University of London

"London University" redirects here. For the institution known until 1836 as London University, see University College London.
"Londin" redirects here. For the American drummer and session musician, see Larrie Londin.

University of London
Coat of arms
Latin: Universitas Londinensis[1][2] or Londiniensis[3]
TypePublic
Established1836; 188 years ago (1836)
ChancellorThe Princess Royal
Vice-ChancellorWendy Thomson
VisitorThe Lord President of the Council ex officio
Academic staff
100 (central academic bodies; 2018/19)[4]
Administrative staff
895 (central academic bodies; 2018/19)[4]
Students205,400 internal;[5] 37,395 in University of London Worldwide[6] (2021–22)
Undergraduates116,585 internal;[5] 30,350 University of London Worldwide[6] (2021–22)
Postgraduates88,815 internal;[5] 7,045 University of London Worldwide[6] (2021–22)
Location
London
,
England, United Kingdom
Deputy Vice ChancellorDavid Latchman[7][8]
Chair of the Board of TrusteesSir Richard Dearlove[9]
Colours
                   
Affiliations
Websitewww.london.ac.uk Edit this at Wikidata

The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal[a] public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree-awarding examination board for students holding certificates from University College London, King's College London and "other such institutions, corporate or unincorporated, as shall be established for the purpose of Education, whether within the Metropolis or elsewhere within our United Kingdom".[11] It is one of three institutions to have advertised themselves as the third-oldest university in England.[b][12][13] It moved to a federal structure with constituent colleges in 1900.[14] It is now incorporated by its fourth (1863) royal charter and governed by the University of London Act 2018 (c. iii).[15]

The university consists of 17 member institutions and three central academic bodies.[16][17] The university has around 48,000 distance learning external students[18] and around 219,410 campus-based internal students, making it the largest university by number of students in the United Kingdom. For most practical purposes, ranging from admissions to funding, the member institutions operate on an independent basis, with many awarding their own degrees whilst remaining in the federal university.

Under the 2018 act, member institutions ceased to be termed colleges and gained the right to seek university status without having to leave the federal university: Birkbeck, City, Goldsmiths, King's College London, London School of Economics and Political Science, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Queen Mary, Royal Holloway, Royal Veterinary College, School of Oriental and African Studies, St George's, and University College London have all indicated that they intend to do so.[19]

As of 2015, there are around 2 million University of London alumni across the world,[20] including at least 14 monarchs or royalty, more than 60 presidents or prime ministers in the world (including five prime ministers of the United Kingdom),[c] two Cabinet Secretaries of the UK,[d] 98 Nobel laureates,[e] five Fields Medallists, four Turing Award winners, six Grammy winners, two Oscar winners, three Olympic gold medalists and the "Father of the Nation" of several countries.[f] The university owns the University of London Press.

  1. ^ Record of the Jubilee Celebrations of the University of Sydney. Sydney, New South Wales: William Brooks and Co. 1903. p. 143. ISBN 9781112213304.
  2. ^ Records of The Tercentenary Festival of Dublin University. Dublin, Ireland: Hodges, Figgis & Co. 1894. p. 11. ISBN 9781355361602.
  3. ^ Actes du Jubilé de 1909 (in Swiss French). Geneva, Switzerland: Georg Keck & Cie. 1910. p. 238. ISBN 9781360078335.
  4. ^ a b "Who's working in HE". Higher Education Statistics Agency. Staff numbers by HE provider. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  5. ^ a b c Combined total from "Where do HE students study?". HESA. HE student enrolments by HE provider. Retrieved 5 November 2023.. Included institutions are Birkbeck, City, University of London, Courtauld Institute of Art, Goldsmiths, Institute of Cancer Research, King's College, London Business School, LSE, LSHTM, Queen Mary, Royal Academy of Music, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Royal Holloway, Royal Veterinary College, SOAS, St George's, UCL and the central institutes & activities.
  6. ^ a b c "Where do HE students come from?: Transnational education". HESA. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  7. ^ "UOL – Professor David Latchman". University of London. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  8. ^ "UOL – Board of Trustees". University of London. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  9. ^ "UOL – Sir Richard Dearlove KCMG OBE". University of London. Archived from the original on 22 February 2018. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  10. ^ "Collegiate Council". University of London. Archived from the original on 2 June 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  11. ^ University of London (1912). University of London, the Historical Record: (1836–1912) Being a Supplement to the Calendar, Completed to September 1912. First Issue. University of London Press. p. 26. Retrieved 13 January 2017.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference harte1986 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ "Is Durham Really England's Third Oldest University? Well, it's Complicated". Durham Magazine. 4 August 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  14. ^ University of London (1912). University of London, the Historical Record: (1836-1912) Being a Supplement to the Calendar, Completed to September 1912. First Issue. University of London Press. p. 7. Retrieved 13 January 2017.
  15. ^ "Central University Governance". University of London. Archived from the original on 25 April 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  16. ^ "About us". University of London. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  17. ^ "How the University is run". University of London. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  18. ^ "Financial Statements 2018-19" (PDF). University of London. p. 8. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  19. ^ "University status". London School of Economics. 2 February 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  20. ^ "UOL - Alumni and Friends". University of London. Retrieved 28 June 2017.


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