Royal Holloway, University of London
2014.10.15
Overview
Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL) is a constituent college of the University of London. The college has three faculties, 18 academic departments, and about 9,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from over 100 different countries. The campus is located slightly west of Egham, Surrey, within the boundary of the Greater London Urban Area, although outside of the M25 motorwayand some 19 miles (31 km) from the geographic centre of London.
The Egham campus was founded in 1879 by the Victorian entrepreneur and philanthropist Thomas Holloway. Royal Holloway College was officially opened in 1886 by Queen Victoria. Royal Holloway College became a member of the University of London in 1900. In 1945, the college began admitting male postgraduate students, and in 1965, male undergraduates. In 1985, Royal Holloway College merged with Bedford College(another formerly all-women's college in London which was founded in 1849 and, like Royal Holloway College, joined the University of London in 1900 and became fully co-educational in 1965). The merged college was named Royal Holloway and Bedford New College (RHBNC), this remaining the official registered name of the college by Act of Parliament. The campus is dominated by the Founder's Building, a Grade I listed red-brick building modelled on the Château de Chambordin the Loire Valley, France.
Established year: 1849
Location
Royal Holloway is located in a beautiful part of Surrey, a county famed for its historic market towns, parks and woodlands, and lively cultural and sporting scene. The campus is situated between the village of Englefield Green and the town of Egham. Beautiful countryside and the resources and attractions of the capital are all within easy reach.
Englefield Green has small shops and a picturesque village green, complete with cricket pitch and traditional pub. Egham has the shops, supermarkets, restaurants and bars students would expect to find in any small town. Slightly further afield (a few minutes by bus, train or bike), Staines upon Thames provides a wider range of shops, entertainment and leisure activities.
Royal Holloway is surrounded by Surrey's beautiful countryside yet our campus is just 40 minutes by train from central London. This means that internationally-renowned galleries, museums and theatres, places of historic and sporting interest, world-class shopping areas and nightlife are all within easy reach, yet students can come home to a safe and leafy campus, where living costs are far more reasonable than in the capital.
From London by train: 40 minutes
Address: Egham Hill, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX, United Kingdom
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Learning environment
Royal Holloway 135 acre campus, named one of the most beautiful in the world by the Daily Telegraph, is a lively and friendly place to live, study and socialise. The impressive Founder's Building, at the heart of campus, is home to the famous Picture Gallery containing founder Thomas Holloway's spectacular collection of Victorian paintings.
Royal Holloway's extensive library has a stock of more than 600,000 volumes, subscribes to over 17,000 print and online journals, and has more than 800 study spaces. The University recently invested £1.3 million in a refurbishment project to further develop library resources and facilities, and introduce innovative learning spaces. You can also access all University of London libraries including Senate House Library.
A number of PC labs containing a wide range of software applications are available within the Computer Centre and around campus, most of which are accessible 24 hours a day. There is a wireless network which enables access throughout most of the College.
Each academic department has its own facilities. For example, the Psychology department is one of the very few in the UK to have a magnetic resonance scanner on site for neuro scientific research, and the department of Earth Sciences has an impressive 3D visualisation facility and IT laboratories, enabling students to view satellite imagery and seismic data in 3D.
The College's Sports Centre is home to a multi-use sports hall, a 46 station fitness suite with weights room, aerobics area and substantial changing facilities. There are also outdoor pitches and courts.
Highlights/Advantages
- Royal Holloway is a leading UK university, ranked 27th in the UK by The Times Good University Guide 2013.
- Students have full university status and access to all the facilities and social activities on the attractive campus, located just 40 minutes from central London.
- Excellence scholarships are available for the foundation programme and when students progress onto a Royal Holloway degree.
- Students are offered a free 2 hour English and academic skills class each week.
- The university offers great facilities, including a brand new Management school extension
Rankings
- Times Higher Education World University Rankings ranked the college 36th in Europe and 102 nd in the world.
- The Times Good University Guidefor 2009 ranked the college at 30th in the United Kingdom, with a total score of 626 points out of a possible 1000.
- The Sunday Times University Guide for 2008 listed Royal Holloway as the 28th best in Britain out of 120, with a 74.9 per cent student satisfaction.
- In The Good University Guide, Royal Holloway is ranked number 22 in Britain,
- The Guardian placed it at 39
- The Independent at 22
- The Telegraph at 13
- In 2007 The Times rated Royal Holloway 12th in the country and The Telegraph placed it 13th.
- In the same year The Good University Guide placed it at 11th
- 34th in the Times University Guide 2015
- 36th in the Guardian University Guide 2015
- 33rd in the Complete University Guide 2015
Accommodation
Royal Holloway offers students a wide variety of accommodation, mostly situated on campus, from the unique character of the Victorian Founder's Building to more modern residences such as Williamson, Tuke & Butler.
- Butler, Tuke & Williamson, our newest halls, opened in September 2007. Grouped in flats of eight, the modern en suite study bedrooms are arranged around a central corridor with a large communal kitchen and dining space at one end.
- Founder's Hall comprises mainly single study bedrooms, with some larger shared rooms. Students share the toilet and bathroom amenities and there are single sex floors. Additional facilities include a dining hall, launderette, and Crosslands which operates as a bar throughout the week.
- Gowar & Wedderburn is an award-winning development of en suite study bedrooms, grouped in flats of eight. The bedrooms are arranged around a central corridor with a large communal kitchen and dining space at one end.
- Kingswood 1 & 2 are located approximately one and a half miles from the main campus. On site there is a dining room, TV/common room, 8Bar9, and laundry facilities. Students are able to apply for a parking permit. A bus service for residents operates during the day and the Students' Union runs a bus after evening functions.
- Penrose Court is located on the north side of the A30 and is linked to the main campus via a footbridge. There is a mix of houses and flats and the single bedrooms (usually four or six) are located around shared bathroom and kitchen/dining facilities.
- Reid Hall is located near to the main residential reception and Hub. It comprises nine blocks with around 20 bedrooms per house. Each house has a pantry area with a microwave and fridge and all the bedrooms have en suite facilities.
- Runnymede 1 & 2 are located at the lower end of the campus near the Hub. Each flat has six or eight single bedrooms with en suite facilities and a shared kitchen/diner. There is also a common room which can be used by all Runnymede residents.