Newcastle University

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For the Australian university, see University of Newcastle, Australia
Newcastle University
Coat of arms of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Established 1963 (became independent from the University of Durham)
Type Public
Chancellor Lord Patten of Barnes
Vice-Chancellor Prof. Christopher Edwards Prof. Chris Brink from 2007
Students 17,784
Undergraduates 13,830
Postgraduates 3,954
Location Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, UK
Campus Urban
Colours
                                 
Affiliations Russell Group, EUA
Website www.ncl.ac.uk

Newcastle University is a British university located in Newcastle upon Tyne in the north of England. It was founded as the University of Newcastle upon Tyne (which remains its official name) by an Act of Parliament in August 1963.

Contents

[edit] History

The University has its origins in the College of Medicine which was established in the city in 1834, and formally became a college of Durham University in 1851. In 1871 the College of Physical Science was founded, which subsequently became Armstrong College (named after William George Armstrong).

Armstrong College and the College of Medicine were merged in 1937 to form King's College, Durham (the Durham Division remained predominantly dedicated to the teaching of theology and liberal arts).

Growth of the Newcastle Division of the federal Durham University led to tensions within the structure and in 1963 an Act of Parliament separated the two divisions, leaving Durham as an 'Oxbridge'-style collegiate university and creating the University of Newcastle upon Tyne as a civic university similar to Hull, Leicester, Nottingham and Southampton. Though Newcastle was the subject of the Channel 4 'Redbrick' documentary in 1986 it is not often considered to be either a redbrick or a plate glass university.

[edit] Today

The University has a core population of 17,784 students (2005-2006), including more than 2,000 overseas students from over 100 countries.

King's Walk, giving access to the Union Building (left) and the arches of the Fine Art building, leading into the Quadrangle
Enlarge
King's Walk, giving access to the Union Building (left) and the arches of the Fine Art building, leading into the Quadrangle

The current Chancellor of the university is Chris Patten, former Chairman of the Conservative Party and European Commissioner for External Affairs (1999-2004). He is also Chancellor of the University of Oxford.

The university won the Sunday Times University of the Year award in 2000. In December 2004 it sparked controversy when it announced the closure of its physics course because of declining interest and financial pressures. The current controversy is a repeat of an earlier one, as when the philosophy department was closed in the late eighties Newcastle became one of the few English universities without a philosophy course. Physics is often considered to be the core science, as ethics is intrinsic to the humanities.

The Newcastle University Medical School consistently ranks as one of the top in the UK due to its high level of teaching and research. It was also the first institution in Europe, 2nd in the world, to be given permission to pursue stem-cell research in human embryos.

The university enjoys a friendly sporting rivalry with the neighbouring (only a few hundred yards away) Northumbria University with the major sporting teams of both universities competing against each other every year for the Stan Calvert Cup

[edit] Student Organisations

The Union Society aims to represent the interests of students at the University. [1]

[edit] Notable alumni

[edit] Research Institutes

[edit] Schools and Faculties

[edit] Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

[edit] Faculty of Medical Sciences

[edit] Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Newcastle Union Society. Retrieved on 2006-11-21.

[edit] External links

Universities in North East England

Durham | Newcastle | Northumbria | Sunderland | Teesside
Russell Group
(of British research universities)
Birmingham | Bristol | Cambridge | Cardiff | Edinburgh | Glasgow | Imperial College London | King's College London | Leeds | Liverpool | London School of Economics | Manchester | Newcastle | Nottingham | Oxford | Queen's | Sheffield | Southampton | University College London | Warwick
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