Kingston University From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigationJump to search This article is about the university in London, England. For other uses, see Kingston University (disambiguation). Kingston University London Motto Latin: Per Scientiam Progredimur [1] Motto in English "Through Learning We Progress" [1] Type Public Established 1992; 28 years ago – gained University Status 1899; 121 years ago – Kingston Technical Institute Endowment £2.3 m[2] Chancellor Bonnie Greer[3] Vice-Chancellor Steven Spier[4] Students 16,820 (2018/19)[5] Undergraduates 12,690 (2018/19)[5] Postgraduates 4,130 (2018/19)[5] Location Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames, London KT1 2EE, United Kingdom 51.4035°N 0.3039°WCoordinates: 51.4035°N 0.3039°W Campus Urban Colours Blue and White Affiliations Association of MBAs ACU University Alliance EUA Universities UK Website www.kingston.ac.uk Logo of Kingston University Kingston University London (abbreviated KUL) is a public research university located within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, in South West London, England. Its roots go back to the Kingston Technical Institute, founded in 1899. It received university status in 1992, before which the institution was known as Kingston Polytechnic. Kingston has 16,820 students and a turnover of £192 million.[6] It has four campuses situated in Kingston and Roehampton. The university specialises in the arts, design, fashion, science, engineering, and business and is organised into four faculties: Kingston School of Art, Faculty of Business and Social Sciences (which combines Kingston Business School and the School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences), Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education and Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing. The Kingston Business School is CNAA MBA degree approved. In 2017, the university won The Guardian University Award for teaching excellence.[7] Kingston is a member of the European University Association, the Association of Commonwealth Universities and University Alliance group. Contents 1 History 2 Campuses and estate 2.1 Penrhyn Road 2.2 Town House 2.3 Kingston Hill 2.4 Knights Park 2.5 Roehampton Vale 2.6 Reg Bailey Theatre Complex 2.7 Tolworth Court Sports Ground 2.8 Other locations 3 Organisation 3.1 Kingston School of Art 3.2 Faculty of Business and Social Sciences 3.3 Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education 3.4 Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing 3.5 Galleries and museums 3.6 Research 4 Academic profile 4.1 Rankings and reputation 5 Student life 5.1 Union of Kingston Students 5.2 Halls of residence 6 International partners 7 Controversies 7.1 BMus external examiner 7.2 Controversial speakers 7.3 National Student Survey exaggeration 8 Notable faculty and staff 8.1 Arts 8.2 Film & Theatre 8.3 Philosophy and Literature 8.4 Fashion and Design 8.5 History and Politics 8.6 Health 8.7 Economy 9 Notable alumni 9.1 Film and entertainment 9.2 Humour 9.3 Arts 9.4 Fashion 9.5 Architecture 9.6 Music 9.7 Politics 9.8 Law 9.9 Literature 9.10 Religion 9.11 Sports 9.12 Technology 9.13 Business 10 References 11 External links History Kingston was founded as Kingston Technical Institute in 1899, it offered courses in chemistry, electrical wiring, construction and nursing. In 1917 Gipsy Hill College for teacher training opened, a predecessor of Kingston University. In 1930 the Kingston School of Art separated from the Technical Institute, later to become Kingston College of Art in 1945. In 1946 Gipsy Hill College moved to Kingston Hill. In 1951, the first Penryhn Road campus buildings opened. Kingston was recognised as a 'Regional College of Technology' by the Ministry of Education in 1957. In 1970, the College of Technology merged with the College of Art to become Kingston Polytechnic, offering 34 major courses, of which 17 were at degree level.[8] In 1975, Kingston merged with the Gipsy Hill College of Education, incorporating the College's faculty into Kingston's Division of Educational Studies.[9] Kingston was granted university status under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. In 1993, Kingston opened the Roehampton Vale campus building and in 1995, Kingston acquired Dorich House. Campuses and estate This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Penrhyn Road Main building, Penrhyn Road campus This is the main university campus located close to Kingston town centre. Students based here study: Arts and Social Sciences, Civil Engineering, Computing and Information Systems and Mathematics, Earth Sciences and Geography, Statistics, Biosciences, Pharmacy, Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Science, and Radiography. Development at this site has extended it to the Learning Resources Centre. In 2015, the Union of Kingston Students, moved into the main building. Penrhyn Road also houses the refurbished Fitness Centre. Town House Town House, Kingston University from Penrhyn Road Kingston University's Town House building was opened in January 2020 and is located on the Penrhyn Road campus. The flagship six-storey building was the first to be designed by Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Gold Medal-winning firm Grafton Architects in the United Kingdom and is open to students, staff and the local community.[10] The building work was carried out by Hertfordshire-based Willmott Dixon. It features a three-floor academic library, archive, dance studios and a studio theatre, while it also incorporates a covered internal courtyard, two cafes and external balconies and walkways culminating in a rooftop garden offering views across Kingston upon Thames and the River Thames. Town House has been nominated for three awards, including in The Guardian University Awards, [11] and a Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) London Regional Award. [12] Kingston Hill Kingston Hill campus, Kingston University Kingston Hill mainly caters to Nursing (adult, child, mental health and learning disability), Education, Business, Music and Social Care. Before 1989, this campus was known as Gipsy Hill. The Business School moved to a new building on the Kingston Hill Campus in 2012.[13] Knights Park Mill Street Building at Kingston School of Art Knights Park campus. Located on Grange road, Knights Park campus is home to some of the students from Kingston School of Art (KSA) - architecture an art and design students. The campus is built on the northern banks of the Hogsmill River and opened in 1939.[14] A £29 million refurbishment of the Mill Street workshops, studios and the reception area was completed in March 2020 and includes a gallery, a social space and an art shop.[15] The regeneration project was shortlisted for a Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) London Regional Award. [16] Roehampton Vale The Roehampton Vale campus was opened in 1993 by Sir William Barlow, the president of the Royal Academy of Engineering. The site is located on Friars Avenue, on the outskirts of Kingston. This campus is purpose-built and completely dedicated to the study of engineering (aerospace, automotive, motor vehicle and mechanical engineering).[17] Facilities on site include a wind tunnel, engineering workshops, a flight simulator,a range of vehicles, a Learjet 25 plan, plus automotive and aeronautical learning resources. Reg Bailey Theatre Complex Former church converted into the Kingston Drama students’ base, the Reg Bailey has two theatres with professional lighting and sound equipment, three rehearsal rooms and a costume room while its annexed Surrey Club is dedicated to Dance students through imposing performance studio with a state-of-the-art LED lighting system and professional sound technology, two rehearsal studios and a body conditioning room, all with fully sprung Harlequin floors. The Reg Bailey has been home to such alumni members as Ben Barnes, Sam Chan, Mandy Takhar, Alphonsia Emmanuel, Jessie Cave, Laura Harling and Trevor Eve.[18] Tolworth Court Sports Ground The University's 55-acre sports ground houses twelve football pitches, two rugby pitches, three cricket squares, one American football pitch, one lacrosse pitch, two netball courts and three tennis courts.[19] Other locations Additional to the four main campuses is an administration building: Hind Court on London Road which is home to the office of the Vice-Chancellor. Furthermore, art and design studies students from Kingston School of Art are based at River House, on the High Street in Kingston town centre. Organisation Teaching and research are organised in four faculties.[20] Kingston School of Art Kingston School of Art (KSA) was established as part of Kingston Technical Institute founded 1899. The School of Art separated from the Technical College in 1930 and left Kingston Hall Road to move to Knights Park in 1939. It became Kingston College of Art in 1945 and merged back with the Technical College to form Kingston Polytechnic in 1970. The Polytechnic later became Kingston University in 1992, under which the school was known as the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture (FADA) until 2017 when it reverted to its historic name.[21][22] Kingston School of Art delivers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes of study across three schools:[23] Faculty of Business and Social Sciences The Faculty of Business and Social Sciences combines Kingston Business School and the School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences. Kingston Business School (KBS) can be traced back to the 1960s. In 1985, the CNAA approved the school's Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree and the following year KBS moved to Kingston Hill Campus. The Business School is divided into four departments:[24] Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education Founded in 1995, the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education runs courses in education, health and social work and is a partnership between Kingston University and St George's, University of London (SGUL).[25] The faculty is based at Kingston Hill at Kingston upon Thames and St George's Hospital in Tooting. The School of Education joined the Faculty in 2012.[26] Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing The Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing (SEC) was formed in 2011. The faculty's teaching is split between undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. Facilities at the Roehampton Vale campus including a Learjet 25, flight simulator, wind tunnel and automotive workshops including a range of vehicles and testing facilities. Galleries and museums The Stanley Picker Gallery is the Faculty's exhibition space which is now used to present a variety of research-based projects, fellowships and exhibitions.[27] In 2003, the Stanley Picker Gallery gave birth to Transitstation,[28] which was created/curated by Stanley Picker Fellow Dagmar Glausnitzer-Smith, and former gallery curator Charles Ryder. In 2003, the Director of Foundation Studies in Art and Design, Paul Stafford, converted a run-down public convenience in Kingston town centre into the Toilet Gallery.[29] Kingston University runs Dorich House Museum [30] which houses a huge collection of sculptor Dora Gordine's work, and fine examples of Russian Imperial art and furniture. Dorich House is also used as meeting and conference venue. Research The Kingston School of Art runs a number of research centres: Contemporary Art Research Centre ("CARC"), a Research Centre within the Department of Fine Art Colour Design Research Centre Screen Design Research Centre Modern Interiors Research Design[31] Sustainable Design Research Centre[32] Centre for the Contemporary Visual & Material Culture Curating Contemporary Design Research Group Real Estate Research Group Fashion Industry Research Centre Fire, Explosion and Fluid Dynamics (FEFD) Academic profile Rankings National rankings Complete (2021)[33] 100 Guardian (2021)[34] 40 Times / Sunday Times (2021)[35] 104 Global rankings QS (2021)[36] 581-590 THE (2021)[37] 801-900 British Government assessment Teaching Excellence Framework[38] Bronze Rankings and reputation The Guardian placed Kingston 40th out of 128 surveyed universities.[39]. The Times/The Sunday Times Guide placed it at no. 102 (Good University Guide, 2018). In 2018, Kingston was ranked 1st out of 121 institutions for its graphic design and product design courses by The Guardian in 2017.[40] In 2017, Kingston University won The Guardian University Award for teaching excellence.[7] Kingston is ranked as one of the top 40 universities in the UK by The Guardian University Guide 2020, ranked in the top 250 in the world for Business & Economics by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2019 and ranked in the top 140 Global MBA rank according to "QS World University Rankings" (2020) Student life Union of Kingston Students The Union of Kingston Students (UKS), formerly Kingston University Students' Union (KUSU), and in the 1990s KUGOS (Kingston University Guild of Students') is a charitable organisation representing the student body and aiming to provide services and activities beneficial to the student experience. It is a student union in the meaning of the term given in the Education Act 1994, and whilst independent of the university is funded by a block grant from it. Halls of residence The university has six halls of residence. Chancellors' and Walkden are based at the Kingston Hill campus. Middle Mill is adjacent to Knights Park campus, while Clayhill and Seething Wells are on opposite sides of Surbiton. Finally, there is Kingston Bridge House which is situated on the edge of Bushy Park at the Hampton Wick end of Kingston Bridge, London.