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University of Edinburgh

February 10, 2023

The University of Edinburgh (Scots: University o Edinburgh, Scottish Gaelic: Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as Edin. in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the town council under the authority of a royal charter of King James VI in 1582 and officially opened in 1583, it is one of Scotland's four ancient universities and the sixth-oldest university in continuous operation in the English-speaking world.[1] The university played an important role in Edinburgh becoming a chief intellectual centre during the Scottish Enlightenment and contributed to the city being nicknamed the "Athens of the North."[7][8] Edinburgh is ranked among the top universities in the United Kingdom and the world.[9][10][11][12][13]

University of Edinburgh
Latin: Universitas Academica Edinburgensis
Former names
Tounis College
King James' College
TypePublic research university
Ancient university
Established1583; 440 years ago (1583)[1]
Endowment£541.0 million (2022)[2]
Budget£1.262 billion (2021–22)[2]
ChancellorAnne, Princess Royal
RectorDebora Kayembe
PrincipalSir Peter Mathieson
Academic staff
4,952 FTE (2022)[3]
Administrative staff
6,215 FTE (2022)[3]
Students35,375 (2019/20)[4][a]
Undergraduates23,060 (2019/20)[4]
Postgraduates12,310 (2019/20)[4]
Location
Edinburgh
,
Scotland, UK

55°56′50.6″N 3°11′13.9″W / 55.947389°N 3.187194°W / 55.947389; -3.187194Coordinates: 55°56′50.6″N 3°11′13.9″W / 55.947389°N 3.187194°W / 55.947389; -3.187194
CampusUrban, suburban
ColoursRed Blue[6]
AffiliationsACU
Coimbra Group
EUA
LERU
Russell Group
Una Europa
UNICA
Universitas 21
Universities Scotland
Universities UK
Websitewww.ed.ac.uk
Interior dome of the McEwan Hall after restoration in 2017

Edinburgh is a member of several associations of research-intensive universities, including the Coimbra Group, League of European Research Universities, Russell Group, Una Europa, and Universitas 21.[14] In the fiscal year ending 31 July 2022, it had a total income of £1.262 billion, of which £331.6 million was from research grants and contracts, with the third-largest endowment in the UK, behind only Cambridge and Oxford.[2] The university has five main campuses in the city of Edinburgh, which include many buildings of historical and architectural significance such as those in the Old Town.[15]

Edinburgh receives over 75,000 undergraduate applications per year, making it the second-most popular university in the UK by volume of applications.[16] It is the eighth-largest university in the UK by enrolment, with 35,375 students in 2019/20.[4] Edinburgh had the eighth-highest average UCAS points amongst British universities for new entrants in 2020.[17] The university continues to have links to the British royal family, having had Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh as its chancellor from 1953 to 2010 and Anne, Princess Royal since March 2011.[18]

The alumni of the university includes some of the major figures of modern history. Inventor Alexander Graham Bell, naturalist Charles Darwin, philosopher David Hume, and physicist James Clerk Maxwell studied at Edinburgh, as did writers such as Sir J. M. Barrie, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, J. K. Rowling, Sir Walter Scott, and Robert Louis Stevenson.[19][20] The university counts several heads of state and government amongst its graduates, including three British Prime Ministers. Three Supreme Court Justices of the UK were educated at Edinburgh. As of January 2023, 19 Nobel Prize laureates, four Pulitzer Prize winners, three Turing Award winners, and an Abel Prize laureate and Fields Medalist have been affiliated with Edinburgh as alumni or academic staff.[21] Edinburgh alumni have won a total of ten Olympic gold medals.[b]

History

Early history

 
Robert Rollock, Regent (1583–1586) and first principal (1586–1599) of the University of Edinburgh

In 1557, Bishop Robert Reid of St Magnus Cathedral on Orkney made a will containing an endowment of 8,000 merks to build a college in Edinburgh.[22] Unusually for his time, Reid's vision included the teaching of rhetoric and poetry, alongside more traditional subjects such as philosophy.[22] However, the bequest was delayed by more than 25 years due to the religious revolution that led to the Reformation Parliament of 1560.[22] The plans were revived in the late 1570s through efforts by the Edinburgh Town Council, first minister of Edinburgh James Lawson, and Lord Provost William Little.[1] When Reid's descendants were unwilling to pay out the sum, the town council petitioned King James VI and his Privy Council. The King brokered a monetary compromise and granted a royal charter on 14 April 1582, empowering the town council to create a college of higher education.[22][23][24] A college established by secular authorities was unprecedented in newly Presbyterian Scotland, as all previous Scottish universities had been founded through papal bulls.[25] Notably, Edinburgh was the fourth Scottish university in a period when the richer and more populous England had only two.

 
Main buildings of King James' College in 1647, lying in a double courtyard on the lower left
 
Frontispiece to earliest laureation (graduation) register (1587).

Named Tounis College (Town's College), the university opened its doors to students on 14 October 1583, with an attendance of 80–90.[1] At the time, the college mainly covered liberal arts and divinity.[26][27] Instruction began under the charge of a graduate from the University of St Andrews, theologian Robert Rollock, who first served as Regent, and from 1586 as principal of the college.[28] Initially Rollock was the sole instructor for first-year students, and he was expected to tutor the 1583 intake for all four years of their degree in every subject. The first cohort finished their studies in 1587, and 47 students graduated (or 'laureated') with an M.A. degree.[28] When King James VI visited Scotland in 1617, he held a disputation with the college's professors, after which he decreed that it should henceforth be called the "Colledge [sic] of King James".[29][30] The university was known as both Tounis College and King James' College until it gradually assumed the name of the University of Edinburgh during the 17th century.[26][31]

After the deposition of King James II and VII during the Glorious Revolution in 1688, the Parliament of Scotland passed legislation designed to root out Jacobite sympathisers amongst university staff.[32] In Edinburgh, this led to the dismissal of Principal Alexander Monro and several professors and regents after a government visitation in 1690. The university was subsequently led by Principal Gilbert Rule, one of the inquisitors on the visitation committee.[32]

18th and 19th century

"You are now in a place where the best courses upon earth are within your reach... Such an opportunity you will never again have. I would therefore strongly press on you to fix no other limit to your stay in Edinborough than your having got thro this whole course. The omission of any one part of it will be an affliction & loss to you as long as you live."

Thomas Jefferson, writing to his son-in-law Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. in 1786.[33]

The late 17th and early 18th centuries were marked by a power struggle between the university and town council, which had ultimate authority over staff appointments, curricula, and examinations.[34] After a series of challenges by the university, the conflict culminated in the council seizing the college records in 1704.[34] Relations were only gradually repaired over the next 150 years and suffered repeated setbacks.

The university expanded by founding a Faculty of Law in 1707, a Faculty of Arts in 1708, and a Faculty of Medicine in 1726.[35] In 1762, Reverend Hugh Blair was appointed by King George III as the first Regius Professor of Rhetoric and Belles-Lettres.[36] This formalised literature as a subject and marks the foundation of the English Literature department, making Edinburgh the oldest centre of literary education in Britain.[37]

During the 18th century, the university was at the centre of the Scottish Enlightenment.[38] The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment fell on especially fertile ground in Edinburgh because of the university's democratic and secular origin; its organization as a single entity instead of loosely connected colleges, which encouraged academic exchange; its adoption of the more flexible Dutch model of professorship, rather than having student cohorts taught by a single regent; and the lack of land endowments as its source of income, which meant its faculty operated in a more competitive environment.[39] Between 1750 and 1800, this system produced and attracted key Enlightenment figures such as chemist Joseph Black, economist Adam Smith, historian William Robertson, philosophers David Hume and Dugald Stewart, physician William Cullen, and early sociologist Adam Ferguson, many of which taught concurrently.[39] By the time the Royal Society of Edinburgh was founded in 1783, the university was regarded as one of the world's preeminent scientific institutions,[40] and Voltaire called Edinburgh a "hotbed of genius" as a result.[41] Benjamin Franklin believed that the university possessed "a set of as truly great men, Professors of the Several Branches of Knowledge, as have ever appeared in any Age or Country".[42] Thomas Jefferson felt that as far as science was concerned, "no place in the world can pretend to a competition with Edinburgh".[43]

 
The east facade of Old College facing onto South Bridge, as built in 1827. A dome similar to Adam's original design was added in 1887 by Sir Robert Rowand Anderson.
 
Charter of Novodamus from King James VI of Scotland in 1582

In 1785, Henry Dundas introduced the South Bridge Act in the House of Commons; one of the bill's goals was to use South Bridge as a location for the university, which had existed in a hotchpotch of buildings since its establishment. The site was used to construct Old College, the university's first custom-built building, by architect William Henry Playfair to plans by Robert Adam.[44] During the 18th century, the university developed a particular forte in teaching anatomy and the developing science of surgery, and it was considered one of the best medical schools in the English-speaking world.[45] Bodies to be used for dissection were brought to the university's Anatomy Theatre through a secret tunnel from a nearby house (today's College Wynd student accommodation), which was also used by murderers Burke and Hare to deliver the corpses of their victims during the 1820s.[46][47]

After 275 years of governance by the town council, the Universities (Scotland) Act 1858 gave the university full authority over its own affairs.[34] The act established governing bodies including a university court and a general council, and redefined the roles of key officials like the chancellor, rector, and principal.[48]

 
Plaque commemorating the Edinburgh Seven at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

The Edinburgh Seven were the first group of matriculated undergraduate female students at any British university.[49] Led by Sophia Jex-Blake, they began studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh in 1869. Although the university blocked them from graduating and qualifying as doctors, their campaign gained national attention and won them many supporters, including Charles Darwin.[50] Their efforts put the rights of women to higher education on the national political agenda, which eventually resulted in legislation allowing women to study at all Scottish universities in 1889. The university admitted women to graduate in medicine in 1893.[51][52] In 2015, the Edinburgh Seven were commemorated with a plaque at the university,[53] and in 2019 they were posthumously awarded with medical degrees.[54]

 
Buildings of the Old Medical School at Teviot Place, photographed in the late 19th century
 
Exterior of the McEwan Hall

Towards the end of the 19th century, Old College was becoming overcrowded. After a bequest from Sir David Baxter, the university started planning new buildings in earnest. Sir Robert Rowand Anderson won the public architectural competition and was commissioned to design new premises for the Medical School in 1877.[55] Initially, the design incorporated a campanile and a hall for examination and graduation, but this was seen as too ambitious. The new Medical School opened in 1884, but the building was not completed until 1888.[56] After funds were donated by politician and brewer William McEwan in 1894, a separate graduation building was constructed after all, also designed by Anderson.[57] The resulting McEwan Hall on Bristo Square was presented to the university in 1897.[58]

 
Teviot Row House, drawn by architect Sydney Mitchell in 1888

The Students' Representative Council (SRC) was founded in 1884 by student Robert Fitzroy Bell.[59][60] In 1889, the SRC voted to establish Edinburgh University Union (EUU), to be housed in Teviot Row House on Bristo Square.[61] Edinburgh University Sports Union (EUSU) was founded in 1866, and Edinburgh University Women's Union (renamed the Chambers Street Union in 1964) in October 1905.[62] The SRC, EUU and Chambers Street Union merged to form Edinburgh University Students' Association (EUSA) on 1 July 1973.[63][64]

20th century

During World War I, the Science and Medicine buildings had suffered from a lack of repairs or upgrades, which was exacerbated by an influx of students after the end of the war.[65] In 1919, the university bought the land of West Mains Farm in the south of the city for the development of a new satellite campus specialising in the sciences.[66] On 6 July 1920, King George V laid the foundation of the first new building (now called the Joseph Black Building), housing the Department of Chemistry.[65] The campus was named King's Buildings in honour of George V.

 
Facade of New College facing onto The Mound in 1910

New College on The Mound was originally opened in 1846 as a Free Church of Scotland college, later of the United Free Church of Scotland.[67] Since the 1930s it has been the home of the School of Divinity. Prior to the 1929 reunion of the Church of Scotland, candidates for the ministry in the United Free Church studied at New College, whilst candidates for the Church of Scotland studied in the university's Faculty of Divinity.[68] In 1935 the two institutions merged, with all operations moved to the New College site in Old Town.[69] This freed up Old College for Edinburgh Law School.[70]

 
Plaque honouring the Polish School of Medicine at the old Medical School

The Polish School of Medicine was established in 1941 as a wartime academic initiative. While it was originally intended for students and doctors in the Polish Armed Forces in the West, civilians were also allowed to take the courses, which were taught in Polish and awarded Polish medical degrees.[71] When the school was closed in 1949, 336 students had matriculated, of which 227 students graduated with the equivalent of an MBChB and a total of 19 doctors obtained a doctorate or MD.[72] A bronze plaque commemorating the Polish School of Medicine is located in the Quadrangle of the old Medical School in Teviot Place.[73]

On 10 May 1951, the Royal (Dick) Veterinary College, founded in 1823 by William Dick,[74] was reconstituted as the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies and officially became part of the university.[75] It achieved full faculty status as Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in 1964.

By the end of the 1950s, there were around 7,000 students matriculating annually, more than doubling the numbers from the turn of the century.[76] The university addressed this partially through the redevelopment of George Square, demolishing much of the area's historic houses and erecting modern buildings such as 40 George Square, Appleton Tower and the Main Library.[77]

On 1 August 1998, the Moray House Institute of Education, founded in 1848, merged with the University of Edinburgh, becoming its Faculty of Education. Following the internal restructuring of the university in 2002, Moray House became known as the Moray House School of Education.[78] It was renamed the Moray House School of Education and Sport in August 2019.[79]

21st century

In the 1990s it became apparent that the old Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh buildings in Lauriston Place were no longer adequate for a modern teaching hospital. Donald Dewar, the Scottish Secretary at the time, authorized a joint project between private finance, local authorities, and the university to create a modern hospital and medical campus in the Little France area of Edinburgh.[80] The new campus was named the BioQuarter. The Chancellor's Building was opened on 12 August 2002 by Prince Philip, housing the new Edinburgh Medical School alongside the new Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.[81] In 2007, the campus saw the addition of the Euan MacDonald Centre as a research centre for motor neuron diseases, which was part-funded by Scottish entrepreneur Euan MacDonald and his father Donald.[82][83] In August 2010, author J. K. Rowling provided £10 million in funding to create the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic,[84] which was officially opened in October 2013.[85] The Centre for Regenerative Medicine (CRM) is a stem cell research centre dedicated to the development of regenerative treatments, which was opened in 2012.[86] CRM is also home to applied scientists working with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) and Roslin Cells.[87]

In December 2002, the Edinburgh Cowgate Fire destroyed a number of university buildings, including some 3,000 m2 of the School of Informatics at 80 South Bridge.[88][89] This was replaced with the Informatics Forum on Bristo Square, completed in July 2008. Also in 2002, the Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre (ECRC) was opened on the Western General Hospital site.[90] In 2007, the MRC Human Genetics Unit formed a partnership with the Centre for Genomic & Experimental Medicine and the ECRC to create the Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine (renamed the Institute of Genetics and Cancer in 2021) on the same site.[91]

In April 2008, the Roslin Institute – an animal sciences research centre known for cloning Dolly the sheep – became part of the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.[92] In 2011, the school moved into a new £60 million building on the Easter Bush campus, which now houses research and teaching facilities, and a hospital for small and farm animals.[93][94]

Edinburgh College of Art, founded in 1760, formally merged with the university's School of Arts, Culture and Environment on 1 August 2011.[95][96] In 2014, the Zhejiang University-University of Edinburgh Institute (ZJE) was founded as an international joint institute offering degrees in biomedical sciences, taught in English.[97] The campus, located in Haining, Zhejiang Province, China, was established on 15 March 2016.[98]

The university began hosting a Wikimedian in Residence in 2016.[99] The residency was made into a full-time position in 2019, with the Wikimedian involved in teaching and learning activities within the scope of the University of Edinburgh WikiProject.[100]

In 2018, the University of Edinburgh was a signatory to the £1.3 billion Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, in partnership with the UK and Scottish governments, six local authorities and all universities and colleges in the region.[101] The university committed to delivering a range of economic benefits to the region through the Data-Driven Innovation initiative.[102] In conjunction with Heriot-Watt University, the deal created five innovation hubs: the Bayes Centre, Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI), Usher Institute, Easter Bush, and one further hub based at Heriot-Watt, the National Robotarium. The deal also included creation of the Edinburgh International Data Facility, which performs high-speed data processing in a secure environment.[103][104]

In September 2020, the university completed work on the Richard Verney Health Centre at its central area campus on Bristo Square. The facility houses a health centre and pharmacy, and the university's disability and counselling services.[105] The university's largest current expansion project is the conversion of some of the historic Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh buildings in Lauriston Place, which had been vacated in 2003 and partially developed into the Quartermile. The £120 million renovations and extension will provide space for the Edinburgh Futures Institute, an interdisciplinary hub linking arts, humanities, and social sciences with other disciplines in the research and teaching of 'complex futures'.[106][107]

Historical links

Edinburgh has a number of historical links to other universities, chiefly through its influential Medical School and its graduates, who established and developed institutions elsewhere in the world.

Campuses and buildings

class=notpageimage|
Main locations of the University of Edinburgh. Easter Bush is located 7 miles south of the city.

The university has five main sites in Edinburgh:[119]

  • Central Area
  • King's Buildings
  • BioQuarter
  • Easter Bush
  • Western General

The university is responsible for several significant historic and modern buildings across the city, including St Cecilia's Hall, Scotland's oldest purpose-built concert hall and the second oldest in use in the British Isles;[120] Teviot Row House, the oldest purpose-built students' union building in the world;[61] and the restored 17th-century Mylne's Court student residence at the head of the Royal Mile.[15]

Central Area

 
The Main Library viewed from The Meadows
 
Old College Quadrangle

The Central Area is spread around numerous squares and streets in Edinburgh's Southside, with some buildings in Old Town. It is the university's oldest area, occupied primarily by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and the School of Informatics. The highest concentration of university buildings is around George Square, which includes 40 George Square (formerly David Hume Tower), Appleton Tower, Main Library, and Gordon Aikman Lecture Theatre, the area's largest lecture hall. Around nearby Bristo Square lie the Dugald Stewart Building, Informatics Forum, McEwan Hall, Potterrow Student Centre, Teviot Row House, and old Medical School, which still houses pre-clinical medical courses and biomedical sciences.[47] The Pleasance, one of Edinburgh University Students' Association's main buildings, is located nearby, as is Edinburgh College of Art in Lauriston. North of George Square lies the university's Old College housing Edinburgh Law School, New College on The Mound housing the School of Divinity, and St Cecilia's Hall. Some of these buildings are used to host events during the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe every summer.[121]

Pollock Halls

Main article: Pollock Halls of Residence

Pollock Halls, adjoining Holyrood Park to the east, is the university's largest residence hall for undergraduate students in their first year. The complex houses over 2,000 students during term time and consists of ten named buildings with communal green spaces between them.[122] The two original buildings, St Leonard's Hall and Salisbury Green, were built in the 19th century, while the majority of Pollock Halls dates from the 1960s and early 2000s. Two of the older houses in Pollock Halls were demolished in 2002, and a new building, Chancellor's Court, was built in their place and opened in 2003. Self-catered flats elsewhere account for the majority of university-provided accommodation. The area also includes the John McIntyre Conference Centre opened in 2009, which is the university's premier conference space.[123]

Holyrood

See also: Moray House School of Education

The Holyrood campus, just off the Royal Mile, used to be the site for Moray House Institute for Education until it merged with the university on 1 August 1998.[78] The university has since extended this campus.[124] The buildings include redeveloped and extended Sports Science, Physical Education and Leisure Management facilities at St Leonard's Land linked to the Sports Institute in the Pleasance.[125] The £80 million O'Shea Hall at Holyrood was named after the former principal of the university Sir Timothy O'Shea and was opened by Princess Anne in 2017, providing a living and social environment for postgraduate students.[126] The Outreach Centre, Institute for Academic Development (University Services Group), and Edinburgh Centre for Professional Legal Studies are also located at Holyrood.[127][128][129]

King's Buildings

Main article: King's Buildings

The King's Buildings campus is located in the south of the city. Most of the Science and Engineering College's research and teaching activities take place at the campus, which occupies a 35-hectare site. It includes the Alexander Graham Bell Building (for mobile phones and digital communications systems), James Clerk Maxwell Building (the administrative and teaching centre of the School of Physics and Astronomy and School of Mathematics), Joseph Black Building (home to the School of Chemistry), Royal Observatory, Swann Building (the Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology), Waddington Building (the Centre for Systems Biology at Edinburgh), William Rankine Building (School of Engineering's Institute for Infrastructure and Environment), and others.[130] Until 2012, the KB campus was served by three libraries: Darwin Library, James Clerk Maxwell Library, and Robertson Engineering and Science Library. These were replaced by the Noreen and Kenneth Murray Library opened for the academic year 2012/13.[131][132] The campus also hosts the National e-Science Centre (NeSC), Scotland's Rural College (SRUC), Scottish Institute for Enterprise (SIE), Scottish Microelectronics Centre (SMC), and Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre (SUERC).

BioQuarter

Main article: Edinburgh BioQuarter

The BioQuarter campus, based in the Little France area, is home to the majority of medical facilities of the university, alongside the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. The campus houses the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, Centre for Regenerative Medicine, Chancellor's Building, Euan MacDonald Centre, and Queen's Medical Research Institute, which opened in 2005.[81] The Chancellor's Building has two large lecture theatres and a medical library connected to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh by a series of corridors.

Easter Bush

The Easter Bush campus, located seven miles south of the city, houses the Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education, Roslin Institute, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, and Veterinary Oncology and Imaging Centre.[93]

The Roslin Institute is an animal sciences research institute which is sponsored by BBSRC.[133] The Institute won international fame in 1996, when its researchers Sir Ian Wilmut, Keith Campbell and their colleagues created Dolly the sheep, the first mammal to be cloned from an adult cell.[134][135] A year later Polly and Molly were cloned, both sheep contained a human gene.[136]

Western General

The Western General campus, in proximity to the Western General Hospital, contains the Biomedical Research Facility, Edinburgh Clinical Research Facility, and Institute of Genetics and Cancer (formerly the Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine).


Organisation and administration

Governance

Further information: Ancient university governance in Scotland

In common with the other ancient universities of Scotland, and in contrast to nearly all other pre-1992 universities which are established by royal charters, the University of Edinburgh is constituted by the Universities (Scotland) Acts 1858 to 1966. These acts provide for three major bodies in the governance of the university: the University Court, the General Council, and the Senatus Academicus.[48]

University Court

The University Court is the university's governing body and the legal person of the university, chaired by the rector and consisting of the principal, Lord Provost of Edinburgh, and of Assessors appointed by the rector, chancellor, Edinburgh Town Council, General Council, and Senatus Academicus. By the Universities (Scotland) Act 1889, it is a body corporate, with perpetual succession and a common seal. All property belonging to the university at the passing of the Act was vested in the Court.[137] The present powers of the Court are further defined in the Universities (Scotland) Act 1966, including the administration and management of the university's revenue and property, the regulation of staff salaries, and the establishment and composition of committees of its own members or others.

General Council

The General Council consists of graduates, academic staff, current and former University Court members. It was established to ensure that graduates have a continuing voice in the management of the university. The Council is required to meet twice per year to consider matters affecting the wellbeing and prosperity of the university. The Universities (Scotland) Act 1966 gave the Council the power to consider draft ordinances and resolutions, to be presented with an annual report of the work and activities of the university, and to receive an audited financial statement.[138] The Council elects the chancellor of the university and three Assessors on the University Court.

Senatus Academicus

The Senatus Academicus is the university's supreme academic body, chaired by the principal and consisting of the professors, heads of departments, and a number of readers, lecturers and other teaching and research staff.[139] The core function of the Senatus is to regulate and supervise the teaching and discipline of the university and to promote research. The Senatus elects four Assessors on the University Court. The Senatus meets three times per year, hosting a presentation and discussion session which is open to all members of staff at each meeting.

University officials

Main articles: Chancellor of the University of Edinburgh, Rector of the University of Edinburgh, and List of Principals of the University of Edinburgh
 
Princess Anne, current Chancellor
 
Debora Kayembe, current Lord Rector
 
Sir Peter Mathieson, current Principal and Vice-Chancellor

The university's three most significant officials are its chancellor, rector, and principal, whose rights and responsibilities are largely derived from the Universities (Scotland) Act 1858.

The office of chancellor serves as the titular head and highest office of the university. Their duties include conferring degrees and enhancing the profile and reputation of the university on national and global levels.[140] The chancellor is elected by the university's General Council, and a person generally remains in the office for life. Previous chancellors include former prime minister Arthur Balfour and novelist Sir J. M. Barrie.[140] Princess Anne has held the position since March 2011 succeeding Prince Philip.[18] She is also Patron of the university's Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.

The office of rector is elected every three years by the staff and matriculated students. The primary role of the rector is to preside at the University Court.[141] The rector also chairs meetings of the General Council in absence of the chancellor. They work closely with students and Edinburgh University Students' Association. Previous rectors include microbiologist Sir Alexander Fleming, and former Prime Ministers Sir Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George. The current rector is human rights lawyer Debora Kayembe, who has held the position since March 2021.[141][142]

The principal is responsible for the overall operation of the university in a chief executive role.[143] The principal is formally nominated by the Curators of Patronage and appointed by the University Court. They are the President of the Senatus Academicus and a member of the University Court ex officio.[143] The principal is also automatically appointed vice-chancellor, in which role they confer degrees on behalf of the chancellor. Previous principals include physicist Sir Edward Appleton and religious philosopher Stewart Sutherland. The current principal is nephrologist Sir Peter Mathieson, who has held the position since February 2018.[144]

Colleges and schools

In 2002, the university was reorganised from its nine faculties into three 'Colleges'.[145] While technically not a collegiate university, it comprises the Colleges of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (CAHSS), Science & Engineering (CSE) and Medicine & Vet Medicine (CMVM). Within these colleges are 'Schools', which either represent one academic discipline such as Informatics or assemble adjacent academic disciplines such as the School of History, Classics and Archaeology. While bound by College-level policies, individual Schools can differ in their organisation and governance. As of 2021, the university has 21 schools in total.[146]

Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

 
Department of Psychology building at 7 George Square
 
Elsie Inglis Quad at the Old Medical School, currently hosting the School of History, Classics and Archaeology

The College took on its current name of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in 2016 after absorbing the Edinburgh College of Art in 2011.[147] CAHSS offers more than 280 undergraduate degree programmes, 230 taught postgraduate programmes, and 200 research postgraduate programmes.[148][149] Twenty subjects offered by the college were ranked within the top 10 nationally in the 2022 Complete University Guide.[150] It includes the oldest English Literature department in Britain,[37] which was ranked 7th globally in the 2021 QS Rankings by Subject in English Language & Literature.[151] The college hosts Scotland's ESRC Doctoral Training Centre (DTC), the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science. The college is the largest of the three colleges by enrolment, with 26,130 students and 3,089 academic staff.[152][5]

Medicine and Veterinary Medicine

Main article: University of Edinburgh College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
 
Members of the medical faculty at Edinburgh in the first half of the 19th century. Seated (L–R): J. Y. Simpson, J. Miller, J. H. Balfour and J. H. Bennett. Standing (L–R): R. Jameson, W. Alison and T. S. Traill.

Edinburgh Medical School was widely considered the best medical school in the English-speaking world throughout the 18th century and the first half of the 19th century and contributed significantly to the university's international reputation.[153][154] Graduates of the medical school have founded medical schools and universities all over the world including 5 out of the 7 Ivy League medical schools (Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Pennsylvania and Dartmouth), Vermont, McGill, Sydney, Montréal, the Royal Postgraduate Medical School (now part of Imperial College London), the Cape Town, Birkbeck, Middlesex Hospital and the London School of Medicine for Women (both now part of UCL).

In the 21st century, the reputation of the medical school has excelled; the school is associated with 13 Nobel Prize recipients: 7 recipients of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and 6 recipients of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.[155] The medical school in 2022 was ranked 1st in the UK by the Guardian University Guide,[156] In 2021, it was ranked third in the UK by The Times University Guide,[157] and the Complete University Guide. It also ranked 21st in the world by both the Times Higher Education World University Rankings and the QS World University Rankings in the same year.[158]

The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies is a world leader in veterinary education, research and practice. The eight original faculties formed four Faculty Groups in August 1992. Medicine and Veterinary Medicine became one of these, and in 2002 became the smallest of the three colleges, with 7,740 students and 1,896 academic staff.[152][5] The university's teaching hospitals include the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, St John's Hospital, Livingston, Roodlands Hospital, and Royal Hospital for Children and Young People.[159][160][161]

Science and Engineering

Main article: University of Edinburgh College of Science and Engineering
 
Old Surgical Hospital in Drummond Street, once part of the Royal Infirmary, today houses the university's Institute of Geography

In the 16th century, science was taught as "natural philosophy" in the university. The 17th century saw the institution of the University Chairs of Mathematics and Botany, followed the next century by Chairs of Natural History, Astronomy, Chemistry and Agriculture. It was Edinburgh's professors who took a leading part in the formation of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1783. Joseph Black, Professor of Medicine and Chemistry at the time, founded the world's first Chemical Society in 1785.[162] The first named degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Science was instituted in 1864, and a separate Faculty of Science was created in 1893 after three centuries of scientific advances at Edinburgh.[162] The Regius Chair in Engineering was established in 1868, and the Regius Chair in Geology in 1871. In 1991 the Faculty of Science was renamed the Faculty of Science and Engineering, and in 2002 it became the College of Science and Engineering. The college has 11,745 students and 2,937 academic staff.[152][5]

Sub-units, centres and institutes

 
Edinburgh Futures Institute taking shape on the former site of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh

Some subunits, centres and institutes within the university are listed as follows:[163]

Academic profile

The university is a member of the Russell Group of research-led British universities, and the Sutton 13 group of top-ranked universities in the UK.[164] It is the only British university to be a member of both the Coimbra Group and the League of European Research Universities, and it is a founding member of Una Europa and Universitas 21, both international associations of research-intensive universities.[165] The university maintains historically strong ties with the neighbouring Heriot-Watt University for teaching and research. Edinburgh also offers a wide range of free online MOOC courses on three global platforms Coursera, Edx and FutureLearn.[166][167]

Admissions

Undergraduate admission statistics[16]
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
Applications 75,438 68,954 62,220 60,983 58,411 59,876 59,058
Offers 25,210 32,432 31,510 27,878 25,532 25,041 23,151
Offer Rate (%) 33.0 47.0 50.6 45.7 43.7 41.8 39.2
Enrolls 6,111 8,083 7,344 6,346 6,221 6,434 5,900
Yield (%) 24.2 24.9 23.3 22.8 24.4 25.7 25.5
Applicant/Enrolled Ratio 12.34 8.53 8.47 9.61 9.39 9.31 10.01
Average Entry Tariff[17][c] n/a n/a 190 186 187 189 180
Undergraduate Student Body Composition (2022)
Domicile and Ethnicity[168] Total
British White 58% 58
 
British Ethnic Minorities[d] 9% 9
 
International EU 8% 8
 
International Non-EU 25% 25
 
Widening Participation[169][170]
Independent School 36% 36
 
Female 61% 61
 
Low Participation Areas[e] 9% 9
 

In 2020, Edinburgh had the seventh-highest average entry standards amongst universities in the UK, with new undergraduates averaging 190 UCAS points, equivalent to just above AAAaa in A-level grades.[17] It gave offers of admission to 52.3% of its 18 year old applicants in 2019, the fifth-lowest amongst the Russell Group.[171]

In 2022, excluding courses within Edinburgh College of Art, the most competitive courses for Scottish applicants were Oral Health Science (9%), Business (11%), Philosophy & Psychology (14%), Social Work (15%), and International Business (15%).[172] For students from the rest of the UK, the most competitive courses were Nursing (5%), Medicine (6%), Veterinary Medicine (6%), Psychology (8%), and Politics, Philosophy and Economics (10%).[173] For international students, the most competitive courses were Medicine (5%), Nursing (7%), Business (11%), Politics, Philosophy and Economics (12%), and Sociology (13%).[174]

For the academic year 2019/20, 36.8% of Edinburgh's new undergraduates were privately educated, the second-highest proportion among mainstream British universities, behind only Oxford.[175] As of August 2021, it has a higher proportion of female than male students with a male to female ratio of 38:62 in the undergraduate population, and the undergraduate student body is composed of 30% Scottish students, 32% from the rest of the UK, 10% from the EU, and 28% from outside the EU.[5]

Graduation

See also: Academic dress of the University of Edinburgh
 
Edinburgh graduation ceremony in the McEwan Hall

At graduation ceremonies, graduates are being 'capped' with the Geneva bonnet, which involves the university's principal tapping them on the head with the cap while they receive their graduation certificate.[176] The velvet-and-silk hat has been used for over 150 years, and legend says that it was originally made from cloth taken from the breeches of 16th-century scholars John Knox or George Buchanan.[177] However, when the hat was last restored in the early 2000s, a label dated 1849 was discovered bearing the name of Edinburgh tailor Henry Banks, although some doubt remains whether he manufactured or restored the hat.[176][178] In 2006, a university emblem that had been taken into space by astronaut and Edinburgh graduate Piers Sellers was incorporated into the Geneva bonnet.[179]

Library system

Main article: Edinburgh University Library
 
Playfair Library Hall in Old College

Pre-dating the university by three years, Edinburgh University Library was founded in 1580 through the donation of a large collection by Clement Litill, and today is the largest academic library collection in Scotland.[180][181] The Brutalist style eight-storey Main Library building in George Square was designed by Sir Basil Spence. At the time of its completion in 1967, it was the largest building of its type in the UK, and today is a category A listed building.[182] The library system also includes many specialised libraries at the college and school level.[183]

Exchange programmes

 
The former principal Sir Timothy O'Shea signed an agreement with Peking University in 2012.

The university offers students the opportunity to study in Europe and beyond via the European Union's Erasmus+ programme[f] and a variety of international exchange agreements with around 300 partners institutions in nearly 40 countries worldwide.[185]

University-wide exchanges are open to almost any student whose degree permits a year abroad and who can find a suitable course combination. The list of partner institutions is shown as follows (part of):[186]

Subject-specific exchanges are open to students studying in particular schools or subject areas, including exchange programmes with Carnegie Mellon University, Emory University, EPFL, ETH Zurich, ESSEC Business School, ENS Paris, HEC Paris, Humboldt University of Berlin, Karolinska Institute, Kyoto University, LMU Munich, University of Michigan, Peking University, Rhode Island School of Design, Sorbonne University, TU München, Waseda University, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and others.[186]

Rankings and reputation

Rankings
National rankings
Complete (2023)[188]12
Guardian (2023)[189]12
Times / Sunday Times (2023)[190]10
Global rankings
THE (2023)[191]29
QS (2023)[192]15
ARWU (2022)[193]35

In the 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF), which evaluated work produced between 2014 and 2021, Edinburgh ranked 4th by research power and 15th by GPA amongst British universities.[194] The university fell four places in GPA when compared to the 2014 REF, but retained its place in research power.[195] 90 per cent of the university's research activity was judged to be 'world leading' (4*) or 'internationally excellent' (3*), and five departments – Computer Science, Informatics, Sociology, Anthropology, and Development Studies – were ranked as the best in the UK.[196]

In the 2015 THE Global Employability University Ranking, Edinburgh ranked 23rd in the world and 4th in the UK for graduate employability as voted by international recruiters.[197] A 2015 government report found that Edinburgh was one of only two Scottish universities (along with St Andrews) that some London-based elite recruitment firms considered applicants from, especially in the field of financial services and investment banking.[198] When The New York Times ranked universities based on the employability of graduates as evaluated by recruiters from top companies in 20 countries in 2012, Edinburgh was placed at 42nd in the world and 7th in Britain.[199]

Edinburgh was ranked 24th in the world and 5th in the UK by the 2021 Aggregate Ranking of Top Universities, a league table based on the three major world university rankings, ARWU, QS and THE.[200] In the 2022 U.S. News & World Report, Edinburgh ranked 32nd globally and 5th nationally.[201] The 2021 World Reputation Rankings placed Edinburgh at 30th worldwide and 6th nationwide.[202] In 2021, it ranked 63rd amongst the universities around the world by the SCImago Institutions Rankings.[203]

The noticeable disparity between Edinburgh's research capacity, endowment and international status on the one hand, and its ranking in national league tables on the other, is largely due to the impact of measures of 'student satisfaction'.[204] Edinburgh was ranked last in the UK for teaching quality in the 2012 National Student Survey,[205] with the 2015 Good University Guide stating that this stemmed from "questions to do with the promptness, usefulness and extent of academic feedback", and that the university "still has a long way to go to turn around a poor position".[206] Edinburgh improved only marginally over the next years, with the 2021 Good University Guide still ranking it in the bottom 10 domestically in both teaching quality and student experience.[207] Edinburgh was ranked 122nd out of 128 universities for student satisfaction in the 2022 Complete University Guide, although it was ranked 12th overall.[208] The 2022 Guardian University Guide ranked Edinburgh 12th overall, but 101st out of 119 universities in course satisfaction, and lowest among all universities in satisfaction with feedback.[189]

In the 2022 Complete University Guide, 32 out of the 49 subjects offered by Edinburgh were ranked within the top 10 in the UK, with Asian Studies (4th), Chemical Engineering (4th), Education (2nd), Geology (5th), Linguistics (5th), Mechanical Engineering (5th), Medicine (5th), Music (5th), Nursing (1st), Physics & Astronomy (5th), Social Policy (5th), Theology & Religious Studies (4th), and Veterinary Medicine (2nd) within the top 5.[208] The 2021 THE World University Rankings by Subject ranked Edinburgh 10th worldwide in Arts and Humanities, 15th in Law, 16th in Psychology, 21st in Clinical, Pre-clinical & Health, 22nd in Computer Science, 28th in Education, 28th in Life Science, 43rd in Business & Economics, 44th in Social Sciences, 45th in Physical Sciences, and 86th in Engineering & Technology.[209] The 2022 QS World University Rankings by Subject placed Edinburgh at 9th globally in Arts & Humanities, 24th in Life Sciences & Medicine, 40th in Natural Sciences, 53rd in Social Sciences & Management, and 66th in Engineering & Technology.[210] According to CSRankings, computer science at Edinburgh was ranked 1st in the UK and 36th globally, and Edinburgh was the best in natural language processing (NLP) in the world.[211]

Student life

Students' Association

Main article: Edinburgh University Students' Association
 
The Pleasance, one of EUSA's main buildings, is a theatre, bar, sports and recreation complex

Edinburgh University Students' Association (EUSA) consists of the students' union and the students' representative council. EUSA's buildings include Teviot Row House, The Pleasance, Potterrow Student Centre, Kings Buildings House, as well as shops, cafés and refectories across the various campuses. Teviot Row House is considered the oldest purpose-built student union building in the world.[61][212] Most of these buildings are operated as Edinburgh Festival Fringe venues during August. EUSA represents students to the university and the wider world, and is responsible for over 250 student societies at the university. The association has five sabbatical office bearers – a president and four vice presidents. EUSA is affiliated with the National Union of Students (NUS).

Performing arts

Amateur dramatic societies benefit from Edinburgh being an important cultural hub for comedy, amateur and fringe theatre throughout the UK, most prominently through the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[213]

The Edinburgh University Music Society (EUMS) is a student-run musical organisation, which is Scotland's oldest student’s musical society; it can be traced back to a concert in February 1867.[214] It performs three concert series throughout the year whilst also undertaking a programme of charity events and education projects.[215]

 
The student-run Bedlam Theatre, home to the Edinburgh University Theatre Company

The Edinburgh University Theatre Company (EUTC), founded in 1890 as the Edinburgh University Drama Society, is known for running Bedlam Theatre, the oldest student-run theatre in Britain and venue for the Fringe.[216][217] EUTC also funds acclaimed improvisational comedy troupe The Improverts during term time and the Fringe.[218][219] Alumni include Sir Michael Boyd, Ian Charleson, Kevin McKidd, and Greg Wise.

The Edinburgh Studio Opera (formerly Edinburgh University Opera Club) is a student opera company in Edinburgh. It performs at least one fully staged opera each year.[220] The Edinburgh University Savoy Opera Group (EUSOG) is an opera and musical theatre company founded by students in 1961 to promote and perform the comic operettas of Sir William Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan, collectively known as Savoy Operas after the theatre in which they were originally staged.[221]

The Edinburgh University Footlights are a musical theatre company founded in 1989 and produce two large scale shows a year.[222] Theatre Parodok, founded in 2004, is a student theatre company that aims to produce shows that are "experimental without being exclusive". They stage one large show each semester and one for the festival.[223]

Media

The Student is a fortnightly student newspaper. Founded in 1887 by writer Robert Louis Stevenson, it is the oldest student newspaper in the United Kingdom.[224] Former writers of the newspaper include politicians Gordon Brown, Robin Cook, and Lord Steel of Aikwood.[225][226] It has been independent of the university since 1992, but was forced to temporarily fold in 2002 due to increasing debts. The newspaper won a number of student newspaper awards in the years following its relaunch.[224]

The Journal was an independent publication, established in 2007 by three students and former writers for The Student. It was also distributed to other higher education institutions in the city, such as Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh Napier University, and Telford College. It was the largest such publication in Scotland, with a print run of 10,000 copies. Despite winning a number of awards for its journalism, the magazine folded in 2015 due to financial difficulties.[227]

FreshAir, launched on 3 October 1992, is an alternative music student radio station. The station is one of the oldest surviving student radio stations in the UK, and won the "Student Radio Station of the Year" award at the annual Student Radio Awards in 2004.[228]

In September 2015, the Edinburgh University Student Television (EUTV) became the newest addition to the student media scene at the university, producing a regular magazine-style programme, documentaries and other special events.[229]

Sport

Main article: Edinburgh University Sports Union
 
Edinburgh University Mountaineering Club at the cairn on Ciste Dhubh, 1964

Student sport at Edinburgh consists of clubs covering the more traditional rugby, football, rowing and judo, to the more unconventional korfball, gliding and mountaineering. In 2021, the university had over 65 sports clubs run by Edinburgh University Sports Union (EUSU).[230]

The Scottish Varsity, known as the "world's oldest varsity match", is a rugby match played annually against the University of St Andrews dating back over 150 years.[231] Discontinued in the 1950s, the match was resurrected in 2011 and was staged in London at the home of London Scottish RFC. It is played at the beginning of the academic year, and since 2015 has been staged at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh.[232]

The Scottish Boat Race is an annual rowing race between the Glasgow University Boat Club and the Edinburgh University Boat Club, rowed between competing eights on the River Clyde in Glasgow, Scotland. Started in 1877, it is believed to be the third-oldest university boat race in the world, predated by the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race and the Harvard–Yale Regatta.[233]

Edinburgh athletes have repeatedly been successful at the Olympic Games: Sprinter Eric Liddell won gold and bronze at the 1924 Summer Olympics. At the 1948 Summer Olympics, alumnus Jackie Robinson won a gold medal with the American Basketball team. Trap shooter Bob Braithwaite secured a gold medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics. Cyclist Sir Chris Hoy won six gold and one silver medal between 2000 and 2012. Rower Dame Katherine Grainger won a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and four further silver medals between 2000 and 2016. Edinburgh was the most successful UK university at the 2012 Games with two gold medals from Hoy and one from Grainger.[234]

Student activism

There are a number of campaigning societies at the university. The largest of these include the environment and poverty campaigning group People & Planet and Amnesty International Society. International development organisations include Edinburgh Global Partnerships, which was established as a student-led charity in 1990.[235] There is also a significant left-wing presence on campus,[236] including an anti-austerity group, Edinburgh University Anarchist Society, Edinburgh University Socialist Society, Edinburgh Young Greens, Feminist Society, Marxist Society, and Students for Justice in Palestine.[237]

Protests, demonstrations and occupations are regular occurrences at the university.[238][239][240] The activist group People & Planet took over Charles Stewart House in 2015 and again in 2016 in protest over the university's investment in companies active in arms manufacturing or fossil fuel extraction.[241][242] In May 2015, a security guard was charged in relation to the occupations.[243]

Student co-operatives

There are three student-run co-operatives on campus: Edinburgh Student Housing Co-operative, providing affordable housing for 106 students;[244] The Hearty Squirrel Food Cooperative, providing 'local, organic and affordable food to students and staff';[245] and The SHRUB Coop, a 'swap and re-use hub' aimed at reducing waste and promoting sustainability.[246] The co-operatives form part of the Students for Cooperation network.[247]

Notable people

Main articles: List of University of Edinburgh people and List of University of Edinburgh medical people

The university is associated with some of the most significant intellectual and scientific contributions in human history, which include: the foundation of Antiseptic surgery (Joseph Lister),[248] Bayesian statistics (Thomas Bayes),[249] Economics (Adam Smith),[250] Electromagnetism (James Clerk Maxwell),[251] Evolution (Charles Darwin),[252][253] Knot theory (Peter Guthrie Tait),[254] mordern Geology (James Hutton),[255] Nephrology (Richard Bright),[256] Endocrinology (Edward Albert Sharpey-Schafer),[257] Hematology (William Hewson),[258] Dermatology (Robert Willan),[259] Epigenetics (C. H. Waddington),[260] Gestalt psychology (Kurt Koffka), Thermodynamics (William Rankine), Colloid chemistry (Thomas Graham),[261] and Wave theory (Thomas Young); the discovery of Brownian motion (Robert Brown),[262] Magnesium, carbon dioxide, latent heat and specific heat (Joseph Black),[263][264] chloroform anaesthesia (Sir James Young Simpson),[265] Hepatitis B vaccine (Sir Kenneth Murray),[266] Higgs mechanism (Sir Tom Kibble),[267][268] structure of DNA (Sir John Randall),[269] HPV vaccine (Ian Frazer), Iridium and Osmium (Smithson Tennant),[270] Nitrogen (Daniel Rutherford),[271] Strontium (Thomas Charles Hope),[272] and SARS coronavirus (Zhong Nanshan);[273] and the invention of the Stirling engine (Robert Stirling),[274] Cavity magnetron (Sir John Randall),[275] ATM (John Shepherd-Barron),[276] refrigerator (William Cullen),[277] diving chamber (John Scott Haldane),[278] reflecting telescope (James Gregory),[279] hypodermic syringe (Alexander Wood),[280][281] kaleidoscope (Sir David Brewster),[282] pneumatic tyre (John Boyd Dunlop),[283] telephone (Alexander Graham Bell),[284] telpherage (Fleeming Jenkin), and vacuum flask (Sir James Dewar).[285]

Other notable alumni and academic staff of the university have included signatories to the US Declaration of Independence Benjamin Rush,[286] James Wilson[287] and John Witherspoon,[288] actors Ian Charleson,[289] Robbie Coltrane and Kevin McKidd, architects Robert Adam,[290] William Thornton, William Henry Playfair,[291] Sir Basil Spence and Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, astronaut Piers Sellers,[292] biologists Sir Adrian Bird,[293] Sir Richard Owen[294] and Sir Ian Wilmut,[295] business executives Tony Hayward, Alan Jope, Lars Rasmussen and Susie Wolff, composer Max Richter, economists Kenneth E. Boulding[296] and Thomas Chalmers, historians Thomas Carlyle[297] and Neil MacGregor, journalists Laura Kuenssberg and Peter Pomerantsev, judges Lord Reed[298] and Lord Hodge,[299] mathematicians Sir W. V. D. Hodge,[300] Colin Maclaurin[301] and Sir E. T. Whittaker,[302] philosophers Benjamin Constant, Adam Ferguson,[303] Ernest Gellner and David Hume,[304] physicians Thomas Addison,[305] William Cullen,[306] Valentín Fuster, Thomas Hodgkin[307] and James Lind,[308] pilot Eric Brown,[309] surgeons James Barry,[310] Joseph Bell,[311] Robert Liston[312] and B. K. Misra,[313] sociologists Sir Patrick Geddes[314] and David Bloor,[315] writers Sir J. M. Barrie,[316] Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,[317][318] John Fowles, Oliver Goldsmith, J. K. Rowling,[g][319] Sir Walter Scott[320] and Robert Louis Stevenson,[321] Chancellors of the Exchequer John Anderson[322] and Lord Henry Petty,[323] former Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand Sir Michael Cullen, current Vice President of Syria Najah al-Attar, former Director General of MI5 Stella Rimington, First Lords of the Admiralty Lord Melville, Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville, Lord Minto and Lord Selkirk, Foreign Secretaries Robin Cook[324] and Sir Malcolm Rifkind,[325] former acting First Minister of Scotland Jim Wallace, and Olympic gold medallists Bob Braithwaite, Katherine Grainger, Sir Chris Hoy and Eric Liddell.[326]

Nobel and Nobel equivalent prizes

See also: List of Nobel laureates by university affiliation
 
Max Born, Tait Professor of Natural Philosophy at Edinburgh from 1936 to 1953, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1954.[327]
 
Peter Higgs, faculty at Edinburgh since 1960 and Emeritus Professor after 1996, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2013.[328]

As of October 2021, 19 Nobel Prize laureates have been affiliated with the university as alumni, faculty members or researchers (three additional laureates acted as administrative staff),[21] including one of the fathers of quantum mechanics Max Born,[329] theoretical physicist Peter Higgs,[330] chemist Sir Fraser Stoddart,[331] immunologist Peter C. Doherty,[332] economist Sir James Mirrlees,[333] discoverer of Characteristic X-ray (Charles Glover Barkla)[334] and the mechanism of ATP synthesis (Peter D. Mitchell),[335] and pioneer in cryo-electron microscopy (Richard Henderson)[336] and in-vitro fertilisation (Sir Robert Edwards).[337] Turing Award winners Geoffrey Hinton,[338] Robin Milner[339] Leslie Valiant,[340] and mathematician Sir Michael Atiyah,[341] Fields Medalist and Abel Prize laureate, are associated with the university.

In the following table, the number following a person's name is the year they received the Nobel prize. In particular, a number with an asterisk (*) means the person received the award while they were working at the university (including emeritus staff). A name underlined implies that this person has been listed previously (i.e., multiple affiliations).

Category Alumni Long-term academic staff Short-term academic staff
Physics (4)
  1. Igor Tamm - 1958
  1. Peter Higgs - 2013*
  2. Max Born - 1954*
  3. Charles Glover Barkla - 1917*
Chemistry (6)
  1. Richard Henderson - 2017
  2. Fraser Stoddart - 2016
  1. Peter D. Mitchell - 1978
  1. Kurt Wüthrich - 2002
  2. Alexander R. Todd - 1957
  3. Vincent du Vigneaud - 1955
Physiology or Medicine (7)
  1. Robert G. Edwards - 2010
  2. Peter C. Doherty - 1996
  1. Hermann J. Muller - 1946
  1. Michael Rosbash - 2017
  2. Edvard Moser - 2014
  3. May-Britt Moser - 2014
  4. Robert G. Edwards - 2010
  5. Paul Nurse - 2001
Economics (1)
  1. James Mirrlees - 1996
Peace (1)
  1. Joseph Rotblat - 1995

Heads of state and government

 
Gordon Brown, former Prime Minister and consecutive 10-year-long Chancellor of the Exchequer, is an alumnus (MA '72, PhD '82) and former rector of the university.[342]
Leader State/Government Office
Hastings Banda[343][344]   Malawi Prime Minister (1964–1966)
President (1966–1994)
Sir Robert Black[345]   Colony of Singapore Governor (1955–1957)
  British Hong Kong Governor (1958–1964)
Sir Thomas Brisbane[346]   New South Wales Governor (1821–1825)
Gordon Brown[347]   United Kingdom Prime Minister (2007–2010)
Chang Taek-sang (張澤相)[348]   South Korea Prime Minister (6 May 1952 – 6 October 1952)
John Crawfurd[349]   Colonial Singapore Resident (1823–1826)
Sir Gilbert Elliott[350]   Anglo-Corsican Kingdom Viceroy (1793–1796)
  British India Governor-General (1807–1813)
Sir Dawda Jawara[351]   Gambia Colony and Protectorate Prime Minister (1962–1965)
  The Gambia Prime Minister (1965–1970)
President (1970–1994)
Yusuf Lule[352]   Uganda President (1979)
Fawzi Mulki[353]   Jordan Prime Minister (1953–1954)
William Morrison, 1st Viscount Dunrossil[354]   Australia Governor-General (1960-1961)
Daniel Chanis Pinzón[355]   Panama President (1949)
Julius Nyerere[356][357]   Tanzania President (1964–1985)
Paul Reeves[358]   New Zealand Governor-General (1985–1990)
Lord John Russell[359]   United Kingdom Prime Minister (1846–52 and 1865–66)
Viscount Palmerston[360]   United Kingdom Prime Minister (1855–58 and 1859–65)
Sir Charles Tupper[361]   Canada Prime Minister (1 May 1896 – 8 July 1896)
William Walker   Nicaragua President (1856–1857)
Yun Posun (尹潽善)[362]   South Korea President (1960–1962)

In popular culture

The University of Edinburgh has featured prominently in a number of works of popular culture.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Note that HESA numbers given here are significantly lower than those reported by the university, since HESA does not include non-graduating and visiting students, postgraduates writing up, and online learning students living abroad.[5]
  2. ^ Liddell (1), Robinson (1), Braithwaite (1), Hoy (6), Grainger (1)
  3. ^ New UCAS Tariff system from 2016.
  4. ^ Includes those who indicate in their UCAS application that they identify as Asian, Black, Mixed Heritage, Arab or any other ethnicity except White.
  5. ^ Calculated from the Polar4 measure, from Quintile1, in England and Wales. Calculated from the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) measure, SIMD20, in Scotland.
  6. ^ Note that following Brexit, the UK will no longer participate in the next Erasmus+ programme (2021–2027), but funding remains available for students to go abroad under the current programme until 31 May 2023.[184]
  7. ^ Rowling attended the Moray House School of Education in 1995, before it merged with the university in 1998.
  8. ^ The Mask of Fu Manchu, 1932

References

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February 10, 2023
university, edinburgh, scots, university, edinburgh, scottish, gaelic, oilthigh, dhùn, Èideann, abbreviated, edin, post, nominals, public, research, university, based, edinburgh, scotland, founded, town, council, under, authority, royal, charter, king, james, . The University of Edinburgh Scots University o Edinburgh Scottish Gaelic Oilthigh Dhun Eideann abbreviated as Edin in post nominals is a public research university based in Edinburgh Scotland Founded by the town council under the authority of a royal charter of King James VI in 1582 and officially opened in 1583 it is one of Scotland s four ancient universities and the sixth oldest university in continuous operation in the English speaking world 1 The university played an important role in Edinburgh becoming a chief intellectual centre during the Scottish Enlightenment and contributed to the city being nicknamed the Athens of the North 7 8 Edinburgh is ranked among the top universities in the United Kingdom and the world 9 10 11 12 13 University of EdinburghLatin Universitas Academica EdinburgensisFormer namesTounis CollegeKing James CollegeTypePublic research universityAncient universityEstablished1583 440 years ago 1583 1 Endowment 541 0 million 2022 2 Budget 1 262 billion 2021 22 2 ChancellorAnne Princess RoyalRectorDebora KayembePrincipalSir Peter MathiesonAcademic staff4 952 FTE 2022 3 Administrative staff6 215 FTE 2022 3 Students35 375 2019 20 4 a Undergraduates23 060 2019 20 4 Postgraduates12 310 2019 20 4 LocationEdinburgh Scotland UK55 56 50 6 N 3 11 13 9 W 55 947389 N 3 187194 W 55 947389 3 187194 Coordinates 55 56 50 6 N 3 11 13 9 W 55 947389 N 3 187194 W 55 947389 3 187194CampusUrban suburbanColoursRed Blue 6 AffiliationsACUCoimbra GroupEUALERURussell GroupUna EuropaUNICAUniversitas 21Universities ScotlandUniversities UKWebsitewww wbr ed wbr ac wbr ukInterior dome of the McEwan Hall after restoration in 2017 Edinburgh is a member of several associations of research intensive universities including the Coimbra Group League of European Research Universities Russell Group Una Europa and Universitas 21 14 In the fiscal year ending 31 July 2022 it had a total income of 1 262 billion of which 331 6 million was from research grants and contracts with the third largest endowment in the UK behind only Cambridge and Oxford 2 The university has five main campuses in the city of Edinburgh which include many buildings of historical and architectural significance such as those in the Old Town 15 Edinburgh receives over 75 000 undergraduate applications per year making it the second most popular university in the UK by volume of applications 16 It is the eighth largest university in the UK by enrolment with 35 375 students in 2019 20 4 Edinburgh had the eighth highest average UCAS points amongst British universities for new entrants in 2020 17 The university continues to have links to the British royal family having had Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh as its chancellor from 1953 to 2010 and Anne Princess Royal since March 2011 18 The alumni of the university includes some of the major figures of modern history Inventor Alexander Graham Bell naturalist Charles Darwin philosopher David Hume and physicist James Clerk Maxwell studied at Edinburgh as did writers such as Sir J M Barrie Sir Arthur Conan Doyle J K Rowling Sir Walter Scott and Robert Louis Stevenson 19 20 The university counts several heads of state and government amongst its graduates including three British Prime Ministers Three Supreme Court Justices of the UK were educated at Edinburgh As of January 2023 update 19 Nobel Prize laureates four Pulitzer Prize winners three Turing Award winners and an Abel Prize laureate and Fields Medalist have been affiliated with Edinburgh as alumni or academic staff 21 Edinburgh alumni have won a total of ten Olympic gold medals b Contents 1 History 1 1 Early history 1 2 18th and 19th century 1 3 20th century 1 4 21st century 1 5 Historical links 2 Campuses and buildings 2 1 Central Area 2 1 1 Pollock Halls 2 1 2 Holyrood 2 2 King s Buildings 2 3 BioQuarter 2 4 Easter Bush 2 5 Western General 3 Organisation and administration 3 1 Governance 3 1 1 University Court 3 1 2 General Council 3 1 3 Senatus Academicus 3 1 4 University officials 3 2 Colleges and schools 3 2 1 Arts Humanities and Social Sciences 3 2 2 Medicine and Veterinary Medicine 3 2 3 Science and Engineering 3 2 4 Sub units centres and institutes 4 Academic profile 4 1 Admissions 4 2 Graduation 4 3 Library system 4 4 Exchange programmes 4 5 Rankings and reputation 5 Student life 5 1 Students Association 5 2 Performing arts 5 3 Media 5 4 Sport 5 5 Student activism 5 6 Student co operatives 6 Notable people 6 1 Nobel and Nobel equivalent prizes 6 2 Heads of state and government 7 In popular culture 8 See also 9 Notes 10 References 11 Further reading 12 External linksHistory EditEarly history Edit Robert Rollock Regent 1583 1586 and first principal 1586 1599 of the University of Edinburgh In 1557 Bishop Robert Reid of St Magnus Cathedral on Orkney made a will containing an endowment of 8 000 merks to build a college in Edinburgh 22 Unusually for his time Reid s vision included the teaching of rhetoric and poetry alongside more traditional subjects such as philosophy 22 However the bequest was delayed by more than 25 years due to the religious revolution that led to the Reformation Parliament of 1560 22 The plans were revived in the late 1570s through efforts by the Edinburgh Town Council first minister of Edinburgh James Lawson and Lord Provost William Little 1 When Reid s descendants were unwilling to pay out the sum the town council petitioned King James VI and his Privy Council The King brokered a monetary compromise and granted a royal charter on 14 April 1582 empowering the town council to create a college of higher education 22 23 24 A college established by secular authorities was unprecedented in newly Presbyterian Scotland as all previous Scottish universities had been founded through papal bulls 25 Notably Edinburgh was the fourth Scottish university in a period when the richer and more populous England had only two Main buildings of King James College in 1647 lying in a double courtyard on the lower left Frontispiece to earliest laureation graduation register 1587 Named Tounis College Town s College the university opened its doors to students on 14 October 1583 with an attendance of 80 90 1 At the time the college mainly covered liberal arts and divinity 26 27 Instruction began under the charge of a graduate from the University of St Andrews theologian Robert Rollock who first served as Regent and from 1586 as principal of the college 28 Initially Rollock was the sole instructor for first year students and he was expected to tutor the 1583 intake for all four years of their degree in every subject The first cohort finished their studies in 1587 and 47 students graduated or laureated with an M A degree 28 When King James VI visited Scotland in 1617 he held a disputation with the college s professors after which he decreed that it should henceforth be called the Colledge sic of King James 29 30 The university was known as both Tounis College and King James College until it gradually assumed the name of the University of Edinburgh during the 17th century 26 31 After the deposition of King James II and VII during the Glorious Revolution in 1688 the Parliament of Scotland passed legislation designed to root out Jacobite sympathisers amongst university staff 32 In Edinburgh this led to the dismissal of Principal Alexander Monro and several professors and regents after a government visitation in 1690 The university was subsequently led by Principal Gilbert Rule one of the inquisitors on the visitation committee 32 18th and 19th century Edit You are now in a place where the best courses upon earth are within your reach Such an opportunity you will never again have I would therefore strongly press on you to fix no other limit to your stay in Edinborough than your having got thro this whole course The omission of any one part of it will be an affliction amp loss to you as long as you live Thomas Jefferson writing to his son in law Thomas Mann Randolph Jr in 1786 33 The late 17th and early 18th centuries were marked by a power struggle between the university and town council which had ultimate authority over staff appointments curricula and examinations 34 After a series of challenges by the university the conflict culminated in the council seizing the college records in 1704 34 Relations were only gradually repaired over the next 150 years and suffered repeated setbacks The university expanded by founding a Faculty of Law in 1707 a Faculty of Arts in 1708 and a Faculty of Medicine in 1726 35 In 1762 Reverend Hugh Blair was appointed by King George III as the first Regius Professor of Rhetoric and Belles Lettres 36 This formalised literature as a subject and marks the foundation of the English Literature department making Edinburgh the oldest centre of literary education in Britain 37 During the 18th century the university was at the centre of the Scottish Enlightenment 38 The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment fell on especially fertile ground in Edinburgh because of the university s democratic and secular origin its organization as a single entity instead of loosely connected colleges which encouraged academic exchange its adoption of the more flexible Dutch model of professorship rather than having student cohorts taught by a single regent and the lack of land endowments as its source of income which meant its faculty operated in a more competitive environment 39 Between 1750 and 1800 this system produced and attracted key Enlightenment figures such as chemist Joseph Black economist Adam Smith historian William Robertson philosophers David Hume and Dugald Stewart physician William Cullen and early sociologist Adam Ferguson many of which taught concurrently 39 By the time the Royal Society of Edinburgh was founded in 1783 the university was regarded as one of the world s preeminent scientific institutions 40 and Voltaire called Edinburgh a hotbed of genius as a result 41 Benjamin Franklin believed that the university possessed a set of as truly great men Professors of the Several Branches of Knowledge as have ever appeared in any Age or Country 42 Thomas Jefferson felt that as far as science was concerned no place in the world can pretend to a competition with Edinburgh 43 The east facade of Old College facing onto South Bridge as built in 1827 A dome similar to Adam s original design was added in 1887 by Sir Robert Rowand Anderson Charter of Novodamus from King James VI of Scotland in 1582 In 1785 Henry Dundas introduced the South Bridge Act in the House of Commons one of the bill s goals was to use South Bridge as a location for the university which had existed in a hotchpotch of buildings since its establishment The site was used to construct Old College the university s first custom built building by architect William Henry Playfair to plans by Robert Adam 44 During the 18th century the university developed a particular forte in teaching anatomy and the developing science of surgery and it was considered one of the best medical schools in the English speaking world 45 Bodies to be used for dissection were brought to the university s Anatomy Theatre through a secret tunnel from a nearby house today s College Wynd student accommodation which was also used by murderers Burke and Hare to deliver the corpses of their victims during the 1820s 46 47 After 275 years of governance by the town council the Universities Scotland Act 1858 gave the university full authority over its own affairs 34 The act established governing bodies including a university court and a general council and redefined the roles of key officials like the chancellor rector and principal 48 Plaque commemorating the Edinburgh Seven at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Edinburgh Seven were the first group of matriculated undergraduate female students at any British university 49 Led by Sophia Jex Blake they began studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh in 1869 Although the university blocked them from graduating and qualifying as doctors their campaign gained national attention and won them many supporters including Charles Darwin 50 Their efforts put the rights of women to higher education on the national political agenda which eventually resulted in legislation allowing women to study at all Scottish universities in 1889 The university admitted women to graduate in medicine in 1893 51 52 In 2015 the Edinburgh Seven were commemorated with a plaque at the university 53 and in 2019 they were posthumously awarded with medical degrees 54 Buildings of the Old Medical School at Teviot Place photographed in the late 19th century Exterior of the McEwan Hall Towards the end of the 19th century Old College was becoming overcrowded After a bequest from Sir David Baxter the university started planning new buildings in earnest Sir Robert Rowand Anderson won the public architectural competition and was commissioned to design new premises for the Medical School in 1877 55 Initially the design incorporated a campanile and a hall for examination and graduation but this was seen as too ambitious The new Medical School opened in 1884 but the building was not completed until 1888 56 After funds were donated by politician and brewer William McEwan in 1894 a separate graduation building was constructed after all also designed by Anderson 57 The resulting McEwan Hall on Bristo Square was presented to the university in 1897 58 Teviot Row House drawn by architect Sydney Mitchell in 1888 The Students Representative Council SRC was founded in 1884 by student Robert Fitzroy Bell 59 60 In 1889 the SRC voted to establish Edinburgh University Union EUU to be housed in Teviot Row House on Bristo Square 61 Edinburgh University Sports Union EUSU was founded in 1866 and Edinburgh University Women s Union renamed the Chambers Street Union in 1964 in October 1905 62 The SRC EUU and Chambers Street Union merged to form Edinburgh University Students Association EUSA on 1 July 1973 63 64 20th century Edit During World War I the Science and Medicine buildings had suffered from a lack of repairs or upgrades which was exacerbated by an influx of students after the end of the war 65 In 1919 the university bought the land of West Mains Farm in the south of the city for the development of a new satellite campus specialising in the sciences 66 On 6 July 1920 King George V laid the foundation of the first new building now called the Joseph Black Building housing the Department of Chemistry 65 The campus was named King s Buildings in honour of George V Facade of New College facing onto The Mound in 1910 New College on The Mound was originally opened in 1846 as a Free Church of Scotland college later of the United Free Church of Scotland 67 Since the 1930s it has been the home of the School of Divinity Prior to the 1929 reunion of the Church of Scotland candidates for the ministry in the United Free Church studied at New College whilst candidates for the Church of Scotland studied in the university s Faculty of Divinity 68 In 1935 the two institutions merged with all operations moved to the New College site in Old Town 69 This freed up Old College for Edinburgh Law School 70 Plaque honouring the Polish School of Medicine at the old Medical School The Polish School of Medicine was established in 1941 as a wartime academic initiative While it was originally intended for students and doctors in the Polish Armed Forces in the West civilians were also allowed to take the courses which were taught in Polish and awarded Polish medical degrees 71 When the school was closed in 1949 336 students had matriculated of which 227 students graduated with the equivalent of an MBChB and a total of 19 doctors obtained a doctorate or MD 72 A bronze plaque commemorating the Polish School of Medicine is located in the Quadrangle of the old Medical School in Teviot Place 73 On 10 May 1951 the Royal Dick Veterinary College founded in 1823 by William Dick 74 was reconstituted as the Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies and officially became part of the university 75 It achieved full faculty status as Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in 1964 By the end of the 1950s there were around 7 000 students matriculating annually more than doubling the numbers from the turn of the century 76 The university addressed this partially through the redevelopment of George Square demolishing much of the area s historic houses and erecting modern buildings such as 40 George Square Appleton Tower and the Main Library 77 On 1 August 1998 the Moray House Institute of Education founded in 1848 merged with the University of Edinburgh becoming its Faculty of Education Following the internal restructuring of the university in 2002 Moray House became known as the Moray House School of Education 78 It was renamed the Moray House School of Education and Sport in August 2019 79 21st century Edit In the 1990s it became apparent that the old Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh buildings in Lauriston Place were no longer adequate for a modern teaching hospital Donald Dewar the Scottish Secretary at the time authorized a joint project between private finance local authorities and the university to create a modern hospital and medical campus in the Little France area of Edinburgh 80 The new campus was named the BioQuarter The Chancellor s Building was opened on 12 August 2002 by Prince Philip housing the new Edinburgh Medical School alongside the new Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh 81 In 2007 the campus saw the addition of the Euan MacDonald Centre as a research centre for motor neuron diseases which was part funded by Scottish entrepreneur Euan MacDonald and his father Donald 82 83 In August 2010 author J K Rowling provided 10 million in funding to create the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic 84 which was officially opened in October 2013 85 The Centre for Regenerative Medicine CRM is a stem cell research centre dedicated to the development of regenerative treatments which was opened in 2012 86 CRM is also home to applied scientists working with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service SNBTS and Roslin Cells 87 Atrium of the Informatics Forum In December 2002 the Edinburgh Cowgate Fire destroyed a number of university buildings including some 3 000 m2 of the School of Informatics at 80 South Bridge 88 89 This was replaced with the Informatics Forum on Bristo Square completed in July 2008 Also in 2002 the Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre ECRC was opened on the Western General Hospital site 90 In 2007 the MRC Human Genetics Unit formed a partnership with the Centre for Genomic amp Experimental Medicine and the ECRC to create the Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine renamed the Institute of Genetics and Cancer in 2021 on the same site 91 In April 2008 the Roslin Institute an animal sciences research centre known for cloning Dolly the sheep became part of the Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies 92 In 2011 the school moved into a new 60 million building on the Easter Bush campus which now houses research and teaching facilities and a hospital for small and farm animals 93 94 Edinburgh College of Art Edinburgh College of Art founded in 1760 formally merged with the university s School of Arts Culture and Environment on 1 August 2011 95 96 In 2014 the Zhejiang University University of Edinburgh Institute ZJE was founded as an international joint institute offering degrees in biomedical sciences taught in English 97 The campus located in Haining Zhejiang Province China was established on 15 March 2016 98 The university began hosting a Wikimedian in Residence in 2016 99 The residency was made into a full time position in 2019 with the Wikimedian involved in teaching and learning activities within the scope of the University of Edinburgh WikiProject 100 In 2018 the University of Edinburgh was a signatory to the 1 3 billion Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal in partnership with the UK and Scottish governments six local authorities and all universities and colleges in the region 101 The university committed to delivering a range of economic benefits to the region through the Data Driven Innovation initiative 102 In conjunction with Heriot Watt University the deal created five innovation hubs the Bayes Centre Edinburgh Futures Institute EFI Usher Institute Easter Bush and one further hub based at Heriot Watt the National Robotarium The deal also included creation of the Edinburgh International Data Facility which performs high speed data processing in a secure environment 103 104 In September 2020 the university completed work on the Richard Verney Health Centre at its central area campus on Bristo Square The facility houses a health centre and pharmacy and the university s disability and counselling services 105 The university s largest current expansion project is the conversion of some of the historic Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh buildings in Lauriston Place which had been vacated in 2003 and partially developed into the Quartermile The 120 million renovations and extension will provide space for the Edinburgh Futures Institute an interdisciplinary hub linking arts humanities and social sciences with other disciplines in the research and teaching of complex futures 106 107 Historical links Edit Edinburgh has a number of historical links to other universities chiefly through its influential Medical School and its graduates who established and developed institutions elsewhere in the world College of William amp Mary the second oldest college in the US was founded in 1693 by Edinburgh graduate James Blair who served as the college s founding president for fifty years 108 Columbia University had its Medical School founded by Samuel Bard an Edinburgh medical graduate Dalhousie University Edinburgh alumnus George Ramsay the 22nd Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia wanted to establish a non denominational college in Halifax open to all 109 The school was modelled after the University of Edinburgh which students could attend regardless of religion or nationality 110 Dartmouth College had its School of Medicine founded by Nathan Smith an alumnus of Edinburgh Medical School 111 Harvard University had its Medical School founded by three surgeons one of whom was Benjamin Waterhouse an alumnus of Edinburgh Medical School 112 McGill University had its Faculty of Medicine founded by four physicians which included Edinburgh alumni Andrew Fernando Holmes and John Stephenson 113 114 University of Pennsylvania had its School of Medicine founded by Edinburgh graduate John Morgan who modelled it after Edinburgh Medical School 115 116 Princeton University had its academic syllabus and structure reformed along the lines of the University of Edinburgh and other Scottish universities by its sixth president John Witherspoon an Edinburgh theology graduate 117 118 University of Sydney founded in 1850 by Sir Charles Nicholson a graduate of Edinburgh Medical School Yale University had its School of Medicine co founded by Nathan Smith an alumnus of Edinburgh Medical School Campuses and buildings Edit Central Area King s Buildings BioQuarter Western General Holyrood Pollock Halls Easter Bushclass notpageimage Main locations of the University of Edinburgh Easter Bush is located 7 miles south of the city The university has five main sites in Edinburgh 119 Central Area King s Buildings BioQuarter Easter Bush Western GeneralThe university is responsible for several significant historic and modern buildings across the city including St Cecilia s Hall Scotland s oldest purpose built concert hall and the second oldest in use in the British Isles 120 Teviot Row House the oldest purpose built students union building in the world 61 and the restored 17th century Mylne s Court student residence at the head of the Royal Mile 15 Central Area Edit The Main Library viewed from The Meadows Old College Quadrangle New College The Central Area is spread around numerous squares and streets in Edinburgh s Southside with some buildings in Old Town It is the university s oldest area occupied primarily by the College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences and the School of Informatics The highest concentration of university buildings is around George Square which includes 40 George Square formerly David Hume Tower Appleton Tower Main Library and Gordon Aikman Lecture Theatre the area s largest lecture hall Around nearby Bristo Square lie the Dugald Stewart Building Informatics Forum McEwan Hall Potterrow Student Centre Teviot Row House and old Medical School which still houses pre clinical medical courses and biomedical sciences 47 The Pleasance one of Edinburgh University Students Association s main buildings is located nearby as is Edinburgh College of Art in Lauriston North of George Square lies the university s Old College housing Edinburgh Law School New College on The Mound housing the School of Divinity and St Cecilia s Hall Some of these buildings are used to host events during the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe every summer 121 Pollock Halls Edit Main article Pollock Halls of Residence St Leonard s Hall Pollock Halls adjoining Holyrood Park to the east is the university s largest residence hall for undergraduate students in their first year The complex houses over 2 000 students during term time and consists of ten named buildings with communal green spaces between them 122 The two original buildings St Leonard s Hall and Salisbury Green were built in the 19th century while the majority of Pollock Halls dates from the 1960s and early 2000s Two of the older houses in Pollock Halls were demolished in 2002 and a new building Chancellor s Court was built in their place and opened in 2003 Self catered flats elsewhere account for the majority of university provided accommodation The area also includes the John McIntyre Conference Centre opened in 2009 which is the university s premier conference space 123 Holyrood Edit See also Moray House School of Education The Holyrood campus just off the Royal Mile used to be the site for Moray House Institute for Education until it merged with the university on 1 August 1998 78 The university has since extended this campus 124 The buildings include redeveloped and extended Sports Science Physical Education and Leisure Management facilities at St Leonard s Land linked to the Sports Institute in the Pleasance 125 The 80 million O Shea Hall at Holyrood was named after the former principal of the university Sir Timothy O Shea and was opened by Princess Anne in 2017 providing a living and social environment for postgraduate students 126 The Outreach Centre Institute for Academic Development University Services Group and Edinburgh Centre for Professional Legal Studies are also located at Holyrood 127 128 129 King s Buildings Edit Main article King s Buildings Royal Observatory Edinburgh The King s Buildings campus is located in the south of the city Most of the Science and Engineering College s research and teaching activities take place at the campus which occupies a 35 hectare site It includes the Alexander Graham Bell Building for mobile phones and digital communications systems James Clerk Maxwell Building the administrative and teaching centre of the School of Physics and Astronomy and School of Mathematics Joseph Black Building home to the School of Chemistry Royal Observatory Swann Building the Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology Waddington Building the Centre for Systems Biology at Edinburgh William Rankine Building School of Engineering s Institute for Infrastructure and Environment and others 130 Until 2012 the KB campus was served by three libraries Darwin Library James Clerk Maxwell Library and Robertson Engineering and Science Library These were replaced by the Noreen and Kenneth Murray Library opened for the academic year 2012 13 131 132 The campus also hosts the National e Science Centre NeSC Scotland s Rural College SRUC Scottish Institute for Enterprise SIE Scottish Microelectronics Centre SMC and Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre SUERC BioQuarter Edit Main article Edinburgh BioQuarter Edinburgh BioQuarter The BioQuarter campus based in the Little France area is home to the majority of medical facilities of the university alongside the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh The campus houses the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic Centre for Regenerative Medicine Chancellor s Building Euan MacDonald Centre and Queen s Medical Research Institute which opened in 2005 81 The Chancellor s Building has two large lecture theatres and a medical library connected to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh by a series of corridors Easter Bush Edit The Easter Bush campus located seven miles south of the city houses the Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education Roslin Institute Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies and Veterinary Oncology and Imaging Centre 93 The Roslin Institute is an animal sciences research institute which is sponsored by BBSRC 133 The Institute won international fame in 1996 when its researchers Sir Ian Wilmut Keith Campbell and their colleagues created Dolly the sheep the first mammal to be cloned from an adult cell 134 135 A year later Polly and Molly were cloned both sheep contained a human gene 136 Western General Edit The Western General campus in proximity to the Western General Hospital contains the Biomedical Research Facility Edinburgh Clinical Research Facility and Institute of Genetics and Cancer formerly the Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine Modern architecture at the University of Edinburgh Appleton Tower Business School Centre for Regenerative Medicine Erskine Williamson Building King s Buildings Informatics Forum School of Informatics Roslin Institute Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh School of Medicine Royal Dick School of Veterinary StudiesOrganisation and administration EditGovernance Edit Further information Ancient university governance in Scotland In common with the other ancient universities of Scotland and in contrast to nearly all other pre 1992 universities which are established by royal charters the University of Edinburgh is constituted by the Universities Scotland Acts 1858 to 1966 These acts provide for three major bodies in the governance of the university the University Court the General Council and the Senatus Academicus 48 University Court Edit The University Court is the university s governing body and the legal person of the university chaired by the rector and consisting of the principal Lord Provost of Edinburgh and of Assessors appointed by the rector chancellor Edinburgh Town Council General Council and Senatus Academicus By the Universities Scotland Act 1889 it is a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal All property belonging to the university at the passing of the Act was vested in the Court 137 The present powers of the Court are further defined in the Universities Scotland Act 1966 including the administration and management of the university s revenue and property the regulation of staff salaries and the establishment and composition of committees of its own members or others General Council Edit The General Council consists of graduates academic staff current and former University Court members It was established to ensure that graduates have a continuing voice in the management of the university The Council is required to meet twice per year to consider matters affecting the wellbeing and prosperity of the university The Universities Scotland Act 1966 gave the Council the power to consider draft ordinances and resolutions to be presented with an annual report of the work and activities of the university and to receive an audited financial statement 138 The Council elects the chancellor of the university and three Assessors on the University Court Senatus Academicus Edit The Senatus Academicus is the university s supreme academic body chaired by the principal and consisting of the professors heads of departments and a number of readers lecturers and other teaching and research staff 139 The core function of the Senatus is to regulate and supervise the teaching and discipline of the university and to promote research The Senatus elects four Assessors on the University Court The Senatus meets three times per year hosting a presentation and discussion session which is open to all members of staff at each meeting University officials Edit Main articles Chancellor of the University of Edinburgh Rector of the University of Edinburgh and List of Principals of the University of Edinburgh Princess Anne current Chancellor Debora Kayembe current Lord Rector Sir Peter Mathieson current Principal and Vice Chancellor The university s three most significant officials are its chancellor rector and principal whose rights and responsibilities are largely derived from the Universities Scotland Act 1858 The office of chancellor serves as the titular head and highest office of the university Their duties include conferring degrees and enhancing the profile and reputation of the university on national and global levels 140 The chancellor is elected by the university s General Council and a person generally remains in the office for life Previous chancellors include former prime minister Arthur Balfour and novelist Sir J M Barrie 140 Princess Anne has held the position since March 2011 succeeding Prince Philip 18 She is also Patron of the university s Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies The office of rector is elected every three years by the staff and matriculated students The primary role of the rector is to preside at the University Court 141 The rector also chairs meetings of the General Council in absence of the chancellor They work closely with students and Edinburgh University Students Association Previous rectors include microbiologist Sir Alexander Fleming and former Prime Ministers Sir Winston Churchill and David Lloyd George The current rector is human rights lawyer Debora Kayembe who has held the position since March 2021 141 142 The principal is responsible for the overall operation of the university in a chief executive role 143 The principal is formally nominated by the Curators of Patronage and appointed by the University Court They are the President of the Senatus Academicus and a member of the University Court ex officio 143 The principal is also automatically appointed vice chancellor in which role they confer degrees on behalf of the chancellor Previous principals include physicist Sir Edward Appleton and religious philosopher Stewart Sutherland The current principal is nephrologist Sir Peter Mathieson who has held the position since February 2018 144 Colleges and schools Edit In 2002 the university was reorganised from its nine faculties into three Colleges 145 While technically not a collegiate university it comprises the Colleges of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences CAHSS Science amp Engineering CSE and Medicine amp Vet Medicine CMVM Within these colleges are Schools which either represent one academic discipline such as Informatics or assemble adjacent academic disciplines such as the School of History Classics and Archaeology While bound by College level policies individual Schools can differ in their organisation and governance As of 2021 the university has 21 schools in total 146 Arts Humanities and Social Sciences Edit Department of Psychology building at 7 George Square Elsie Inglis Quad at the Old Medical School currently hosting the School of History Classics and Archaeology The College took on its current name of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences in 2016 after absorbing the Edinburgh College of Art in 2011 147 CAHSS offers more than 280 undergraduate degree programmes 230 taught postgraduate programmes and 200 research postgraduate programmes 148 149 Twenty subjects offered by the college were ranked within the top 10 nationally in the 2022 Complete University Guide 150 It includes the oldest English Literature department in Britain 37 which was ranked 7th globally in the 2021 QS Rankings by Subject in English Language amp Literature 151 The college hosts Scotland s ESRC Doctoral Training Centre DTC the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science The college is the largest of the three colleges by enrolment with 26 130 students and 3 089 academic staff 152 5 Business School Edinburgh College of Art Moray House School of Education and Sport School of Divinity School of Economics School of Health in Social Science School of History Classics and Archaeology School of Law School of Literatures Languages and Cultures School of Philosophy Psychology and Language Sciences School of Social and Political Science Centre for Open Learning Edinburgh Futures Institute Medicine and Veterinary Medicine Edit Main article University of Edinburgh College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine Members of the medical faculty at Edinburgh in the first half of the 19th century Seated L R J Y Simpson J Miller J H Balfour and J H Bennett Standing L R R Jameson W Alison and T S Traill Edinburgh Medical School was widely considered the best medical school in the English speaking world throughout the 18th century and the first half of the 19th century and contributed significantly to the university s international reputation 153 154 Graduates of the medical school have founded medical schools and universities all over the world including 5 out of the 7 Ivy League medical schools Harvard Yale Columbia Pennsylvania and Dartmouth Vermont McGill Sydney Montreal the Royal Postgraduate Medical School now part of Imperial College London the Cape Town Birkbeck Middlesex Hospital and the London School of Medicine for Women both now part of UCL In the 21st century the reputation of the medical school has excelled the school is associated with 13 Nobel Prize recipients 7 recipients of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and 6 recipients of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 155 The medical school in 2022 was ranked 1st in the UK by the Guardian University Guide 156 In 2021 it was ranked third in the UK by The Times University Guide 157 and the Complete University Guide It also ranked 21st in the world by both the Times Higher Education World University Rankings and the QS World University Rankings in the same year 158 The Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies is a world leader in veterinary education research and practice The eight original faculties formed four Faculty Groups in August 1992 Medicine and Veterinary Medicine became one of these and in 2002 became the smallest of the three colleges with 7 740 students and 1 896 academic staff 152 5 The university s teaching hospitals include the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Western General Hospital St John s Hospital Livingston Roodlands Hospital and Royal Hospital for Children and Young People 159 160 161 Science and Engineering Edit Main article University of Edinburgh College of Science and Engineering Old Surgical Hospital in Drummond Street once part of the Royal Infirmary today houses the university s Institute of Geography In the 16th century science was taught as natural philosophy in the university The 17th century saw the institution of the University Chairs of Mathematics and Botany followed the next century by Chairs of Natural History Astronomy Chemistry and Agriculture It was Edinburgh s professors who took a leading part in the formation of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1783 Joseph Black Professor of Medicine and Chemistry at the time founded the world s first Chemical Society in 1785 162 The first named degrees of Bachelor and Doctor of Science was instituted in 1864 and a separate Faculty of Science was created in 1893 after three centuries of scientific advances at Edinburgh 162 The Regius Chair in Engineering was established in 1868 and the Regius Chair in Geology in 1871 In 1991 the Faculty of Science was renamed the Faculty of Science and Engineering and in 2002 it became the College of Science and Engineering The college has 11 745 students and 2 937 academic staff 152 5 School of Biological Sciences School of Chemistry School of Engineering School of GeoSciences School of Informatics School of Mathematics School of Physics and Astronomy Sub units centres and institutes Edit Edinburgh Futures Institute taking shape on the former site of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Some subunits centres and institutes within the university are listed as follows 163 Artificial Intelligence Applications Institute AIAI Bayes Centre Centre for the History of the Book CHB Centre for Regenerative Medicine CRM Centre for the Study of World Christianity CSWC Centre for Theology and Public Issues CTPI Digital Curation Centre DCC Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre ECRC Edinburgh Dental Institute EDI Edinburgh Futures Institute EFI Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre EPCC Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture ESALA Euan MacDonald Centre Higgs Centre for Theoretical Physics Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities IASH International Centre for Mathematical Sciences ICMS Institute for the Study of Science Technology and Innovation ISSTI Koestler Parapsychology Unit Laboratory for Foundations of Computer Science LFCS MRC Human Genetics Unit MRC HGU MRC Centre for Inflammation Research Nursing Studies Roslin Institute Salvesen Mindroom Research Centre Scottish Studies UK Centre for Astrobiology UKCA Usher InstituteAcademic profile EditThe university is a member of the Russell Group of research led British universities and the Sutton 13 group of top ranked universities in the UK 164 It is the only British university to be a member of both the Coimbra Group and the League of European Research Universities and it is a founding member of Una Europa and Universitas 21 both international associations of research intensive universities 165 The university maintains historically strong ties with the neighbouring Heriot Watt University for teaching and research Edinburgh also offers a wide range of free online MOOC courses on three global platforms Coursera Edx and FutureLearn 166 167 Admissions Edit Undergraduate admission statistics 16 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016Applications 75 438 68 954 62 220 60 983 58 411 59 876 59 058Offers 25 210 32 432 31 510 27 878 25 532 25 041 23 151Offer Rate 33 0 47 0 50 6 45 7 43 7 41 8 39 2Enrolls 6 111 8 083 7 344 6 346 6 221 6 434 5 900Yield 24 2 24 9 23 3 22 8 24 4 25 7 25 5Applicant Enrolled Ratio 12 34 8 53 8 47 9 61 9 39 9 31 10 01Average Entry Tariff 17 c n a n a 190 186 187 189 180Undergraduate Student Body Composition 2022 Domicile and Ethnicity 168 TotalBritish White 58 58 British Ethnic Minorities d 9 9 International EU 8 8 International Non EU 25 25 Widening Participation 169 170 Independent School 36 36 Female 61 61 Low Participation Areas e 9 9 In 2020 Edinburgh had the seventh highest average entry standards amongst universities in the UK with new undergraduates averaging 190 UCAS points equivalent to just above AAAaa in A level grades 17 It gave offers of admission to 52 3 of its 18 year old applicants in 2019 the fifth lowest amongst the Russell Group 171 In 2022 excluding courses within Edinburgh College of Art the most competitive courses for Scottish applicants were Oral Health Science 9 Business 11 Philosophy amp Psychology 14 Social Work 15 and International Business 15 172 For students from the rest of the UK the most competitive courses were Nursing 5 Medicine 6 Veterinary Medicine 6 Psychology 8 and Politics Philosophy and Economics 10 173 For international students the most competitive courses were Medicine 5 Nursing 7 Business 11 Politics Philosophy and Economics 12 and Sociology 13 174 For the academic year 2019 20 36 8 of Edinburgh s new undergraduates were privately educated the second highest proportion among mainstream British universities behind only Oxford 175 As of August 2021 it has a higher proportion of female than male students with a male to female ratio of 38 62 in the undergraduate population and the undergraduate student body is composed of 30 Scottish students 32 from the rest of the UK 10 from the EU and 28 from outside the EU 5 Graduation Edit See also Academic dress of the University of Edinburgh Edinburgh graduation ceremony in the McEwan Hall At graduation ceremonies graduates are being capped with the Geneva bonnet which involves the university s principal tapping them on the head with the cap while they receive their graduation certificate 176 The velvet and silk hat has been used for over 150 years and legend says that it was originally made from cloth taken from the breeches of 16th century scholars John Knox or George Buchanan 177 However when the hat was last restored in the early 2000s a label dated 1849 was discovered bearing the name of Edinburgh tailor Henry Banks although some doubt remains whether he manufactured or restored the hat 176 178 In 2006 a university emblem that had been taken into space by astronaut and Edinburgh graduate Piers Sellers was incorporated into the Geneva bonnet 179 Library system Edit Main article Edinburgh University Library Playfair Library Hall in Old College Pre dating the university by three years Edinburgh University Library was founded in 1580 through the donation of a large collection by Clement Litill and today is the largest academic library collection in Scotland 180 181 The Brutalist style eight storey Main Library building in George Square was designed by Sir Basil Spence At the time of its completion in 1967 it was the largest building of its type in the UK and today is a category A listed building 182 The library system also includes many specialised libraries at the college and school level 183 Exchange programmes Edit The former principal Sir Timothy O Shea signed an agreement with Peking University in 2012 The university offers students the opportunity to study in Europe and beyond via the European Union s Erasmus programme f and a variety of international exchange agreements with around 300 partners institutions in nearly 40 countries worldwide 185 University wide exchanges are open to almost any student whose degree permits a year abroad and who can find a suitable course combination The list of partner institutions is shown as follows part of 186 Asia Pacific Fudan University University of Hong Kong University of Melbourne Seoul National University University of Sydney National University of Singapore Nanyang Technological University Europe University of Amsterdam University of Copenhagen University of Helsinki Lund University Sciences Po University College Dublin Uppsala University Latin America National Autonomous University of Mexico Pontifical Catholic University of Chile University of Sao Paulo Northern America Boston College Barnard College of Columbia University University of California except for Merced and San Francisco 187 Caltech University of Chicago Cornell University Georgetown University McGill University University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University of Pennsylvania University of Texas at Austin University of Toronto University of Virginia Washington University in St LouisSubject specific exchanges are open to students studying in particular schools or subject areas including exchange programmes with Carnegie Mellon University Emory University EPFL ETH Zurich ESSEC Business School ENS Paris HEC Paris Humboldt University of Berlin Karolinska Institute Kyoto University LMU Munich University of Michigan Peking University Rhode Island School of Design Sorbonne University TU Munchen Waseda University Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and others 186 Rankings and reputation Edit RankingsNational rankingsComplete 2023 188 12Guardian 2023 189 12Times Sunday Times 2023 190 10Global rankingsTHE 2023 191 29QS 2023 192 15ARWU 2022 193 35In the 2021 Research Excellence Framework REF which evaluated work produced between 2014 and 2021 Edinburgh ranked 4th by research power and 15th by GPA amongst British universities 194 The university fell four places in GPA when compared to the 2014 REF but retained its place in research power 195 90 per cent of the university s research activity was judged to be world leading 4 or internationally excellent 3 and five departments Computer Science Informatics Sociology Anthropology and Development Studies were ranked as the best in the UK 196 In the 2015 THE Global Employability University Ranking Edinburgh ranked 23rd in the world and 4th in the UK for graduate employability as voted by international recruiters 197 A 2015 government report found that Edinburgh was one of only two Scottish universities along with St Andrews that some London based elite recruitment firms considered applicants from especially in the field of financial services and investment banking 198 When The New York Times ranked universities based on the employability of graduates as evaluated by recruiters from top companies in 20 countries in 2012 Edinburgh was placed at 42nd in the world and 7th in Britain 199 Edinburgh was ranked 24th in the world and 5th in the UK by the 2021 Aggregate Ranking of Top Universities a league table based on the three major world university rankings ARWU QS and THE 200 In the 2022 U S News amp World Report Edinburgh ranked 32nd globally and 5th nationally 201 The 2021 World Reputation Rankings placed Edinburgh at 30th worldwide and 6th nationwide 202 In 2021 it ranked 63rd amongst the universities around the world by the SCImago Institutions Rankings 203 The noticeable disparity between Edinburgh s research capacity endowment and international status on the one hand and its ranking in national league tables on the other is largely due to the impact of measures of student satisfaction 204 Edinburgh was ranked last in the UK for teaching quality in the 2012 National Student Survey 205 with the 2015 Good University Guide stating that this stemmed from questions to do with the promptness usefulness and extent of academic feedback and that the university still has a long way to go to turn around a poor position 206 Edinburgh improved only marginally over the next years with the 2021 Good University Guide still ranking it in the bottom 10 domestically in both teaching quality and student experience 207 Edinburgh was ranked 122nd out of 128 universities for student satisfaction in the 2022 Complete University Guide although it was ranked 12th overall 208 The 2022 Guardian University Guide ranked Edinburgh 12th overall but 101st out of 119 universities in course satisfaction and lowest among all universities in satisfaction with feedback 189 In the 2022 Complete University Guide 32 out of the 49 subjects offered by Edinburgh were ranked within the top 10 in the UK with Asian Studies 4th Chemical Engineering 4th Education 2nd Geology 5th Linguistics 5th Mechanical Engineering 5th Medicine 5th Music 5th Nursing 1st Physics amp Astronomy 5th Social Policy 5th Theology amp Religious Studies 4th and Veterinary Medicine 2nd within the top 5 208 The 2021 THE World University Rankings by Subject ranked Edinburgh 10th worldwide in Arts and Humanities 15th in Law 16th in Psychology 21st in Clinical Pre clinical amp Health 22nd in Computer Science 28th in Education 28th in Life Science 43rd in Business amp Economics 44th in Social Sciences 45th in Physical Sciences and 86th in Engineering amp Technology 209 The 2022 QS World University Rankings by Subject placed Edinburgh at 9th globally in Arts amp Humanities 24th in Life Sciences amp Medicine 40th in Natural Sciences 53rd in Social Sciences amp Management and 66th in Engineering amp Technology 210 According to CSRankings computer science at Edinburgh was ranked 1st in the UK and 36th globally and Edinburgh was the best in natural language processing NLP in the world 211 Student life EditStudents Association Edit Main article Edinburgh University Students Association The Pleasance one of EUSA s main buildings is a theatre bar sports and recreation complex Edinburgh University Students Association EUSA consists of the students union and the students representative council EUSA s buildings include Teviot Row House The Pleasance Potterrow Student Centre Kings Buildings House as well as shops cafes and refectories across the various campuses Teviot Row House is considered the oldest purpose built student union building in the world 61 212 Most of these buildings are operated as Edinburgh Festival Fringe venues during August EUSA represents students to the university and the wider world and is responsible for over 250 student societies at the university The association has five sabbatical office bearers a president and four vice presidents EUSA is affiliated with the National Union of Students NUS Performing arts Edit Amateur dramatic societies benefit from Edinburgh being an important cultural hub for comedy amateur and fringe theatre throughout the UK most prominently through the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 213 Edinburgh University Music Society performing Mahler in Greyfriars Kirk The Edinburgh University Music Society EUMS is a student run musical organisation which is Scotland s oldest student s musical society it can be traced back to a concert in February 1867 214 It performs three concert series throughout the year whilst also undertaking a programme of charity events and education projects 215 The student run Bedlam Theatre home to the Edinburgh University Theatre Company The Edinburgh University Theatre Company EUTC founded in 1890 as the Edinburgh University Drama Society is known for running Bedlam Theatre the oldest student run theatre in Britain and venue for the Fringe 216 217 EUTC also funds acclaimed improvisational comedy troupe The Improverts during term time and the Fringe 218 219 Alumni include Sir Michael Boyd Ian Charleson Kevin McKidd and Greg Wise The Edinburgh Studio Opera formerly Edinburgh University Opera Club is a student opera company in Edinburgh It performs at least one fully staged opera each year 220 The Edinburgh University Savoy Opera Group EUSOG is an opera and musical theatre company founded by students in 1961 to promote and perform the comic operettas of Sir William Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan collectively known as Savoy Operas after the theatre in which they were originally staged 221 The Edinburgh University Footlights are a musical theatre company founded in 1989 and produce two large scale shows a year 222 Theatre Parodok founded in 2004 is a student theatre company that aims to produce shows that are experimental without being exclusive They stage one large show each semester and one for the festival 223 Media Edit The Student is a fortnightly student newspaper Founded in 1887 by writer Robert Louis Stevenson it is the oldest student newspaper in the United Kingdom 224 Former writers of the newspaper include politicians Gordon Brown Robin Cook and Lord Steel of Aikwood 225 226 It has been independent of the university since 1992 but was forced to temporarily fold in 2002 due to increasing debts The newspaper won a number of student newspaper awards in the years following its relaunch 224 The Journal was an independent publication established in 2007 by three students and former writers for The Student It was also distributed to other higher education institutions in the city such as Heriot Watt University Edinburgh Napier University and Telford College It was the largest such publication in Scotland with a print run of 10 000 copies Despite winning a number of awards for its journalism the magazine folded in 2015 due to financial difficulties 227 FreshAir launched on 3 October 1992 is an alternative music student radio station The station is one of the oldest surviving student radio stations in the UK and won the Student Radio Station of the Year award at the annual Student Radio Awards in 2004 228 In September 2015 the Edinburgh University Student Television EUTV became the newest addition to the student media scene at the university producing a regular magazine style programme documentaries and other special events 229 Sport Edit Main article Edinburgh University Sports Union Edinburgh University Mountaineering Club at the cairn on Ciste Dhubh 1964 Student sport at Edinburgh consists of clubs covering the more traditional rugby football rowing and judo to the more unconventional korfball gliding and mountaineering In 2021 the university had over 65 sports clubs run by Edinburgh University Sports Union EUSU 230 The Scottish Varsity known as the world s oldest varsity match is a rugby match played annually against the University of St Andrews dating back over 150 years 231 Discontinued in the 1950s the match was resurrected in 2011 and was staged in London at the home of London Scottish RFC It is played at the beginning of the academic year and since 2015 has been staged at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh 232 The Scottish Boat Race is an annual rowing race between the Glasgow University Boat Club and the Edinburgh University Boat Club rowed between competing eights on the River Clyde in Glasgow Scotland Started in 1877 it is believed to be the third oldest university boat race in the world predated by the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race and the Harvard Yale Regatta 233 Edinburgh athletes have repeatedly been successful at the Olympic Games Sprinter Eric Liddell won gold and bronze at the 1924 Summer Olympics At the 1948 Summer Olympics alumnus Jackie Robinson won a gold medal with the American Basketball team Trap shooter Bob Braithwaite secured a gold medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics Cyclist Sir Chris Hoy won six gold and one silver medal between 2000 and 2012 Rower Dame Katherine Grainger won a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics and four further silver medals between 2000 and 2016 Edinburgh was the most successful UK university at the 2012 Games with two gold medals from Hoy and one from Grainger 234 Student activism Edit There are a number of campaigning societies at the university The largest of these include the environment and poverty campaigning group People amp Planet and Amnesty International Society International development organisations include Edinburgh Global Partnerships which was established as a student led charity in 1990 235 There is also a significant left wing presence on campus 236 including an anti austerity group Edinburgh University Anarchist Society Edinburgh University Socialist Society Edinburgh Young Greens Feminist Society Marxist Society and Students for Justice in Palestine 237 Protests demonstrations and occupations are regular occurrences at the university 238 239 240 The activist group People amp Planet took over Charles Stewart House in 2015 and again in 2016 in protest over the university s investment in companies active in arms manufacturing or fossil fuel extraction 241 242 In May 2015 a security guard was charged in relation to the occupations 243 Student co operatives Edit There are three student run co operatives on campus Edinburgh Student Housing Co operative providing affordable housing for 106 students 244 The Hearty Squirrel Food Cooperative providing local organic and affordable food to students and staff 245 and The SHRUB Coop a swap and re use hub aimed at reducing waste and promoting sustainability 246 The co operatives form part of the Students for Cooperation network 247 Notable people EditMain articles List of University of Edinburgh people and List of University of Edinburgh medical people The university is associated with some of the most significant intellectual and scientific contributions in human history which include the foundation of Antiseptic surgery Joseph Lister 248 Bayesian statistics Thomas Bayes 249 Economics Adam Smith 250 Electromagnetism James Clerk Maxwell 251 Evolution Charles Darwin 252 253 Knot theory Peter Guthrie Tait 254 mordern Geology James Hutton 255 Nephrology Richard Bright 256 Endocrinology Edward Albert Sharpey Schafer 257 Hematology William Hewson 258 Dermatology Robert Willan 259 Epigenetics C H Waddington 260 Gestalt psychology Kurt Koffka Thermodynamics William Rankine Colloid chemistry Thomas Graham 261 and Wave theory Thomas Young the discovery of Brownian motion Robert Brown 262 Magnesium carbon dioxide latent heat and specific heat Joseph Black 263 264 chloroform anaesthesia Sir James Young Simpson 265 Hepatitis B vaccine Sir Kenneth Murray 266 Higgs mechanism Sir Tom Kibble 267 268 structure of DNA Sir John Randall 269 HPV vaccine Ian Frazer Iridium and Osmium Smithson Tennant 270 Nitrogen Daniel Rutherford 271 Strontium Thomas Charles Hope 272 and SARS coronavirus Zhong Nanshan 273 and the invention of the Stirling engine Robert Stirling 274 Cavity magnetron Sir John Randall 275 ATM John Shepherd Barron 276 refrigerator William Cullen 277 diving chamber John Scott Haldane 278 reflecting telescope James Gregory 279 hypodermic syringe Alexander Wood 280 281 kaleidoscope Sir David Brewster 282 pneumatic tyre John Boyd Dunlop 283 telephone Alexander Graham Bell 284 telpherage Fleeming Jenkin and vacuum flask Sir James Dewar 285 Other notable alumni and academic staff of the university have included signatories to the US Declaration of Independence Benjamin Rush 286 James Wilson 287 and John Witherspoon 288 actors Ian Charleson 289 Robbie Coltrane and Kevin McKidd architects Robert Adam 290 William Thornton William Henry Playfair 291 Sir Basil Spence and Sir Nicholas Grimshaw astronaut Piers Sellers 292 biologists Sir Adrian Bird 293 Sir Richard Owen 294 and Sir Ian Wilmut 295 business executives Tony Hayward Alan Jope Lars Rasmussen and Susie Wolff composer Max Richter economists Kenneth E Boulding 296 and Thomas Chalmers historians Thomas Carlyle 297 and Neil MacGregor journalists Laura Kuenssberg and Peter Pomerantsev judges Lord Reed 298 and Lord Hodge 299 mathematicians Sir W V D Hodge 300 Colin Maclaurin 301 and Sir E T Whittaker 302 philosophers Benjamin Constant Adam Ferguson 303 Ernest Gellner and David Hume 304 physicians Thomas Addison 305 William Cullen 306 Valentin Fuster Thomas Hodgkin 307 and James Lind 308 pilot Eric Brown 309 surgeons James Barry 310 Joseph Bell 311 Robert Liston 312 and B K Misra 313 sociologists Sir Patrick Geddes 314 and David Bloor 315 writers Sir J M Barrie 316 Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 317 318 John Fowles Oliver Goldsmith J K Rowling g 319 Sir Walter Scott 320 and Robert Louis Stevenson 321 Chancellors of the Exchequer John Anderson 322 and Lord Henry Petty 323 former Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand Sir Michael Cullen current Vice President of Syria Najah al Attar former Director General of MI5 Stella Rimington First Lords of the Admiralty Lord Melville Robert Dundas 2nd Viscount Melville Lord Minto and Lord Selkirk Foreign Secretaries Robin Cook 324 and Sir Malcolm Rifkind 325 former acting First Minister of Scotland Jim Wallace and Olympic gold medallists Bob Braithwaite Katherine Grainger Sir Chris Hoy and Eric Liddell 326 Notable Edinburgh alumni before the 20th century Robert Adam neoclassical architect J M Barrie novelist and playwright James Barry surgeon Thomas Bayes statistician Joseph Black physicist and chemist Richard Bright physician father of nephrology Robert Brown botanist discovered Brownian motion Thomas Carlyle essayist historian and philosopher Thomas Chalmers political economist Charles Darwin naturalist and biologist Adam Ferguson philosopher and historian David Hume philosopher James Hutton geologist father of modern geology James Clerk Maxwell mathematician and physicist Richard Owen biologist coined the term dinosaur Macquorn Rankine engineer founding contributor to thermodynamics Benjamin Rush signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence Walter Scott novelist and poet James Young Simpson physician Robert Louis Stevenson novelist and poet Dugald Stewart philosopher and mathematician James Wilson Founding Father of the United States John Witherspoon Founding Father of the United States Thomas Young polymathNobel and Nobel equivalent prizes Edit See also List of Nobel laureates by university affiliation Max Born Tait Professor of Natural Philosophy at Edinburgh from 1936 to 1953 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1954 327 Peter Higgs faculty at Edinburgh since 1960 and Emeritus Professor after 1996 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2013 328 As of October 2021 update 19 Nobel Prize laureates have been affiliated with the university as alumni faculty members or researchers three additional laureates acted as administrative staff 21 including one of the fathers of quantum mechanics Max Born 329 theoretical physicist Peter Higgs 330 chemist Sir Fraser Stoddart 331 immunologist Peter C Doherty 332 economist Sir James Mirrlees 333 discoverer of Characteristic X ray Charles Glover Barkla 334 and the mechanism of ATP synthesis Peter D Mitchell 335 and pioneer in cryo electron microscopy Richard Henderson 336 and in vitro fertilisation Sir Robert Edwards 337 Turing Award winners Geoffrey Hinton 338 Robin Milner 339 Leslie Valiant 340 and mathematician Sir Michael Atiyah 341 Fields Medalist and Abel Prize laureate are associated with the university In the following table the number following a person s name is the year they received the Nobel prize In particular a number with an asterisk means the person received the award while they were working at the university including emeritus staff A name underlined implies that this person has been listed previously i e multiple affiliations Category Alumni Long term academic staff Short term academic staffPhysics 4 Igor Tamm 1958 Peter Higgs 2013 Max Born 1954 Charles Glover Barkla 1917 Chemistry 6 Richard Henderson 2017 Fraser Stoddart 2016 Peter D Mitchell 1978 Kurt Wuthrich 2002 Alexander R Todd 1957 Vincent du Vigneaud 1955Physiology or Medicine 7 Robert G Edwards 2010 Peter C Doherty 1996 Hermann J Muller 1946 Michael Rosbash 2017 Edvard Moser 2014 May Britt Moser 2014 Robert G Edwards 2010 Paul Nurse 2001Economics 1 James Mirrlees 1996Peace 1 Joseph Rotblat 1995Heads of state and government Edit Gordon Brown former Prime Minister and consecutive 10 year long Chancellor of the Exchequer is an alumnus MA 72 PhD 82 and former rector of the university 342 Leader State Government OfficeHastings Banda 343 344 Malawi Prime Minister 1964 1966 President 1966 1994 Sir Robert Black 345 Colony of Singapore Governor 1955 1957 British Hong Kong Governor 1958 1964 Sir Thomas Brisbane 346 New South Wales Governor 1821 1825 Gordon Brown 347 United Kingdom Prime Minister 2007 2010 Chang Taek sang 張澤相 348 South Korea Prime Minister 6 May 1952 6 October 1952 John Crawfurd 349 Colonial Singapore Resident 1823 1826 Sir Gilbert Elliott 350 Anglo Corsican Kingdom Viceroy 1793 1796 British India Governor General 1807 1813 Sir Dawda Jawara 351 Gambia Colony and Protectorate Prime Minister 1962 1965 The Gambia Prime Minister 1965 1970 President 1970 1994 Yusuf Lule 352 Uganda President 1979 Fawzi Mulki 353 Jordan Prime Minister 1953 1954 William Morrison 1st Viscount Dunrossil 354 Australia Governor General 1960 1961 Daniel Chanis Pinzon 355 Panama President 1949 Julius Nyerere 356 357 Tanzania President 1964 1985 Paul Reeves 358 New Zealand Governor General 1985 1990 Lord John Russell 359 United Kingdom Prime Minister 1846 52 and 1865 66 Viscount Palmerston 360 United Kingdom Prime Minister 1855 58 and 1859 65 Sir Charles Tupper 361 Canada Prime Minister 1 May 1896 8 July 1896 William Walker Nicaragua President 1856 1857 Yun Posun 尹潽善 362 South Korea President 1960 1962 In popular culture EditThe University of Edinburgh has featured prominently in a number of works of popular culture The events of the Burke and Hare murders involving Edinburgh lecturer Robert Knox and the anatomical department have made a wide range of appearances in popular culture 363 They became the basis for Robert Louis Stevenson s short story The Body Snatcher 1884 and most recently in 2010 for Burke amp Hare a black comedy film starring Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis Scenes were filmed at the old School of Anatomy 364 Many of Arthur Conan Doyle s works drew inspiration from his mentors at the university Joseph Bell a lecturer and surgeon famous for drawing conclusions from minute observations became the archetype for Conan Doyle s fictional detective Sherlock Holmes William Rutherford Conan Doyle s physiology professor provided the template for Professor Challenger the protagonist of his science fiction work The Lost World 1912 Edinburgh is also Challenger s alma mater in the books Dr Fu Manchu a fictional supervillain created by Sax Rohmer in 1912 stated that I am a doctor of philosophy from Edinburgh a doctor of law from Christ s College a doctor of medicine from Harvard My friends out of courtesy call me Doctor h In 2010 Fu Manchu s connections with the University where he supposedly obtained a doctorate were investigated in a mockumentary by Miles Jupp also an Edinburgh alumnus for BBC Radio 4 365 366 In the movie Journey to the Center of the Earth 1959 an adaptation of Jules Verne s novel of the same name the protagonist Sir Oliver Lindenbrook is a Professor of Geology at the university An early scene where Lindenbrook addresses the students is filmed at the central quadrangle of Old College 367 The historical film Chariots of Fire 1981 is based on the story of Olympic runner and Edinburgh graduate Eric Liddell and includes scenes filmed outside of Assembly Hall New College 368 Liddell is played by Ian Charleson who is also an Edinburgh alumnus In the novel The Last King of Scotland 1998 by Giles Foden the fictional protagonist Dr Nicholas Garrigan is a medical doctor recently graduated from Edinburgh The 2006 film of the same name stars James McAvoy in the role of Dr Garrigan with the same background In the American television show NCIS 2003 present the chief medical examiner Dr Donald Ducky Mallard studied medicine at Edinburgh Ari Haswari the show s main antagonist for the first two seasons also studied medicine at Edinburgh 369 In the novel One Day 2009 the lead characters Dexter and Emma both graduated from Edinburgh A feature film based on the book also titled One Day and starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess was released in August 2011 with some scenes filmed at the university 370 A Netflix adaptation of the movie started production in 2021 with filming occurring in the grounds of Old College in 2022 371 The BBC legal drama Garrow s Law 2009 2011 was largely filmed in Edinburgh despite being set in London Old College and the Playfair Library are prominently featured 372 The thriller television series Clique 2017 2019 produced by BBC Three focuses on two students at the university The series was shot largely on location in Edinburgh including The Meadows Old College and Potterrow 373 374 Fast amp Furious 9 2021 partly set in Edinburgh featured scenes in and around Old College filmed in September 2019 375 See also Edit Edinburgh portal Scotland portalAcademic dress of the University of Edinburgh Armorial of UK universities Cameron Prize for Therapeutics of the University of Edinburgh Edinburgh University Press Edinburgh University Settlement Epistemics a term for cognitive science coined in 1969 by the University of Edinburgh Gifford Lectures James Tait Black Memorial Prize List of early modern universities in Europe List of organisations with a British royal charter List of professorships at the University of Edinburgh List of universities in the United KingdomNotes Edit Note that HESA numbers given here are significantly lower than those reported by the university since HESA does not include non graduating and visiting students postgraduates writing up and online learning students living abroad 5 Liddell 1 Robinson 1 Braithwaite 1 Hoy 6 Grainger 1 New UCAS Tariff system from 2016 Includes those who indicate in their UCAS application that they identify as Asian Black Mixed Heritage Arab or any other ethnicity except White Calculated from the Polar4 measure from Quintile1 in England and Wales Calculated from the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation SIMD measure SIMD20 in Scotland Note that following Brexit the UK will no longer participate in the next Erasmus programme 2021 2027 but funding remains available for students to go abroad under the current programme until 31 May 2023 184 Rowling attended the Moray House School of Education in 1995 before it merged with the university in 1998 The Mask of Fu Manchu 1932References Edit a b c d Opening of Edinburgh University 1583 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 11 August 2021 a b c Annual Report and Accounts for the Year to 31 July 2022 PDF The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 29 January 2023 a b Staff Headcount amp Full Time Equivalent Statistics FTE as at Oct 22 Human Resources The University of Edinburgh October 2022 Retrieved 24 January 2023 a b c d Where do HE students study Higher Education Statistics Agency Retrieved 1 March 2020 a b c d e Factsheet of Student Figures PDF Strategic Planning The University of Edinburgh 11 August 2021 Retrieved 14 August 2021 Edinburgh s core colours The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 17 June 2021 Moss Michael S June 2004 Reviewed Work The University of Edinburgh An Illustrated History by Robert D Anderson Michael Lynch Nicholas Phillipson The English Historical Review 119 482 810 811 doi 10 1093 ehr 119 482 810 JSTOR 3489575 Retrieved 16 August 2021 Lowrey John June 2001 From Caesarea to Athens Greek Revival Edinburgh and the Question of Scottish Identity within the Unionist State Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 60 2 136 157 doi 10 2307 991701 JSTOR 991701 Retrieved 25 August 2021 University of Edinburgh World University Rankings THE Timeshighereducation com 13 November 2021 Retrieved 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Edinburgh Seven students awarded honorary degrees The Herald Glasgow 6 July 2019 Retrieved 19 August 2021 Our History Medical School The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 15 August 2021 Opening of New Medical School 1884 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 15 August 2021 William McEwan The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 19 November 2021 Opening of McEwan Hall 1897 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 14 August 2021 Foundation of Students Representative Council 1884 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 14 August 2021 Wintersgill Donald 8 October 2009 Bell Robert Fitzroy 1859 1908 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online ed Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 ref odnb 100753 Retrieved 14 August 2021 Subscription or UK public library membership required a b c Opening of University Union 1889 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 14 August 2021 Our History Edinburgh University Women s Union The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 23 September 2021 Foundation of Edinburgh 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School of Medicine at the University of Edinburgh 1941 1949 The University of Edinburgh 23 June 2015 Retrieved 20 August 2021 Foundation of Polish School of Medicine 1941 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 14 August 2021 The Polish School of Medicine Polish Scottish Heritage Retrieved 21 August 2021 William Dick a pioneer of veterinary education The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 19 November 2021 Integration of Royal Dick Veterinary College 1951 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 11 August 2021 Edinburgh s student roll now 7 400 The Herald Glasgow 5 October 1960 p 6 Retrieved 15 May 2017 George Square Edinburgh World Heritage 24 November 2017 Retrieved 19 August 2021 a b Merger with Moray House Institute of Education 1998 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 14 August 2021 School of Education name change honours sport College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences 1 August 2019 Retrieved 18 August 2021 Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh The Gazetteer for Scotland Retrieved 11 June 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The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 1 September 2021 College renamed to reflect growth in arts The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 21 October 2016 Undergraduate degree finder University of Edinburgh Retrieved 11 September 2022 Postgraduate degree finder University of Edinburgh Retrieved 11 September 2022 Teaching and learning The University of Edinburgh 10 September 2021 Retrieved 6 November 2021 QS World University Rankings by Subject 2021 English Language and Literature Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd Retrieved 2 August 2021 a b c Staff Headcount amp Full Time Equivalent Statistics FTE as at Sep 21 Human Resources The University of Edinburgh September 2021 Retrieved 19 August 2022 Eddy Matthew D 15 November 2016 The Language of Mineralogy John Walker Chemistry and the Edinburgh Medical School 1750 1800 London Routledge doi 10 4324 9781315238807 ISBN 9781138265646 College Overview The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 18 December 2011 Nobel Prizes University of Edinburgh Retrieved 4 June 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Statistics Authority Retrieved 19 August 2021 a b Edinburgh Graduations The real story behind the Geneva bonnet The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 15 August 2021 Omniana The University of Edinburgh Archived from the original on 16 August 2005 Retrieved 14 January 2007 Gently does it with hat used on 100 000 students The Herald Glasgow 18 July 2000 Retrieved 15 August 2021 Luscombe Richard 25 June 2006 One small step for John Knox one giant leap for university Scotland on Sunday Edinburgh Archived from the original on 16 October 2007 Retrieved 14 January 2007 Bequest of Clement Litill s Library 1580 The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 15 August 2021 Sturges Paul 1983 Edinburgh University Library 1580 1980 A Collection of Historical Essays by Jean R Guild Alexander Law The Journal of Library History 18 2 200 202 JSTOR 25541382 Retrieved 16 August 2021 Our History Main Library The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 2 June 2021 Library locations The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 2 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Research rankings confirm Edinburgh as world leader The University of Edinburgh Retrieved 15 May 2022 Global Employability University Ranking 2015 results Times Higher Education 6 November 2015 Retrieved 24 August 2021 A qualitative evaluation of non educational barriers to the elite professions PDF Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission pp 14 79 80 Retrieved 21 August 2021 What the job market wants The New York Times 25 October 2012 Retrieved 22 August 2021 ARTU 2021 University of New South Wales Retrieved 12 November 2021 2022 Best Global Universities Rankings U S News amp World Report 26 October 2021 Retrieved 27 October 2021 World Reputation Rankings 2021 Times Higher Education 27 October 2021 Retrieved 29 October 2021 University Rankings 2021 SCImago Institutions Rankings Retrieved 27 June 2021 Turner Camilla 9 August 2017 Two of Britain s leading universities fall well below benchmark for student satisfaction survey finds The Telegraph Retrieved 29 July 2020 Edinburgh University worst for teaching The Sunday Times London Archived from the original on 30 September 2012 Retrieved 8 October 2012 Good University Guide 2015 University of Edinburgh The Times Retrieved 15 June 2015 Good University Guide 2021 University of Edinburgh The Times 18 September 2020 Retrieved 20 August 2021 a b Complete University Guide 2022 University of Edinburgh The Complete University Guide 8 June 2021 Retrieved 27 June 2021 World University Rankings by Subject Times Higher Education Retrieved 27 June 2021 QS World University Rankings by Subject Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd Retrieved 27 June 2021 CSRankings Computer Science Rankings Retrieved 26 June 2021 Teviot Row House Edinburgh World Heritage 24 November 2017 Retrieved 27 August 2021 Edinburgh festival news and reviews The Guardian London 10 February 2008 Retrieved 15 November 2012 Oakeley Edward Murray 1 January 1904 The Life of Sir Herbert Stanley Oakeley 1st ed University of California Libraries ISBN 0217800548 History Edinburgh University Music Society Retrieved 27 August 2021 Theatrical Gossip The Era Retrieved 30 January 2021 Fringe 2013 Bedlam Theatre Venue 49 Bedlam Fringe Retrieved 15 November 2012 The Improverts Edinburgh Fringe 2010 British Comedy Guide British Comedy Guide Retrieved 15 November 2012 The Improverts The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society Retrieved 15 November 2012 About Edinburgh Studio Opera 1 October 2020 Retrieved 27 August 2021 About us Edinburgh University Savoy Opera Group Retrieved 13 August 2021 About Footlights The Edinburgh University Footlights Retrieved 27 August 2021 Theatre Paradok About us Edinburgh University Students Association Retrieved 13 August 2021 a b About us The Student Retrieved 14 July 2021 Vavasour Harry 13 October 2018 Exclusive Gordon Brown speaks to The Student The Student Edinburgh Retrieved 28 August 2021 span, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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