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Former name | Woolwich Polytechnic (1890–1970) Thames Polytechnic (1970–1992) |
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| Motto | Latin: Discere, Agere, Conficere |
Motto in English | "To learn, to do, to achieve" |
| Type | Public university |
| Established | 1890; 134 years ago (1890) |
| Budget | £307 million (2022/2023)[1] |
| Chancellor | Lord Boateng |
| Vice-Chancellor | Jane Harrington |
| Students | 19,825 (2019/20)[2] |
| Undergraduates | 14,580 (2019/20)[2] |
| Postgraduates | 5,245 (2019/20)[2] |
| Location |
,
,
51°29′00″N 0°00′22″W / 51.483372°N 0.006075°W / 51.483372; -0.006075 |
| Campus | Greenwich Campus (London) Avery Hill Campus (London) Medway Campus (Kent) |
| Colours | Blue Colour- |
| Affiliations | University Alliance Universities UK Association of Commonwealth Universities EUA |
| Website | gre |
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The University of Greenwich is a public university located in London and Kent, United Kingdom. Previous names include Woolwich Polytechnic and Thames Polytechnic.[3]
The university's main campus is at the Old Royal Naval College, which along with its Avery Hill campus, is located in the Royal Borough of Greenwich. Greenwich also has a campus in Medway, Kent, as part of a shared campus.[4] The university's range of subjects includes architecture, business, computing, mathematics, education, engineering, humanities, maritime studies, natural sciences, pharmacy and social sciences.[5] Greenwich's alumni include two Nobel laureates: Abiy Ahmed and Charles K. Kao. It received an overall Gold rating in the UK government's Teaching Excellence Framework.[6]
The university dates back to 1890, when Woolwich Polytechnic, the second-oldest polytechnic in the United Kingdom,[7] opened in Woolwich. It was founded by Frank Didden, supported by and following the principles of Quintin Hogg, and opened to students in October 1891. Like Hogg's pioneering venture in London's Regent Street, it initially combined education with social and religious functions.
In 1894 it focused on an educational role, concentrating on higher technical education appropriate to its location close to Woolwich Dockyard and the Royal Arsenal;[8] William Anderson, director-general of the Ordnance Factories, was a trustee and later a member of the board of governors.[9] Its premises were also used for day schools – the first Woolwich Polytechnic School was established in 1897.
In 1970, Woolwich Polytechnic merged with part of Hammersmith College of Art and Building to form Thames Polytechnic. In the following years, Dartford College (1976), Avery Hill College of Education (1985), Garnett College (1987) and parts of Goldsmiths College and the City of London College (1988) were incorporated.[10]
In 1992, Thames Polytechnic was granted university status by the Major government (together with various other polytechnics) and renamed the University of Greenwich in 1993. On 1 January 1993, the Thames College of Health Care Studies, itself a merger of three local nursing and midwifery training schools, officially merged with the newly designated University of Greenwich, becoming a full faculty of the university.[10]
Formerly a UK government research agency, the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) was incorporated into the university in 1996.[11]
In 2001, the university gave up its historic main campus in the Bathway Quarter in Woolwich, relocating to its current main campus in Greenwich.[12]
Academic disciplines at Greenwich are organised into four faculties which host a range of subject expertise within them:[13]
The university also has a number of professional service directorates that support students and the Faculties.
Greenwich Campus is located mainly in the Old Royal Naval College, into which it moved in the 1990s when the premises were sold by the Royal Navy.
The campus is home to the Business School, the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences and The Faculty of Education, Health and Human Sciences. The campus also includes the Greenwich Maritime Institute, a specialist maritime management, policy and history teaching and research institute,[14] and the Institute for Lifecourse Development.[15]
The Old Royal Naval College includes "The Painted Hall", painted in the 18th century by Sir James Thornhill, with over 40,000 square feet of painted surfaces including 200 painting of kings, queens and mythological creatures.
The campus has a large library at Stockwell Street which houses an extensive collection of books and journals, language labs and a 300-PC computing facility. Other facilities include specialist computer laboratories, including one at Dreadnought centre, a TV studio and editing suites. The Stephen Lawrence Gallery, in the Stockwell Street building, showcases the work of contemporary artists and is linked to the School of Design.
The award-winning Dreadnought Building hosts the Students Union and the Faculty of Education, Health and Human Sciences. It has psychology and neuroscience laboratories, an early years simulated classroom, a gym, a bar, a cafe, computer laboratories, and teaching and social spaces for students. The building was formerly the Dreadnought Seaman's hospital, named after the HMS Dreadnought quarantine and hospital ship which was moored on the Thames at Greenwich in the mid 19th century. HMS Dreadnought had previously been a ship of the line and fought at the Battle of Trafalgar.
The Avery Hill Campus is situated in Eltham next to the 86-acre Avery Hill Park in the Royal Borough of Greenwich, south-east London. The campus is home to student accommodation and to the Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences. Courses taught at the site include Teacher Training, Nursing (Adult, Child, Mental Health, Community, Learning Disability), Midwifery, Paramedic Science, Speech and Language Therapy, Physiotherapy, PE and Sport, and Sports Science.
Facilities include a 220-seat lecture theatre, computer laboratories, a library, sports pitches, strength and conditioning laboratories, as well as a sports hall.
The site also hosts the Greenwich Learning and Simulation Centre (GLASC) [16] which replicates NHS wards, a critical care unit, a simulated pediatric and birthing centre and operating theatre. GLASC enables student trainees and experienced health professionals to gain hands-on experience and learn new clinical skills by engaging in multi-professional simulation activities.
The student village complex at Avery Hill provides student self-catering accommodation, a general shop and a launderette. The Dome, in the centre of the complex, houses a food outlet and gym. Rugby, football, indoor pitches, netball and tennis courts, are also on Avery Hill campus.
The facility, which was built by Wimpey Construction under a PFI contract, was completed in 1996.[17]
The Winter Garden, the centrepiece of the Mansion site, has fallen into neglect and is on Historic England's 'At Risk' Register.[18] A campaign to restore the Winter Garden is putting pressure on the university and Greenwich Council to ensure its future. The Mansion site is no longer owned by the University of Greenwich.
The Medway Campus is located on a former Royal Navy shorebase (called HMS Pembroke) opened in 1903 at Chatham Maritime, Kent.
The Faculty of Engineering and Science is based here, as is the Natural Resources Institute, a centre for research, consultancy and education in natural and human resources. It is also the home of Medway School of Pharmacy, a joint school operated by the Universities of Greenwich and Kent. The Faculty of Education, Health & Human Sciences also offers a number of its courses at Medway, including Midwifery and Paramedic Sciences. Facilities include laboratories, workshops, a computer-aided design studio and a training dispensary.
The Drill Hall Library has computers, study areas and teaching rooms. Social facilities include a sports hall, bar, gym and outdoor tennis courts. The university is a member of Universities at Medway, a partnership of educational establishments at Chatham Maritime that is developing the area as a major higher education centre in the Medway region.
Greenwich Campus is near 74-hectare Greenwich Park, home to the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. The Stockwell Street Building opened in 2014 and is now home to the campus library, film and TV studios, and editing suites. In 2015, it was shortlisted for the Stirling Prize for architecture.[19]
The Dreadnought Building is a central hub for the Greenwich Campus and hosts the Greenwich Students Union and Student Services. [20]
The Student Village at Avery Hill Campus provides accommodation for around 1,000 students. On-site facilities include a café, canteen, shop, launderette, bicycle parking, and a gym.[21]
Medway Campus has 350 rooms across five halls of residence dedicated to student accommodation.[22]
Greenwich Students' Union is the university's students' union. In October 2019, the GSU Student Assembly voted to ask the university to declare a climate emergency and for the university and union sustainability strategies to consult with students in creating them. This call to action aimed to speed up the university's efforts at becoming carbon neutral.[23]
At the Medway campus in Kent there is a partnership between the University of Greenwich Students' Union, Canterbury Christ Church and University of Kent Union on the Medway campus. Greenwich Students' Union has been leading the partnership since July 2021 and manages The Hub space,[24] previously The Student Hub when it was looked after by GK Unions – the Greenwich & Kent Students' Unions Together (once the Universities at Medway Students Association, UMSA). Greenwich Students' Union has a mascot called The Cutty Shark[25] and a presence at Avery Hill, Greenwich and Medway campus.
Greenwich research seeks to influence and enhance health, education, science, engineering, computing and social policy, and attracts international agencies, government departments and global corporations (for example, Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, BAE Systems, Airbus, GE Aviation and Merck Consumer Health) from over 50 countries.[26] Significant areas of research and consultancy include landscape architecture, employment relations, fire safety, natural resources, tourism and hospitality, social network analysis, education, training, educational leadership and public services.[27]
| National rankings | |
|---|---|
| Complete (2025)[28] | 107 |
| Guardian (2024)[29] | 116 |
| Times / Sunday Times (2024)[30] | 105 |
| Global rankings | |
| ARWU (2023)[31] | 601–700 |
| QS (2025)[32] | 691–700 |
| THE (2024)[33] | 501–600 |
The university was ranked 94 out of 121 UK institutions according to The Guardian University Guide 2022 league table.[34] For 2023, the University of Greenwich was ranked 60 according to Times Higher education (THE).[35] Moreover, University of Greenwich ranked first in London for Events, Tourism and Hospitality by the Guardian’s 2023 university rankings.[36] Subjects taught at Greenwich have seen rises in the Guardian university league tables for 2022: Chemistry was at 10, up 10 places since 2021. Forensic Science (9), Criminology (10), Mechanical Engineering (12), and Education (48) also moved up significantly.
InCenter for World University Rankings World University Rankings 2020–21 – University of Greenwich was ranked 76 in the UK.[37] In 2022, University of Greenwich was ranked in the 750-800 range globally by QS World University Rankings.[38]
In the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2020,[39] Greenwich performed well in several categories:
In 2012, the university was rated as the greenest in the UK by People & Planet Green League Table.[40] In 2019, it was ranked 14 in UK, and third in London.[41] The University has gained many national awards, including four Queen's Anniversary Prizes, nine Times Higher Education Awards and two Guardian University Awards. [42]
In 2019, the university's Natural Resources Institute was awarded a Queen's Anniversary Prize for its research in pest management and control to combat human and animal diseases in the UK and internationally;[43] in 2015 it won a prize for work on the cassava crop in Africa.[44]
In 2023, the university has been classified as Gold in Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) of Higher Education.[45]
In 2019, the university's main cafeteria was operated by BaxterStorey, which paid its workers £9.25 per hour without contractual sick pay. After a chef had collapsed on his way home from a shift during a typical 80-hour week, all workers joined UVW union.[46] After four strike days in October 2019, and protests disrupting the annual graduation ceremony and a board meeting, Greenwich University announced in early January 2020 that all outsourced cafe workers, cleaners and security guards would receive the London living wage of £10.55, in addition to the same sick pay and annual leave as university staff.[47]
In 2018, the University of Greenwich started a partnership with Charlton Athletic F.C.[48]
Prominent alumni of the university and its predecessor organisations include Nobel Laureate Charles Kao, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2009 for his work on transmission of light in fibre optics, and Abiy Ahmed, who won the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize. In June 2021, representatives from multiple countries called for the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Abiy to be re-considered because of the war crimes committed in Tigray.[49][50] Two British government ministers, Richard Marsh and Gareth Thomas, are also graduates. A more extensive list is given below.
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