and Finance
- Social and Political Sciences
Research Institutes
Research at Brunel has been organized into five institutes.
- Institute of Communities and Society
- Institute of Digital Futures
- Institute of Energy Futures
- Institute of Health, Medicine and Environments
- Institute of Materials and Manufacturing
10. SOAS University of London
SOAS University of London is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London.
It is established in 1916. SOAS University of London is located in the Bloomsbury area of central London. SOAS is one of the world’s leading institutions for the study of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Its library is one of the five national research libraries in the UK. SOAS is divided into three faculties ‘The Faculty of Arts and Humanities’, ‘The Faculty of Languages and Cultures’, and ‘The Faculty of Law and Social Sciences’. The university has a student-staff ratio of 11:1, one of the best in the UK. SOAS is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities. The university has produced several heads of State, Government Ministers, Diplomats, Central Bankers, Supreme Court Judges, and a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
Faculties and Departments
SOAS, University of London is divided into three faculties. It has many Centres and Institutes, each of which is affiliated with a particular faculty.
Faculty of Arts and Humanities
The Faculty of Arts and Humanities houses the departments of Anthropology & Sociology, History of Art & Archaeology, History, Music, Philosophy and Religious Studies, and the Centre for Media Studies. It offers courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels, with an emphasis on Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. The university is a member of the Screen Studies Group, London.
Department of Linguistics
SOAS Department of Linguistics was the first-ever linguistics department in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1932 as a center for research and study in Oriental and African languages.
Faculty of Law and Social Sciences
It is the departments of ‘Development Studies’, ‘Economics’, ‘Financial and Management Studies’, ‘Politics and International Studies’ and ‘The School of Law’. It has the ‘London Asia-Pacific Centre for Social Science’, ‘The Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy’, ‘The Centre of Taiwan Studies’, and several department-specific centers. It offers courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
SOAS School of Law
SOAS School of Law is one of Britain’s leading law schools and the only law school in the world focusing on the study of Asian, African, and Middle Eastern legal systems. The School of Law has more than 400 students. It offers programs at the LL.B., LL.M., and MPhil/Ph.D. levels. In 2016, SOAS School of Law was ranked 15th out of all 98 British law schools by the British daily newspaper “The Guardian”.
Library
The SOAS Library is a library for Asian, African, and Middle Eastern studies. In 2011, the library was designated by Higher Education Funding Council for England. The library was used as a filming location for some scenes in the film ‘Criminal’.
Sports
SOAS has multiple smaller sports teams competing in a variety of local and national leagues, as well as occasional international tournaments. SOAS clubs compete in inter-university fixtures in British Universities and Colleges Sports competitions like basketball, football, hockey, netball, rugby, and tennis.