University of Edinburgh
Encyclopedia
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public
research university located in Edinburgh
, the capital of Scotland
, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town
belonging to the university. Edinburgh receives approximately 47,000 applications every year, making it the third most popular university in the UK by volume of applicants. Entrance is intensively competitive, with 12 applications per place in the last admissions cycle. It was the fourth university to be established in Scotland and the 6th in the United Kingdom, and has been regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. It is currently ranked the top rated in Scotland, the 6th in Europe, and the 20th in the world according to the 2011 QS Global Rankings, and has been ranked 15th in the world for graduate employability.It is the only Scottish university to be a member of both the elite Russell Group
, and the League of European Research Universities
,a consortium of 21 of Europe's most prominent and renowned research universities.In addition, the University has both historical links and current partnerships with prestigious academic institutions in the United States and Canada, including members of the Ivy League
and G13
.
The university played an important role in leading Edinburgh to its reputation as a chief intellectual centre during the Age of Enlightenment
, and helped give the city the nickname of the Athens of the north. Graduates of the university include some of the major figures of modern history, including the naturalist Charles Darwin
, physicist James Clerk Maxwell
, philosopher David Hume
, mathematician Thomas Bayes
, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Gordon Brown
, Deputy President of the British Supreme Court Lord Hope, surgeon and pioneer of sterilisation Joseph Lister
, signatories of the American declaration of independence John Witherspoon
and Benjamin Rush
, inventor Alexander Graham Bell
, first president of Tanzania Julius Nyerere
, and a host of famous authors such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson
, J. M. Barrie
, and Sir Walter Scott. The University is also associated with 9 Nobel Prize
winners, 1 Abel Prize
winner and a host of Olympic
gold medallists. It also continues to have links to the British Royal Family
, with Prince Philip being chancellor from 1953-2010, and the Princess Royal
from 2011.
The founding of the university is attributed to Bishop Robert Reid
of St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall
, Orkney, who left the funds on his death in 1558 that ultimately provided the University's endowment. The University was established by a Royal Charter
granted by James VI in 1582. This was an unusual move at the time, as most universities were established through Papal bull
s. What makes the University of Edinburgh even more unusual is the fact that its funding came the following year from the Town Council, making it in many ways the first civic university, known as the "Tounis College". It became the fourth Scottish university in a period when the much more populous and richer England had only two. By the 18th century Edinburgh was a leading centre of the European Enlightenment
(see Scottish Enlightenment
) and became one of the continent's principal universities.
to plans by Robert Adam
implemented after the Napoleonic Wars
by the architect William Henry Playfair
, the University of Edinburgh did not have a custom-built campus and existed in a hotchpotch of buildings from its establishment until the early 19th century. The university's first custom-built building was the Old College, now the School of Law
, situated on South Bridge. Its first forte in teaching was anatomy
and the developing science of surgery
, from which it expanded into many other subjects. From the basement of a nearby house ran the anatomy tunnel corridor. It went under what was then North College Street (now Chambers Street), and under the university buildings until it reached the university's anatomy lecture theatre, delivering bodies for dissection. It was from this tunnel that the body of William Burke was taken after he had been hanged.
Towards the end of the 19th century, Old College was becoming overcrowded and Robert Rowand Anderson
was commissioned to design new Medical School premises in 1875. The medical school was more or less built to his design and was completed by the addition of the McEwan Hall
in the 1880s.
The building now known as New College was originally built as a Free Church college in the 1840s and has been the home of Divinity
at the University since the 1920s.
The university is responsible for a number of historic and modern buildings across the City, including the oldest purpose-built concert hall in Scotland, and the second oldest in use in the British Isles, St Cecilia's Concert Hall; Teviot Row House
, which is the oldest purpose built Student Union
Building in the world; and the restored 17th-century Mylne's Court student residence which stands at the head of Edinburgh's Royal Mile
.
Edinburgh University Library
pre-dates the university by three years. Founded in 1580 through the donation of a large collection by Clement Littill, its collection has grown to become the largest university library in Scotland with over 2 million periodicals, manuscripts, theses
, microform
s and printed works. These are housed in the main University Library building in George Square – one of the largest academic library buildings in Europe, designed by Basil Spence
– and an extensive series of Faculty and Departmental Libraries.
The two oldest Schools – Law and Divinity – are both well-esteemed in their respective subjects, with Law being based in Old College, and Divinity being based in New College, on the Mound, just in front of the temporary home of the Scottish Parliament
.
Students at the university are represented by Edinburgh University Students' Association
(EUSA), which consists of the Students' Representative Council (SRC), founded in 1884 by Robert Fitzroy Bell, the Edinburgh University Union (EUU) which was founded in 1889. They are also represented by the Edinburgh University Sports Union
(EUSU) which was founded in 1866.
In 2002 the University was re-organised from its 9 faculties into three 'Colleges'. While technically not a collegiate university
, it now comprises the Colleges of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS), Science & Engineering (SCE) and Medicine & Vet Medicine (MVM). Within these Colleges are 'Schools' – roughly equivalent to the departments they succeeded; individual Schools have a good degree of autonomy regarding their finances and internal organisation. This has brought a certain degree of uniformity (in terms of administration at least) across the university.
On 1 August 2011, the Edinburgh College of Art
(founded in 1907) merged with the University of Edinburgh. At a result of the merger, Edinburgh College of Art has combined with the University’s School of Arts, Culture and Environment to form a new (enlarged) Edinburgh College of Art within the university.
Along similar lines, all teaching is now done over two semesters (rather than 3 terms) – bringing the timetables of different Schools into line with one another, and coming into line with many other large universities (in the US, and to an increasing degree in the UK as well).
2011 ranked the University of Edinburgh as the 20th university in the world, while the Times Higher Education World University Rankings
2011/2012 ranked it as 36th overall, 7th in Europe and 5th in the UK. In 2011, the Academic Ranking of World Universities
placed University of Edinburgh as 53rd overall, 14th in Europe and 6th in the UK.
In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise
, an approximately 5 yearly audit of the research quality of British higher education establishments, the University of Edinburgh was placed 10th overall, a rise of 4 places from 14th in the 2001 RAE. The University was also placed 5th in the UK in terms of the power of its research departments.
In the league tables of British universities
from 2012, which in contrast to global league tables which take into consideration employer views and research quality such as citations focus upon student feedback and experience, the University of Edinburgh was ranked as 16th in the UK overall by The Guardian
, 13th by The Independent
/The Complete University Guide, 27th by The Sunday Times
and 15th by The Times
.
of research-led British universities and along with Oxford
, and Cambridge
one of the only British universities, to be a member both of the Coimbra Group
and the LERU: two leading associations of European universities. The University is also a member of Universitas 21
, an international association of research-led universities.
With the expansion in topics of study the university has expanded its campuses such that it now has seven main sites:
Alumni and faculty of the university have included economist Adam Smith
, signatories to the US Declaration of Independence
James Wilson
and John Witherspoon
, Prime Ministers Gordon Brown
, Lord Palmerston and Lord John Russell (the latter matriculated at Edinburgh, but did not graduate), engineers Alexander Graham Bell
and William Rankine, naturalist Charles Darwin
and biologist Ian Wilmut
, physicists James Clerk Maxwell
, Max Born
, Sir David Brewster, Tom Kibble
, Peter Guthrie Tait
and Peter Higgs
, writers Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
, Robert Louis Stevenson
, J.M. Barrie, Sir Walter Scott
and Alistair Moffat
, actor Ian Charleson
, composers Kenneth Leighton
, James MacMillan, and William Wordsworth
, chemists Joseph Black
, Daniel Rutherford
, Alexander R. Todd and William Henry
, botanist Robert Brown
, medical pioneers Joseph Lister
and James Simpson
, mathematician Colin Maclaurin
, philosopher David Hume
, geologist James Hutton
, former BP
CEO Tony Hayward
, chemist and two-time recipient of Alexander von Humboldt research prize for senior scientists Narayan Hosmane
, Dr. Valentin Fuster
, the only cardiologist to receive all four major research awards from the world's four major cardiovascular organizations, and mathematician and president of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Sir Michael Atiyah
.
At graduation ceremonies, the Vice-Chancellor caps graduates with the Geneva Bonnet, a hat which legend says was originally made from cloth taken from the breeches of John Knox
or George Buchanan
. The hat was last restored in 2000, when a note from 1849 was discovered in the fabric. In 2006, a University emblem taken into space by Piers Sellers
was incorporated into the Geneva Bonnet.
consists of the unions and the Student Representative Council. The unions include Teviot Row House, Potterrow, Kings Buildings House, the Pleasance, and shops, cafés and refectories around the various campuses. Teviot Row House is claimed to be the oldest purpose-built student union building in the world. The Student Representative Council represents students to the university and the outside world. It is also responsible for Edinburgh's 222 student societies. The association has four sabbatical office bearers – a president and three vice presidents. The association is affiliated to the National Union of Students.
or gliding. Run by the Edinburgh University Sports Union
, these 67 clubs have seen Edinburgh rise to 4th place in the British Universities' Sports Association (BUSA) rankings in 2006-07 and have been in the British Top 5 sporting Universities since 2005.
During the 2008 Summer Olympics
in Beijing, the University of Edinburgh alumni and students secured four medals - three gold and a silver. The three gold medals were won by the cyclist Chris Hoy
and the silver was won by Katherine Grainger
in female rowing.
, which is affiliated to the national People & Planet
net. International development organisations include Edinburgh Global Partnerships
, which was established as a student-led charity in 1990.
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
research university located in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, the capital of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town
Old Town, Edinburgh
The Old Town of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is the medieval part of the city. Together with the 18th-century New Town, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has preserved its medieval plan and many Reformation-era buildings....
belonging to the university. Edinburgh receives approximately 47,000 applications every year, making it the third most popular university in the UK by volume of applicants. Entrance is intensively competitive, with 12 applications per place in the last admissions cycle. It was the fourth university to be established in Scotland and the 6th in the United Kingdom, and has been regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. It is currently ranked the top rated in Scotland, the 6th in Europe, and the 20th in the world according to the 2011 QS Global Rankings, and has been ranked 15th in the world for graduate employability.It is the only Scottish university to be a member of both the elite Russell Group
Russell Group
The Russell Group is a collaboration of twenty UK universities that together receive two-thirds of research grant and contract funding in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1994 to represent their interests to the government, parliament and other similar bodies...
, and the League of European Research Universities
League of European Research Universities
The League of European Research Universities is a consortium of Europe's most prominent and renowned research universities.-History and Overview:...
,a consortium of 21 of Europe's most prominent and renowned research universities.In addition, the University has both historical links and current partnerships with prestigious academic institutions in the United States and Canada, including members of the Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
and G13
G13
G13 may refer to:* G-13 , a type of cannabis* Suzuki G13, an engine* Golgo 13, an anime* Logitech G13, a specialty keyboard for gaming* A battery...
.
The university played an important role in leading Edinburgh to its reputation as a chief intellectual centre during the Age of Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
, and helped give the city the nickname of the Athens of the north. Graduates of the university include some of the major figures of modern history, including the naturalist Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
, physicist James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell of Glenlair was a Scottish physicist and mathematician. His most prominent achievement was formulating classical electromagnetic theory. This united all previously unrelated observations, experiments and equations of electricity, magnetism and optics into a consistent theory...
, philosopher David Hume
David Hume
David Hume was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist, known especially for his philosophical empiricism and skepticism. He was one of the most important figures in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment...
, mathematician Thomas Bayes
Thomas Bayes
Thomas Bayes was an English mathematician and Presbyterian minister, known for having formulated a specific case of the theorem that bears his name: Bayes' theorem...
, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
, Deputy President of the British Supreme Court Lord Hope, surgeon and pioneer of sterilisation Joseph Lister
Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister
Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister OM, FRS, PC , known as Sir Joseph Lister, Bt., between 1883 and 1897, was a British surgeon and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery, who promoted the idea of sterile surgery while working at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary...
, signatories of the American declaration of independence John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey , he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration...
and Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Rush was a Founding Father of the United States. Rush lived in the state of Pennsylvania and was a physician, writer, educator, humanitarian and a Christian Universalist, as well as the founder of Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania....
, inventor Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell was an eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone....
, first president of Tanzania Julius Nyerere
Julius Nyerere
Julius Kambarage Nyerere was a Tanzanian politician who served as the first President of Tanzania and previously Tanganyika, from the country's founding in 1961 until his retirement in 1985....
, and a host of famous authors such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
, J. M. Barrie
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
, and Sir Walter Scott. The University is also associated with 9 Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winners, 1 Abel Prize
Abel Prize
The Abel Prize is an international prize presented annually by the King of Norway to one or more outstanding mathematicians. The prize is named after Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel . It has often been described as the "mathematician's Nobel prize" and is among the most prestigious...
winner and a host of Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
gold medallists. It also continues to have links to the British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
, with Prince Philip being chancellor from 1953-2010, and the Princess Royal
Princess Royal
Princess Royal is a style customarily awarded by a British monarch to his or her eldest daughter. The style is held for life, so a princess cannot be given the style during the lifetime of another Princess Royal...
from 2011.
Founding
Robert Reid (bishop)
Robert Reid was abbot of Kinloss, commendator-prior of Beauly, and bishop of Orkney. He was one of the greatest of the bishops of St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall, Scotland, and his legacy was the founding of the University of Edinburgh....
of St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall
Kirkwall
Kirkwall is the biggest town and capital of Orkney, off the coast of northern mainland Scotland. The town is first mentioned in Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046 when it is recorded as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason the Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn the Mighty...
, Orkney, who left the funds on his death in 1558 that ultimately provided the University's endowment. The University was established by a Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
granted by James VI in 1582. This was an unusual move at the time, as most universities were established through Papal bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
s. What makes the University of Edinburgh even more unusual is the fact that its funding came the following year from the Town Council, making it in many ways the first civic university, known as the "Tounis College". It became the fourth Scottish university in a period when the much more populous and richer England had only two. By the 18th century Edinburgh was a leading centre of the European Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
(see Scottish Enlightenment
Scottish Enlightenment
The Scottish Enlightenment was the period in 18th century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By 1750, Scots were among the most literate citizens of Europe, with an estimated 75% level of literacy...
) and became one of the continent's principal universities.
Development
Before the building of Old CollegeOld College, University of Edinburgh
Old College is a building of the University of Edinburgh. It is located on South Bridge, and presently houses parts of the University's administration, the University of Edinburgh School of Law, and the Talbot Rice Gallery...
to plans by Robert Adam
Robert Adam
Robert Adam was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam , Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him...
implemented after the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
by the architect William Henry Playfair
William Henry Playfair
William Henry Playfair FRSE was one of the greatest Scottish architects of the 19th century, designer of many of Edinburgh's neo-classical landmarks in the New Town....
, the University of Edinburgh did not have a custom-built campus and existed in a hotchpotch of buildings from its establishment until the early 19th century. The university's first custom-built building was the Old College, now the School of Law
University of Edinburgh School of Law
The University of Edinburgh School of Law, founded in 1707, is a school within the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, dedicated to research and teaching in law. Known today as Edinburgh Law School, it is located in the historic Old College, the original site of the University...
, situated on South Bridge. Its first forte in teaching was anatomy
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
and the developing science of surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
, from which it expanded into many other subjects. From the basement of a nearby house ran the anatomy tunnel corridor. It went under what was then North College Street (now Chambers Street), and under the university buildings until it reached the university's anatomy lecture theatre, delivering bodies for dissection. It was from this tunnel that the body of William Burke was taken after he had been hanged.
Towards the end of the 19th century, Old College was becoming overcrowded and Robert Rowand Anderson
Robert Rowand Anderson
Sir Robert Rowand Anderson RSA was a Scottish Victorian architect. Anderson trained in the office of George Gilbert Scott in London before setting up his own practice in Edinburgh in 1860. During the 1860s his main work was small churches in the 'First Pointed' style that is characteristic of...
was commissioned to design new Medical School premises in 1875. The medical school was more or less built to his design and was completed by the addition of the McEwan Hall
McEwan Hall
The McEwan Hall is the graduating hall of the University of Edinburgh, in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It was presented to the University in 1897 by William McEwan, brewer and politician, at a cost of £115,000. Sir Robert Rowand Anderson was the architect.The exterior of the D-shaped hall...
in the 1880s.
The building now known as New College was originally built as a Free Church college in the 1840s and has been the home of Divinity
Divinity
Divinity and divine are broadly applied but loosely defined terms, used variously within different faiths and belief systems — and even by different individuals within a given faith — to refer to some transcendent or transcendental power or deity, or its attributes or manifestations in...
at the University since the 1920s.
The university is responsible for a number of historic and modern buildings across the City, including the oldest purpose-built concert hall in Scotland, and the second oldest in use in the British Isles, St Cecilia's Concert Hall; Teviot Row House
Teviot Row House
Teviot Row House is one of the Student Union buildings at Edinburgh University, Scotland...
, which is the oldest purpose built Student Union
Student union
Student union may refer to:* Students' union, or student government in the U.S., a student organization at many colleges and universities dedicated to student governance...
Building in the world; and the restored 17th-century Mylne's Court student residence which stands at the head of Edinburgh's Royal Mile
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets which form the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.As the name suggests, the Royal Mile is approximately one Scots mile long, and runs between two foci of history in Scotland, from Edinburgh Castle at the top of the Castle...
.
Edinburgh University Library
Edinburgh University Library
Edinburgh University Library is one of the most important libraries of Scotland. It is located in Edinburgh. The University Library was moved in 1827 to William Playfair's Upper Library in the college building...
pre-dates the university by three years. Founded in 1580 through the donation of a large collection by Clement Littill, its collection has grown to become the largest university library in Scotland with over 2 million periodicals, manuscripts, theses
Thesis
A dissertation or thesis is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings...
, microform
Microform
Microforms are any forms, either films or paper, containing microreproductions of documents for transmission, storage, reading, and printing. Microform images are commonly reduced to about one twenty-fifth of the original document size...
s and printed works. These are housed in the main University Library building in George Square – one of the largest academic library buildings in Europe, designed by Basil Spence
Basil Spence
Sir Basil Urwin Spence, OM, OBE, RA was a Scottish architect, most notably associated with Coventry Cathedral in England and the Beehive in New Zealand, but also responsible for numerous other buildings in the Modernist/Brutalist style.-Training:Spence was born in Bombay, India, the son of Urwin...
– and an extensive series of Faculty and Departmental Libraries.
The two oldest Schools – Law and Divinity – are both well-esteemed in their respective subjects, with Law being based in Old College, and Divinity being based in New College, on the Mound, just in front of the temporary home of the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
.
Students at the university are represented by Edinburgh University Students' Association
Edinburgh University Students' Association
Edinburgh University Students' Association provides services, representation and welfare support to matriculated students of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.-Composition:...
(EUSA), which consists of the Students' Representative Council (SRC), founded in 1884 by Robert Fitzroy Bell, the Edinburgh University Union (EUU) which was founded in 1889. They are also represented by the Edinburgh University Sports Union
Edinburgh University Sports Union
Edinburgh University Sports Union is the representative body of the 55 Full and 12 Associate Member Sports Clubs and its Members. Its Members are defined as:#matriculated students of the University...
(EUSU) which was founded in 1866.
In 2002 the University was re-organised from its 9 faculties into three 'Colleges'. While technically not a collegiate university
Collegiate university
A collegiate university is a university in which governing authority and functions are divided between a central administration and a number of constituent colleges...
, it now comprises the Colleges of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS), Science & Engineering (SCE) and Medicine & Vet Medicine (MVM). Within these Colleges are 'Schools' – roughly equivalent to the departments they succeeded; individual Schools have a good degree of autonomy regarding their finances and internal organisation. This has brought a certain degree of uniformity (in terms of administration at least) across the university.
On 1 August 2011, the Edinburgh College of Art
Edinburgh College of Art
Edinburgh College of Art is an art school in Edinburgh, Scotland, providing tertiary education in art and design disciplines for over two thousand students....
(founded in 1907) merged with the University of Edinburgh. At a result of the merger, Edinburgh College of Art has combined with the University’s School of Arts, Culture and Environment to form a new (enlarged) Edinburgh College of Art within the university.
Along similar lines, all teaching is now done over two semesters (rather than 3 terms) – bringing the timetables of different Schools into line with one another, and coming into line with many other large universities (in the US, and to an increasing degree in the UK as well).
Academic reputation
The QS World University RankingsQS World University Rankings
The QS World University Rankings is a ranking of the world’s top 500 universities by Quacquarelli Symonds using a method that has published annually since 2004....
2011 ranked the University of Edinburgh as the 20th university in the world, while the Times Higher Education World University Rankings
Times Higher Education World University Rankings
The Times Higher Education World University Rankings is an international ranking of universities published by the British magazine Times Higher Education in partnership with Thomson Reuters, which provided citation database information...
2011/2012 ranked it as 36th overall, 7th in Europe and 5th in the UK. In 2011, the Academic Ranking of World Universities
Academic Ranking of World Universities
The Academic Ranking of World Universities , commonly known as the Shanghai ranking, is a publication that was founded and compiled by the Shanghai Jiaotong University to rank universities globally. The rankings have been conducted since 2003 and updated annually...
placed University of Edinburgh as 53rd overall, 14th in Europe and 6th in the UK.
In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise
Research Assessment Exercise
The Research Assessment Exercise is an exercise undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions...
, an approximately 5 yearly audit of the research quality of British higher education establishments, the University of Edinburgh was placed 10th overall, a rise of 4 places from 14th in the 2001 RAE. The University was also placed 5th in the UK in terms of the power of its research departments.
In the league tables of British universities
League tables of British universities
Rankings of universities in the United Kingdom are published annually by The Guardian, The Independent, The Sunday Times and The Times...
from 2012, which in contrast to global league tables which take into consideration employer views and research quality such as citations focus upon student feedback and experience, the University of Edinburgh was ranked as 16th in the UK overall by The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 13th by The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
/The Complete University Guide, 27th by The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
and 15th by The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
.
Affiliations
The University of Edinburgh is a member of the Russell GroupRussell Group
The Russell Group is a collaboration of twenty UK universities that together receive two-thirds of research grant and contract funding in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1994 to represent their interests to the government, parliament and other similar bodies...
of research-led British universities and along with Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, and Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
one of the only British universities, to be a member both of the Coimbra Group
Coimbra Group
The Coimbra Group is a network of 40 European universities, some among the oldest and most prestigious in Europe. It was founded in 1985 and formally constituted by charter in 1987....
and the LERU: two leading associations of European universities. The University is also a member of Universitas 21
Universitas 21
Universitas 21 is an international network of universities, established as an "international reference point and resource for strategic thinking on issues of global significance." Together, there are 500,000 students and 40,000 academics and researchers associated with these universities, which...
, an international association of research-led universities.
Colleges and Schools
College of Humanities and Social Science
- Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape ArchitectureEdinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape ArchitectureThe Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture is a school of the University of Edinburgh. It is the result of the merging of the ECA schools of architecture and landscape architecture, and the university department of architecture, and is part of an academic federation between...
- University of Edinburgh Edinburgh College of Art
- Business SchoolUniversity of Edinburgh Business SchoolThe University of Edinburgh Business School is the business school of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. The university has offered business education since 1918, and the MBA degree since 1980...
- School of DivinityNew College, EdinburghNew College was opened in 1846 as a college of the Free Church of Scotland, later of the United Free Church of Scotland, and from the 1930s has been the home of the School of Divinity of the University of Edinburgh...
- School of Economics
- School of Health in Social Science
- School of History, Classics and Archaeology
- School of LawUniversity of Edinburgh School of LawThe University of Edinburgh School of Law, founded in 1707, is a school within the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, dedicated to research and teaching in law. Known today as Edinburgh Law School, it is located in the historic Old College, the original site of the University...
- School of Literatures, Languages and CulturesUniversity of Edinburgh School of Literatures, Languages and CulturesThe University of Edinburgh School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures is a school within the College of Humanities and Social Science at the University of Edinburgh...
- Moray House School of Education
- School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language SciencesUniversity of Edinburgh School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language SciencesThe University of Edinburgh School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences is a school within the College of Humanities and Social Science at the University of Edinburgh. The School was formed in 2002 as a result of administrative restructuring, when several departments of what was then the...
- School of Social and Political Sciences
- The Office of Lifelong LearningThe Office of Lifelong LearningThe Office of Lifelong Learning is a school within the College of Humanities and Social Science at the University of Edinburgh. It is where the University reaches out to the wider community...
College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
- School of Biomedical Sciences
- School of Clinical Sciences and Community Health
- School of Molecular and Clinical MedicineUniversity of Edinburgh Medical SchoolThe University of Edinburgh Medical School is part of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine of the University of Edinburgh. Established nearly 283 years ago, Edinburgh Medical School is one of the oldest medical schools in Scotland and the UK...
- Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary StudiesRoyal (Dick) School of Veterinary StudiesThe Royal School of Veterinary Studies, commonly referred to as the Dick Vet, is the veterinary school of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.Professor Elaine Watson has been head of the school since 1 August, 2003 .-History:...
College of Science and Engineering
- School of Biological Sciences
- School of ChemistryUniversity of Edinburgh School of ChemistryThe School of Chemistry is an academic unit of the University of Edinburgh, in Scotland, responsible for research, teaching, outreach and commercialisation in Chemistry....
- School of GeoSciencesUniversity of Edinburgh School of GeoSciencesThe University of Edinburgh School of GeoSciences, is a school within the College of Science and Engineering, which was formed in 2002 by the merger of four departments. It is split between the King's Buildings and the Central Area of the university...
- School of Engineering
- School of InformaticsUniversity of Edinburgh School of InformaticsThe School of Informatics is an academic unit of the University of Edinburgh, in Scotland, responsible for research, teaching, outreach and commercialisation in Informatics....
- School of Mathematics
- School of Physics and Astronomy
Locations
- The Central Area includes George Square, the Informatics ForumInformatics ForumThe Informatics Forum is a major new building on the Central Area campus of the University of Edinburgh. Completed in 2008, it houses the research institutes of the University's School of Informatics.- Design :...
, The Dugald Stewart Building, Old College, the old Medical School buildings in Teviot Place, and surrounding streets in Edinburgh's Southside. It is the oldest region, occupied primarily by the College of Humanities and Social Science, and the Schools of Computing & Informatics and the School of Law, as well as the main university library. The Appleton TowerAppleton TowerAppleton Tower is a tower block in Edinburgh, Scotland, owned by the University of Edinburgh.- History :When the University developed the George Square site in the 1960s a huge swathe of Georgian Edinburgh was demolished, leading to accusations of cultural vandalism and megalomania...
is also used for teaching first year undergraduates in science and engineering. Meanwhile, Teviot Place continues to house pre-clinical medical courses and biomedical sciences despite relocation of the Medical School to Little France. Nearby are the main EUSA buildings of Potterrow, Teviot Row House and the PleasancePleasanceThe Pleasance is a street in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Scotland. It is largely residential, although the University of Edinburgh owns property in the area.-University of Edinburgh union:...
Societies Centre. Old residents of George Square include Sir Arthur Conan DoyleArthur Conan DoyleSir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
. A number of these buildings are used to host events during the Edinburgh International FestivalEdinburgh International FestivalThe Edinburgh International Festival is a festival of performing arts that takes place in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, over three weeks from around the middle of August. By invitation from the Festival Director, the International Festival brings top class performers of music , theatre, opera...
every summer. - The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary StudiesRoyal (Dick) School of Veterinary StudiesThe Royal School of Veterinary Studies, commonly referred to as the Dick Vet, is the veterinary school of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.Professor Elaine Watson has been head of the school since 1 August, 2003 .-History:...
at Summerhall, at the East end of The Meadows. This houses Veterinary Medicine. This department increasingly uses farm facilities and new buildings to the South of the city, near PenicuikPenicuikPenicuik is a burgh and civil parish in Midlothian, Scotland, lying on the west bank of the River North Esk. The town was developed as a planned village in 1770 by Sir James Clerk of Penicuik. It became a burgh in 1867. The town was well known for its paper mills, the last of which closed in 2005....
. - Moray House School of EducationMoray House School of EducationThe Moray House School of Education is a school within the College of Humanities and Social Science at the University of Edinburgh...
just off the Royal MileRoyal MileThe Royal Mile is a succession of streets which form the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.As the name suggests, the Royal Mile is approximately one Scots mile long, and runs between two foci of history in Scotland, from Edinburgh Castle at the top of the Castle...
, used to be the Moray House Institute for Education until this merged with the University in August 1998. The University has since extended Moray House's Holyrood site to include a redeveloped and extended major building housing Sports Science, Physical Education and Leisure Management facilities adjacent to its own Sports Institute in the Pleasance. - Pollock HallsPollock Halls of ResidencePollock Halls of Residence are the main halls of residence for the University of Edinburgh, located at the foot of Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland...
, adjoining Holyrood ParkHolyrood ParkHolyrood Park is a royal park in central Edinburgh, Scotland about a mile to the east of Edinburgh Castle. It has an array of hills, lochs, glens, ridges, basalt cliffs, and patches of whin providing a remarkably wild piece of highland landscape within its area...
to the east, provides accommodation (mainly half board) for a minority of students in their first year. Two of the older houses in Pollock Halls were demolished in 2002 and a new building has been built in their place, leaving a total of ten buildings. Self-catered flats elsewhere account for the majority of university-provided accommodation. Most other students in the city live in private flats in the MarchmontMarchmontMarchmont is a mainly residential affluent area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It lies roughly a mile to the south of the Old Town, separated from it by The Meadows and Bruntsfield Links...
, NewingtonNewington, EdinburghNewington is an area of Edinburgh, Scotland, about 15 to 20 minutes walk south of the city centre, the Royal Mile and Princes Street.It is the easternmost district of the area formerly covered by the Burgh Muir, gifted to the City by David I in the 12th Century...
, Bruntsfield, New TownNew Town, EdinburghThe New Town is a central area of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It is often considered to be a masterpiece of city planning, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site...
and LeithLeith-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
areas, although some university-owned flats are also available there. - New CollegeNew College, EdinburghNew College was opened in 1846 as a college of the Free Church of Scotland, later of the United Free Church of Scotland, and from the 1930s has been the home of the School of Divinity of the University of Edinburgh...
, on the Mound, which houses the School of Divinity - parts of which are also used by the Church of ScotlandChurch of ScotlandThe Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
. - The King's BuildingsKing's BuildingsThe King's Buildings are a campus of the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, and contains most of the schools within the College of Science and Engineering, excepting only part of the School of Informatics and the Institute of Geography, which are located at the central George Square campus...
campus, further south, houses most of the Science and Engineering schools including a Biology School that is a world leader in geneticsGeneticsGenetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
. The Scottish Agricultural CollegeScottish Agricultural CollegeThe Scottish Agricultural College exists to support the development of land-based industries and communities through Higher Education and training, specialist research and development and advisory and consultancy services....
(SAC) and British Geological SurveyBritish Geological SurveyThe British Geological Survey is a partly publicly funded body which aims to advance geoscientific knowledge of the United Kingdom landmass and its continental shelf by means of systematic surveying, monitoring and research. The BGS headquarters are in Keyworth, Nottinghamshire, but other centres...
(BGS) also have a presence on campus. - The Chancellor's Building was opened on 12 August 2002 by The Duke of Edinburgh and houses the new £40 million Medical SchoolUniversity of Edinburgh Medical SchoolThe University of Edinburgh Medical School is part of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine of the University of Edinburgh. Established nearly 283 years ago, Edinburgh Medical School is one of the oldest medical schools in Scotland and the UK...
at the New Royal Infirmary in Little France. It was a joint project between private finance, the local authorities and the University to create a large modern hospital, veterinary clinic and research institute and thus the University is currently (2003) in the process of moving its Veterinary and Medical Faculties there (and quite possibly also the School of Nursing). It has two large lecture theatres and a medical library. It is connected to the new Edinburgh Royal InfirmaryEdinburgh Royal InfirmaryThe Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh or RIE, sometimes mistakenly referred to as Edinburgh Royal Infirmary or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest voluntary hospital in the United Kingdom, and later on...
by a series of corridors.
Alumni and faculty
Alumni and faculty of the university have included economist Adam Smith
Adam Smith
Adam Smith was a Scottish social philosopher and a pioneer of political economy. One of the key figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, Smith is the author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations...
, signatories to the US Declaration of Independence
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
James Wilson
James Wilson
James Wilson was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. Wilson was elected twice to the Continental Congress, and was a major force in drafting the United States Constitution...
and John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon
John Witherspoon was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey , he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration...
, Prime Ministers Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
, Lord Palmerston and Lord John Russell (the latter matriculated at Edinburgh, but did not graduate), engineers Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell was an eminent scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone....
and William Rankine, naturalist Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
and biologist Ian Wilmut
Ian Wilmut
Sir Ian Wilmut, OBE FRS FMedSci FRSE is an English embryologist and is currently Director of the Medical Research Council Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh. He is best known as the leader of the research group that in 1996 first cloned a mammal from an adult somatic...
, physicists James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell
James Clerk Maxwell of Glenlair was a Scottish physicist and mathematician. His most prominent achievement was formulating classical electromagnetic theory. This united all previously unrelated observations, experiments and equations of electricity, magnetism and optics into a consistent theory...
, Max Born
Max Born
Max Born was a German-born physicist and mathematician who was instrumental in the development of quantum mechanics. He also made contributions to solid-state physics and optics and supervised the work of a number of notable physicists in the 1920s and 30s...
, Sir David Brewster, Tom Kibble
Tom W. B. Kibble
Thomas Walter Bannerman Kibble, FRS, is a British scientist and senior research investigator at The Blackett Laboratory, at Imperial College London, UK. His research interests are in quantum field theory, especially the interface between high-energy particle physics and cosmology...
, Peter Guthrie Tait
Peter Guthrie Tait
Peter Guthrie Tait FRSE was a Scottish mathematical physicist, best known for the seminal energy physics textbook Treatise on Natural Philosophy, which he co-wrote with Kelvin, and his early investigations into knot theory, which contributed to the eventual formation of topology as a mathematical...
and Peter Higgs
Peter Higgs
Peter Ware Higgs, FRS, FRSE, FKC , is an English theoretical physicist and an emeritus professor at the University of Edinburgh....
, writers Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
, Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
, J.M. Barrie, Sir Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
and Alistair Moffat
Alistair Moffat
Alistair Moffat is an award winning writer and journalist, former director of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and Rector of the University of St Andrews.-Education:...
, actor Ian Charleson
Ian Charleson
Ian Charleson was a Scottish stage and film actor. He is best known internationally for his starring role as Olympic athlete and missionary Eric Liddell, in the Oscar-winning 1981 film Chariots of Fire. He is also well known for his portrayal of Rev...
, composers Kenneth Leighton
Kenneth Leighton
Kenneth Leighton was a British composer and pianist. His compositions include much Anglican church music, and many pieces for choir and for piano as well as concertos, symphonies, much chamber music and an opera. He wrote a well-known setting of the Coventry Carol...
, James MacMillan, and William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth (composer)
William Brocklesby Wordsworth was an English composer.Wordsworth was born in London. He studied harmony and counterpoint under George Oldroyd from 1921 to 1931, continuing his study with Donald Francis Tovey at Edinburgh University from 1934 to 1936...
, chemists Joseph Black
Joseph Black
Joseph Black FRSE FRCPE FPSG was a Scottish physician and chemist, known for his discoveries of latent heat, specific heat, and carbon dioxide. He was professor of Medicine at University of Glasgow . James Watt, who was appointed as philosophical instrument maker at the same university...
, Daniel Rutherford
Daniel Rutherford
Daniel Rutherford was a Scottish physician, chemist and botanist who is most famous for the isolation of nitrogen in 1772.Rutherford was the uncle of the novelist Sir Walter Scott.-Early life:...
, Alexander R. Todd and William Henry
William Henry (chemist)
William Henry was an English chemist.He was the son of Thomas Henry and was born in Manchester England. He developed what is known today as Henry's Law.-Life:...
, botanist Robert Brown
Robert Brown (botanist)
Robert Brown was a Scottish botanist and palaeobotanist who made important contributions to botany largely through his pioneering use of the microscope...
, medical pioneers Joseph Lister
Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister
Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister OM, FRS, PC , known as Sir Joseph Lister, Bt., between 1883 and 1897, was a British surgeon and a pioneer of antiseptic surgery, who promoted the idea of sterile surgery while working at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary...
and James Simpson
James Young Simpson
Sir James Young Simpson was a Scottish doctor and an important figure in the history of medicine. Simpson discovered the anaesthetic properties of chloroform and successfully introduced it for general medical use....
, mathematician Colin Maclaurin
Colin Maclaurin
Colin Maclaurin was a Scottish mathematician who made important contributions to geometry and algebra. The Maclaurin series, a special case of the Taylor series, are named after him....
, philosopher David Hume
David Hume
David Hume was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist, known especially for his philosophical empiricism and skepticism. He was one of the most important figures in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment...
, geologist James Hutton
James Hutton
James Hutton was a Scottish physician, geologist, naturalist, chemical manufacturer and experimental agriculturalist. He is considered the father of modern geology...
, former BP
BP
BP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
CEO Tony Hayward
Tony Hayward
Anthony Bryan "Tony" Hayward is a British businessman, the former chief executive of oil and energy company BP. He replaced John Browne, Baron Browne of Madingley on 1 May 2007. His tenure ended on 1 October 2010 in large part due to the circumstances of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill...
, chemist and two-time recipient of Alexander von Humboldt research prize for senior scientists Narayan Hosmane
Narayan Hosmane
Narayan S. Hosmane is an Indian-born cancer research scientist who made the featured article in NRI Achievers magazine and is currently distinguished research professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the inaugural board of trustees professor at Northern Illinois University, Dekalb. He received...
, Dr. Valentin Fuster
Valentin Fuster
Valentí Fuster is a Spaniard cardiologist – the only cardiologist to receive all four major research awards from the world's four major cardiovascular organizations....
, the only cardiologist to receive all four major research awards from the world's four major cardiovascular organizations, and mathematician and president of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity, operating on a wholly independent and non-party-political basis and providing public benefit throughout Scotland...
Sir Michael Atiyah
Michael Atiyah
Sir Michael Francis Atiyah, OM, FRS, FRSE is a British mathematician working in geometry.Atiyah grew up in Sudan and Egypt but spent most of his academic life in the United Kingdom at Oxford and Cambridge, and in the United States at the Institute for Advanced Study...
.
At graduation ceremonies, the Vice-Chancellor caps graduates with the Geneva Bonnet, a hat which legend says was originally made from cloth taken from the breeches of John Knox
John Knox
John Knox was a Scottish clergyman and a leader of the Protestant Reformation who brought reformation to the church in Scotland. He was educated at the University of St Andrews or possibly the University of Glasgow and was ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 1536...
or George Buchanan
George Buchanan (humanist)
George Buchanan was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar. He was part of the Monarchomach movement.-Early life:...
. The hat was last restored in 2000, when a note from 1849 was discovered in the fabric. In 2006, a University emblem taken into space by Piers Sellers
Piers Sellers
Piers John Sellers OBE is a British-born Anglo-American meteorologist and a NASA astronaut. He is a veteran of three space shuttle missions....
was incorporated into the Geneva Bonnet.
Student organisations
Students' Association
The Edinburgh University Students' AssociationEdinburgh University Students' Association
Edinburgh University Students' Association provides services, representation and welfare support to matriculated students of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.-Composition:...
consists of the unions and the Student Representative Council. The unions include Teviot Row House, Potterrow, Kings Buildings House, the Pleasance, and shops, cafés and refectories around the various campuses. Teviot Row House is claimed to be the oldest purpose-built student union building in the world. The Student Representative Council represents students to the university and the outside world. It is also responsible for Edinburgh's 222 student societies. The association has four sabbatical office bearers – a president and three vice presidents. The association is affiliated to the National Union of Students.
Media
Newspapers:- StudentStudent (newspaper)The Student is a weekly British independent newspaper produced by students at the University of Edinburgh. Founded in 1887 by author Robert Louis Stevenson, it is the oldest student newspaper in the United Kingdom and held the title of Best Student Newspaper in Scotland, awarded by the Herald...
is a weekly Scottish newspaperNewspaperA newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
produced by studentStudentA student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...
s at the University of Edinburgh. Founded in 1887 by Robert Louis StevensonRobert Louis StevensonRobert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
, it is the oldest student newspaper in the United Kingdom. It has held the title of Best Student Newspaper in Scotland, awarded by the HeraldThe Herald (Glasgow)The Herald is a broadsheet newspaper published Monday to Saturday in Glasgow, and available throughout Scotland. As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 47,226, giving it a lead over Scotland's other 'quality' national daily, The Scotsman, published in Edinburgh.The 1889 to 1906 editions...
Student Press Awards, for four years running, from 2006 to 2010.
- The Journal is a very recent addition to the student media scene at the university. It is an independent publication, established in 2007 by three students at the University of Edinburgh, and also distributes to the four other higher education institutions in the city - Heriot-Watt UniversityHeriot-Watt UniversityHeriot-Watt University is a university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The name commemorates George Heriot, the 16th century financier to King James, and James Watt, the great 18th century inventor and engineer....
, Napier UniversityNapier UniversityEdinburgh Napier is one of the largest higher education institutions in Scotland with over 17,000 students, including nearly 5,000 international students, from more than 100 nations worldwide.-History:...
, Queen Margaret University and the Edinburgh College of ArtEdinburgh College of ArtEdinburgh College of Art is an art school in Edinburgh, Scotland, providing tertiary education in art and design disciplines for over two thousand students....
. It is the largest such publication in Scotland, with a print run of 14,000 copies and is produced by students from across the city.
Student sport
Edinburgh University's student sport consists of 67 clubs from the traditional football and rugby to the more unconventional korfballKorfball
Korfball is a mixed gender team sport, with similarities to netball and basketball. A team consists of eight players; four female and four male. A team also includes a coach. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1902 by Nico Broekhuysen. In the Netherlands there are around 580 clubs, and over a...
or gliding. Run by the Edinburgh University Sports Union
Edinburgh University Sports Union
Edinburgh University Sports Union is the representative body of the 55 Full and 12 Associate Member Sports Clubs and its Members. Its Members are defined as:#matriculated students of the University...
, these 67 clubs have seen Edinburgh rise to 4th place in the British Universities' Sports Association (BUSA) rankings in 2006-07 and have been in the British Top 5 sporting Universities since 2005.
During the 2008 Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
in Beijing, the University of Edinburgh alumni and students secured four medals - three gold and a silver. The three gold medals were won by the cyclist Chris Hoy
Chris Hoy
Sir Christopher Andrew "Chris" Hoy, MBE is a Scottish track cyclist representing Great Britain and Scotland. He is a multiple world champion and Olympic Games gold medal winner...
and the silver was won by Katherine Grainger
Katherine Grainger
Katherine Grainger MBE is a Scottish rower.Her family moved to Netherley, Aberdeenshire and Katherine represents Edinburgh's St Andrew Boat Club in rowing events. She trained on the River Dee, which has the distinction of being the only river she has fallen into whilst rowing.She is a three time...
in female rowing.
Student activism
There are a number of campaigning societies at the university. The largest of these is environment and poverty campaigning group People & PlanetPeople & Planet
People & Planet is a network of student campaign groups in the UK. It claims to be "the largest student campaigning organization in the country campaigning to alleviate world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment."-Organization:...
, which is affiliated to the national People & Planet
People & Planet
People & Planet is a network of student campaign groups in the UK. It claims to be "the largest student campaigning organization in the country campaigning to alleviate world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment."-Organization:...
net. International development organisations include Edinburgh Global Partnerships
Edinburgh Global Partnerships
Edinburgh Global Partnerships, or EGP, is a student-run charity based at the University of Edinburgh that aims to assist in community-led sustainable development overseas. It was founded as H.E.L.P...
, which was established as a student-led charity in 1990.
Historical links
- Dalhousie UniversityDalhousie UniversityDalhousie University is a public research university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university comprises eleven faculties including Schulich School of Law and Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine. It also includes the faculties of architecture, planning and engineering located at...
, Canadian G-13Group of Thirteen (Canadian universities)The U15 is a group of 15 leading research-intensive universities in Canada. The U15 was formed in 1991 as an informal biannual meeting of university executive heads, although the group has yet to incorporate. The U15's primary activity is in joint research programs. The chairmanship of the U15...
university, founded in 1818. In the early 19th century, George Ramsay, the ninth Earl of Dalhousie and Nova Scotia Lieutenant-Governor at the time, wanted to establish a Halifax college open to all, regardless of class or creed. The earl modeled the fledgling college after the University of Edinburgh, near his Scottish home. - McGill UniversityMcGill UniversityMohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
, Canadian G-13 university, founded in 1821, has strong Edinburgh roots and links to the University of Edinburgh as McGill's first (and, for several years, its only) faculty, Medicine, was founded by four physicians/surgeons who had trained in Edinburgh. - Queen's UniversityQueen's UniversityQueen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, Canadian G-13 university founded in 1841, was modelled after the University of Edinburgh, and continues to display strong Scottish roots and traditions today. - University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, an American Ivy LeagueIvy LeagueThe Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
university, has long-standing historical links with the University of Edinburgh, including modelling Penn's School of Medicine after Edinburgh's.
See also
- Chancellor of the University of EdinburghChancellor of the University of EdinburghThe Chancellor is the titular head of the University of Edinburgh. Their duties include conferring degrees, promoting the University's image throughout the world, and furthering its interests, both within Scotland and beyond....
- Rector of the University of Edinburgh
- Edinburgh University RFCEdinburgh University RFCEdinburgh University Rugby Football Club is a leading rugby union side based in Edinburgh, Scotland which currently plays its fixtures in the top Scottish National League and the British Universities Premiership. It is one of the eight founder members of the Scottish Rugby Union...
- Edinburgh University A.F.C.
- Edinburgh University PressEdinburgh University PressEdinburgh University Press is a scholarly publisher of academic books and journals, based in Edinburgh, Scotland.-History:Edinburgh University Press was founded over 50 years ago and became a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Edinburgh in 1992...
- Gifford LecturesGifford LecturesThe Gifford Lectures were established by the will of Adam Lord Gifford . They were established to "promote and diffuse the study of Natural Theology in the widest sense of the term — in other words, the knowledge of God." The term natural theology as used by Gifford means theology supported...
- James Tait Black Memorial PrizeJames Tait Black Memorial PrizeFounded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
- List of early modern universities in Europe
External links
- The University of Edinburgh
- Edinburgh University Students' Association
- Edinburgh Research Archive (ERA), online collection of papers