London

In 2016, Brunel celebrated 50-years as a university. The history can be traced back to 1798 through the predecessor colleges of Borough Road College, Maria Grey College, Shoreditch College and the West London Institute of Higher Education and as well as through Acton Technical College then Brunel College. The rise since 1966 has been impressive and the reputation grows year-on-year. Now a university of 12,746 students – 3,309 students engaged in postgraduate and research study – the approach is to combine academic rigour with the practical, entrepreneurial and imaginative approach pioneered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The decision to be named after Isambard Kingdom Brunel was taken after much discussion. Rather than name the new college after a location, Dr Topping, the first Vice-Chancellor of Brunel University (and former Principal of Brunel College) pleaded that the name should be a well-known person preferably an engineer or scientist associated in some way with Middlesex or Acton. The agreement was reached in March 1957 that person would be Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) is one of the great British engineers of the 19th century. Isambard was born into an industrious family in 1806, with his mother Sophia Kingdom working for the Royal Navy, and father Marc Brunel being a prominent French engineer. Isambard took on formal training as an engineer and went on to build twenty-five railways lines, over a hundred bridges, including five suspension bridges, eight pier and dock systems, three ships and a pre-fabricated army field hospital. To add to this he was a keen social engineer, building housing estates, churches and hospitals.

A forward-looking, modern university with a proud tradition as a provider of high-quality education and focus on applied research. Students benefit from state-of-the-art equipment and facilities in all academic disciplines including health, design and engineering laboratories, performing arts studios and computing centres. Chosen to host three national Centres of Excellence in Teaching and Learning which has enabled the university to invest substantial sums of money in health, design and mathematics. Its city-centre campus is continually developing and evolving, and have plans for further investment in it over the next few years. With a major presence in Coventry, which contributes to the city's friendly and vibrant atmosphere and also enables us to foster successful business partnerships. Through links with leading-edge businesses and organisations in the public and voluntary sectors, students can access project and placement opportunities that enhance their employability on graduation.

As a cosmopolitan university with over 18,000 students drawn from over 130 countries., it has been awarded Silver for teaching excellence under the Government's Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF). It has been the only university to be awarded University of the Year for Graduate Employment for two years in a row (The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2018, 2019).

Admission to this university is through the on-campus pathway provider, which offers foundation, international year one and pre-masters programmes. The Royal Veterinary College is the largest and longest-established vet school in the English-speaking world and is a college of the University of London. The College offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in veterinary medicine, veterinary nursing, and biological sciences; and CPD programmes in veterinary medicine and veterinary nursing. RVC produces world-class research and provides support for the veterinary profession through its referral hospitals, including the Queen Mother Hospital for Animals, Europe's largest small animal hospital. As one of the world's leading specialist veterinary and biological science research institutions, the RVC brings together talented individuals; all of whom share a passion for human and animal health and welfare.