Imperial College London
South Kensington Campus
London SW7 2AZ
UK

1. Brief History

In 1907, the newly established Board of Education proposed to merge the City and Guilds College, the Royal School of Mines and the Royal College of Science. This being approved and passed created The Imperial College of Science and Technology as a constituent college of the University of London. Imperial's Royal Charter, granted by Edward VII, was officially signed on 8 July 1907. Imperial acquired Silwood Park in 1947, to provide a site for research and teaching in those aspects of biology not well suited for the main London campus. Imperial expanded in the 1950s to meet the scientific and technological challenges of the 20th century. In May 2001 a new faculty structure was established, with all departments being assigned to the Faculties of Engineering, Medicine, Physical Sciences and Life Sciences. On 9 December 2005, Imperial College announced that it would commence negotiations to secede from the University of London. Imperial College became fully independent of the University of London in July 2007.

Outstanding persons / Nobel Prize Laureates include:

14 former members of Imperial staff are Nobel Laureates

Physics:

  • Thomson, Sir George Paget FRS (1892-1975)
  • Blackett, Lord Patrick Maynard Stuart FRS (1897-1974)
  • Gabor, Dennis FRS (1900-1979)
  • Salam, Abdus (1926-1996)

Chemistry:

  • Haworth, Sir Walter Norman FRS (1883-1950)
  • Hinshelwood, Sir Cyril Norman FRS (1897-1967)
  • Porter, Sir George FRS (1920-2002)
  • Barton, Sir Derek FRS (1918-1998)
  • Wilkinson, Sir Geoffrey FRS

Physiology or Medicine:

  • Kopkins, Sir Frederick Gowland FRS (1861-1947)
  • Fleming, Sir Alexander (1881-1955)
  • Chain, Sir Ernst Boris FRS (1906-1979)
  • Huxley, Sir Andrew Fielding FRS (1917-2012)
  • Porter, Rodney Robert (1917-1985)

2. Key Facts

Established:
1907

Type:
Public

Structure:

The Imperial College London includes various faculties and departments:

  • Faculty of Engineering
  • Faculty of Medicine
  • Faculty of Natural Sciences
  • Cross Faculty
  • Imperial College Business School
  • Centre for Academic English
  • Centre for Co-Curricular Studies
  • Graduate School
  • School of Professional Development

Staff:
7,170 (2011)

Students:

14,414 (2012-13) from 126 countries

Endowment:
£96.7 million (as of 31 July 2013)

3. Research

Focus / Key Aspects:

Imperial College London embodies and delivers world class scholarship, education and research in science, engineering, medicine and business, with particular regard to their application in industry, commerce and healthcare. They foster multidisciplinary working internally and collaborate widely externally.The College's strategy is organised into three ‘core' themes (Research, Education and Translation) and three ‘enabling' themes (Organisation, Resources and Influence).Spin-offs:

The Imperial Innovations site gives information on spin-out activities within the College

4. Partnerships and Programs

Partner Universities:

Bi-Lateral Partner Universities are:

  • Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussees, Paris Tech, Paris
  • Ecole Nationale Superieure d'Hyraulique et de Mecanique, Grenoble
  • Rheinisch-Westphalische Technische Hochshule, Aachen
  • Eidgenossische Technische Hochshule, Zurich
  • Escuele Technica Superior de Ingenieros de Caminos, Canales y Puertos, Madrid
  • Universitat Polytecnica de Catalunya, Barcelona
  • Politecnico di Torino, Turin
  • Technishe Universiteit, Delft
  • TU Delft
  • University of Melbourne
  • University of Queensland
  • Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  • University of California

Affiliations:

The “Business” site of Imperial College London provides thorough insides into affiliates and programs

5. Trivia

Motto:

Scientia imperii decus et tutamen.
(Knowledge is the adornment and protection of the Empire.)

Miscellaneous:

  • 13 rectors have led the institution since its foundation in 1907.
  • Three Imperial Earth Science and Engineering academics have recently had asteroids named after them.
  • £25,780 is the average starting salary for an Imperial College graduate – the highest of any UK university.

6. Useful Links