Birkbeck, University of London
Encyclopedia
Birkbeck, University of London (formerly Birkbeck College, informally BBK) is a public
research university located in London
, United Kingdom
and a constituent college of the federal University of London
. It offers many Master's
and Bachelor's degree
programmes that can be studied either part-time or full-time, though nearly all teaching is in the evening. It also admits full-time (as well as part-time) students for PhDs. Its staff members have excellent research reputations in subjects such as English, History, History of Art, Philosophy, Psychology, Spanish, Science and Crystallography. It also offers many continuing education
courses leading to certificates and diplomas, foundation degree
s as well as other short courses.
, an early pioneer of adult education, founded the then "London Mechanics' Institute" at a meeting at the Crown and Anchor Tavern on the Strand
. Over two thousand people attended. However the idea was not universally popular and some accused Birkbeck of "scattering the seeds of evil."
Two years later, the institute moved to the Southampton Buildings on Chancery Lane
. In 1830, the first female students were admitted. In 1858, changes to the University of London
's structure resulting in an opening up of access to the examinations for its degree. The Institute became the main provider of part-time university education.
The Institute changed its name to the "Birkbeck Literary and Scientific Institution" in 1866 and in 1885 it moved to the Breams Building, on Fetter Lane
, where it would remain for the next sixty-seven years.
The early twentieth century saw further developments, with Birkbeck Students' Union being established in 1904, and in 1907 the institute's name changed once more, to "Birkbeck College". In 1913, a review of the University of London (which had been restructured in 1900) successfully recommended that Birkbeck become a constituent college, although the outbreak of the First World War
delayed this until 1920. The Royal Charter
for the college was granted in 1926. The college's first female professor, Dame Helen Gwynne-Vaughan
began teaching botany
in 1921.
During the Second World War
, Birkbeck was the only central University of London college to not relocate out of the capital. In 1941, the library suffered a direct hit during The Blitz
but teaching continued. In 1952, the College moved to its present location in Malet Street.
In 1988, the Department of Extra-Mural Studies of the University of London was incorporated into Birkbeck, becoming at first the Centre for Extra-Mural Studies. In later years it would go by the name of the Faculty of Continuing Education, then the School of Continuing Education. It was called the Faculty of Lifelong Learning until 2009 when it merged into the other faculties.
In 2002, it dropped the word College to become simply Birkbeck, University of London. However, the term Birkbeck College is still often colloquially used, and survives on the façade of the main building itself. The following year, a major redevelopment of the Malet Street building was opened.
It was announced in 2006 that Birkbeck had been granted £5 million by the Higher Education Funding Council for England
to expand its provision into east London, working with the University of East London
. The partnership was formally launched on November 21, 2006 and is called Birkbeck Stratford.
In 1876, the London Society for the Extension of University Education was founded, boosting the aims of encouraging working people to undertake higher education. In 1903, it became the Department of Extra-Mural Studies of the University of London
and it was integrated into Birkbeck in 1988. In 2009, the Faculty of Lifelong Learning was incorporated into the main College structure.
Originally known as the London Mechanics' Institute 1823 and later Birkbeck Literary and Scientific Institution, the main building is between Malet Street and Woburn Square
in Bloomsbury
, with a number of other buildings on nearby streets. The School of Arts, including the Department of English & Humanities, is housed in Virginia Woolf
's former Gordon Square
residence in Bloomsbury. Other notable former residents of this house include Leslie Stephen
, Vanessa Bell
, John Maynard Keynes
and Lydia Lopokova.
Many Birkbeck classes are taught at other locations across the Bloomsbury area. This is due to a combination of Birkbeck's widening participation
strategy to make higher education accessible and also because nearly all classes on one day are taught at the same time, resulting in heavy competition for limited space.
In 2006, it was announced that Birkbeck will be expanding into east London, in conjunction with the University of East London
. Initially space will be rented as well as utilising the University of East London Stratford Campus, but the aim is to construct a dedicated facility in Stratford
. The project is known as Birkbeck Stratford
.
The Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities was established in 2004, with the renowned but controversial Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek
appointed as International Director. According to its website, the Institute aims to, among other things, "engage with important public issues of our time through a series of open debates, lectures, seminars and conferences" and "foster and promote a climate of interdisciplinary research and collaboration among academics and researchers". The launch of the Institute wasn't without controversy, provoking an article in The Observer
newspaper titled "What have intellectuals ever done for the world?" which criticised the ostensible irrelevance and elitism of contemporary public intellectuals.
2004 also saw Birkbeck enter into a research and teaching collaboration with the Institute of Education
, jointly founding the London Knowledge Lab
. This interdisciplinary research institute brings together social scientists and computer scientists to address research questions about technology and learning.
Meanwhile, the London Consortium
graduate school — a collaboration between Birkbeck, the Tate Galleries
, the Institute of Contemporary Arts
, the Architectural Association, and, until 1999, the British Film Institute
- has been running since the mid-1990s, offering masters and doctoral degrees in the interdisciplinary humanities and cultural studies, resourced and jointly taught by all the participating institutions. Its permanent and adjunct faculty include figures such as Tom McCarthy
, Colin MacCabe
, Laura Mulvey
, Steven Connor
, Marina Warner, Juliet Mitchell
, Stuart Hall
, Roger Scruton
, Salman Rushdie, Tilda Swinton
as well as Žižek. Its current chair is Anthony Julius
.
Science research at Birkbeck has a notable tradition. Physicist David Bohm
who made notable contributions to the theory of Quantum mechanics
was professor of Theoretical Physics
from 1961–87 and Nobel Laureates Aaron Klug
and Derek Barton both worked in the faculty of crystallography
. Birkbeck is part of the Institute of Structural Molecular Biology, which includes the Bloomsbury Centre for Structural biology
, established in 1998. This is a collaborative venture between Birkbeck College and University College London
and is a leading academic centre for translating gene sequences and determining protein structure
and function. It also includes the Bloomsbury Centre for Bioinformatics, a collaborative venture also between Birkbeck College and University College London for research into Bioinformatics
, Genomics
, Systems Biology
, GRID computing
and Text mining
.
' s 2001 Research Assessment Exercise
league table and 26th by the Times Higher Education Supplements equivalent 2001 RAE league table. Birkbeck also appears in the Shanghai Jiao Tong University
's Top 500 World Universities ranking; the 2010-11 Times Higher Education World University Rankings lists Birkbeck at number 152 in the World.
The data also shows that Birkbeck is ranked 23rd in the UK and is rated above several large Russell Group
universities.
On 23 September 2010, it was announced that Birkbeck has been shortlisted for the prestigious 2010 Times Higher Education University of the Year award.
' s 2001 RAE subject ranking league tables put Birkbeck in the top 10 for research in the following subjects: English (1st), History (1st), History of Art (2nd), Philosophy (6th), Psychology (5th), Iberian and Latin American Languages (1st), Earth Sciences (4th), Law (9th), Economics and Econometrics (5th), and Politics and International Studies (5th).
Birkbeck's School of English and Humanities was rated 5* in the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise, as were the School of History, Classics and Archaeology, the School of Crystallography, and the section for Spanish and Latin American studies within the School of Languages, Linguistics and Culture, and the Dept. of Psychological Sciences in the School of Psychology—ranking these departments with, and in some cases above, Oxford and Cambridge.
Birkbeck Students' Union offers a number of societies for students, as well as a football club that competes in the University of London league. It also provides student representation and support, a student magazine, a student shop and a bar. Birkbeck students also have access to the societies and clubs of the University of London Union
(whose building adjoins Birkbeck's Bloomsbury site). Accordingly, London Student
distributes at the Union.
The college arms include a lamp
and an owl
, symbolising the college's motto In nocte consilium (translated as "study by night"). Because of this, the student magazine was called Lamp and Owl. Its name was later changed to Lampanelle, and after briefly ceasing production in 2009 under the editorship of Zein Sufi, it was relaunched in 2010 by the Birkbeck Journalism Society.
The original name of the institution was the London Mechanics' Institute. For this reason, the annual literary magazine published by the Birkbeck MA Creative Writing programme is called The Mechanics' Institute Review
.
The college has entered teams in University Challenge
over the years, with varied results. In 1997, a team scored just 40 points - at that stage the lowest score since the series had been revived, though this has since been broken by New Hall, Cambridge
, the University of Bradford
and the University Challenge: The Professionals team of Members of Parliament
. 1998 saw a reversal of fortunes when Birkbeck reached the final, losing to Magdalen College, Oxford
. In 2003, Birkbeck again reached the final, facing another team of mature students from Cranfield University
. On this occasion, Birkbeck won.
Public university
A public university is a university that is predominantly funded by public means through a national or subnational government, as opposed to private universities. A national university may or may not be considered a public university, depending on regions...
research university located in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and a constituent college of the federal University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
. It offers many Master's
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
and Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
programmes that can be studied either part-time or full-time, though nearly all teaching is in the evening. It also admits full-time (as well as part-time) students for PhDs. Its staff members have excellent research reputations in subjects such as English, History, History of Art, Philosophy, Psychology, Spanish, Science and Crystallography. It also offers many continuing education
Continuing education
Continuing education is an all-encompassing term within a broad spectrum of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United States and Canada...
courses leading to certificates and diplomas, foundation degree
Foundation degree
The Foundation Degree is a vocational qualification introduced by the government of the United Kingdom in September 2001, which is available in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
s as well as other short courses.
History
In 1823, George BirkbeckGeorge Birkbeck
George Birkbeck was a British doctor, academic, philanthropist, pioneer in adult education and founder of Birkbeck College.-Biography:...
, an early pioneer of adult education, founded the then "London Mechanics' Institute" at a meeting at the Crown and Anchor Tavern on the Strand
Strand, London
Strand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...
. Over two thousand people attended. However the idea was not universally popular and some accused Birkbeck of "scattering the seeds of evil."
Two years later, the institute moved to the Southampton Buildings on Chancery Lane
Chancery Lane
Chancery Lane is the street which has been the western boundary of the City of London since 1994 having previously been divided between Westminster and Camden...
. In 1830, the first female students were admitted. In 1858, changes to the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
's structure resulting in an opening up of access to the examinations for its degree. The Institute became the main provider of part-time university education.
The Institute changed its name to the "Birkbeck Literary and Scientific Institution" in 1866 and in 1885 it moved to the Breams Building, on Fetter Lane
Fetter Lane
Fetter Lane is a street in the ward of Farringdon Without in London England. It runs from Fleet Street in the south to Holborn in the north.The earliest mention of the street is "faitereslane" in 1312. The name occurs with several spellings until it settles down about 1612. There is no agreement...
, where it would remain for the next sixty-seven years.
The early twentieth century saw further developments, with Birkbeck Students' Union being established in 1904, and in 1907 the institute's name changed once more, to "Birkbeck College". In 1913, a review of the University of London (which had been restructured in 1900) successfully recommended that Birkbeck become a constituent college, although the outbreak of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
delayed this until 1920. The Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
for the college was granted in 1926. The college's first female professor, Dame Helen Gwynne-Vaughan
Helen Gwynne-Vaughan
Dame Helen Charlotte Isabella Gwynne-Vaughan, GBE , née Fraser, was a prominent British botanist and mycologist....
began teaching botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
in 1921.
During the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Birkbeck was the only central University of London college to not relocate out of the capital. In 1941, the library suffered a direct hit during The Blitz
The Blitz
The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...
but teaching continued. In 1952, the College moved to its present location in Malet Street.
In 1988, the Department of Extra-Mural Studies of the University of London was incorporated into Birkbeck, becoming at first the Centre for Extra-Mural Studies. In later years it would go by the name of the Faculty of Continuing Education, then the School of Continuing Education. It was called the Faculty of Lifelong Learning until 2009 when it merged into the other faculties.
In 2002, it dropped the word College to become simply Birkbeck, University of London. However, the term Birkbeck College is still often colloquially used, and survives on the façade of the main building itself. The following year, a major redevelopment of the Malet Street building was opened.
It was announced in 2006 that Birkbeck had been granted £5 million by the Higher Education Funding Council for England
Higher Education Funding Council for England
The Higher Education Funding Council for England is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in the United Kingdom, which has been responsible for the distribution of funding to Universities and Colleges of Higher and Further Education in England since...
to expand its provision into east London, working with the University of East London
University of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
. The partnership was formally launched on November 21, 2006 and is called Birkbeck Stratford.
The School of Continuing Education
The School of Continuing Education (aka the Faculty of Lifelong Learning), which specialised in extra-mural studies did not become an integral part of Birkbeck until 1988 but has a long separate history. It has now been integrated into the main College.In 1876, the London Society for the Extension of University Education was founded, boosting the aims of encouraging working people to undertake higher education. In 1903, it became the Department of Extra-Mural Studies of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
and it was integrated into Birkbeck in 1988. In 2009, the Faculty of Lifelong Learning was incorporated into the main College structure.
Campus and location
Woburn Square
Woburn Square is the smallest of the Bloomsbury Squares and owned by the University of London. Designed by Thomas Cubitt and built between 1829 and 1847, it is named after Woburn Abbey, the main country seat of the Dukes of Bedford, who developed much of Bloomsbury.The original construction was of...
in Bloomsbury
Bloomsbury
-Places:* Bloomsbury is an area in central London.* Bloomsbury , related local government unit* Bloomsbury, New Jersey, New Jersey, USA* Bloomsbury , listed on the NRHP in Maryland...
, with a number of other buildings on nearby streets. The School of Arts, including the Department of English & Humanities, is housed in Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf
Adeline Virginia Woolf was an English author, essayist, publisher, and writer of short stories, regarded as one of the foremost modernist literary figures of the twentieth century....
's former Gordon Square
Gordon Square
Gordon Square is in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, London, England . It was developed by Thomas Cubitt in the 1820s, as one of a pair with Tavistock Square, which is a block away and has the same dimensions...
residence in Bloomsbury. Other notable former residents of this house include Leslie Stephen
Leslie Stephen
Sir Leslie Stephen, KCB was an English author, critic and mountaineer, and the father of Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell.-Life:...
, Vanessa Bell
Vanessa Bell
Vanessa Bell was an English painter and interior designer, a member of the Bloomsbury group, and the sister of Virginia Woolf.- Biography and art :...
, John Maynard Keynes
John Maynard Keynes
John Maynard Keynes, Baron Keynes of Tilton, CB FBA , was a British economist whose ideas have profoundly affected the theory and practice of modern macroeconomics, as well as the economic policies of governments...
and Lydia Lopokova.
Many Birkbeck classes are taught at other locations across the Bloomsbury area. This is due to a combination of Birkbeck's widening participation
Widening participation
The widening participation in higher education is a major component of government education policy in the United Kingdom and Europe. It consists of an attempt to increase not only the numbers of young people entering higher education, but also the proportion from so-called "under-represented...
strategy to make higher education accessible and also because nearly all classes on one day are taught at the same time, resulting in heavy competition for limited space.
In 2006, it was announced that Birkbeck will be expanding into east London, in conjunction with the University of East London
University of East London
The University of East London is a university located in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, based at two campuses in Stratford and Docklands areas...
. Initially space will be rented as well as utilising the University of East London Stratford Campus, but the aim is to construct a dedicated facility in Stratford
Stratford, London
Stratford is a place in the London Borough of Newham, England. It is located east northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an agrarian settlement in the ancient parish of West Ham, which transformed into an industrial suburb...
. The project is known as Birkbeck Stratford
Birkbeck Stratford
Birkbeck Stratford is the name for a project to expand the provision of part-time Higher Education in east London, to be made by Birkbeck, University of London in conjunction with the University of East London...
.
Research and teaching
While part-time undergraduate teaching remains the focus and mandate of Birkbeck, the college has recently begun to focus on research in the arts and humanities.The Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities was established in 2004, with the renowned but controversial Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek
Slavoj Žižek
Slavoj Žižek is a Slovenian philosopher, critical theorist working in the traditions of Hegelianism, Marxism and Lacanian psychoanalysis. He has made contributions to political theory, film theory, and theoretical psychoanalysis....
appointed as International Director. According to its website, the Institute aims to, among other things, "engage with important public issues of our time through a series of open debates, lectures, seminars and conferences" and "foster and promote a climate of interdisciplinary research and collaboration among academics and researchers". The launch of the Institute wasn't without controversy, provoking an article in The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
newspaper titled "What have intellectuals ever done for the world?" which criticised the ostensible irrelevance and elitism of contemporary public intellectuals.
2004 also saw Birkbeck enter into a research and teaching collaboration with the Institute of Education
Institute of Education
The Institute of Education is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom specialised in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It is the largest education research body in the United Kingdom, with...
, jointly founding the London Knowledge Lab
London Knowledge Lab
London Knowledge Lab is a research centre in Bloomsbury, London. It was founded in 2004 as a collaboration between the Institute of Education and Birkbeck, University of London...
. This interdisciplinary research institute brings together social scientists and computer scientists to address research questions about technology and learning.
Meanwhile, the London Consortium
London Consortium
The London Consortium is a graduate school in the UK offering multidisciplinary Masters and Doctoral programs in the humanities and cultural studies at the University of London. It is administered by Birkbeck, University of London, one of the constituent colleges of the University of London, and...
graduate school — a collaboration between Birkbeck, the Tate Galleries
Tate Gallery
The Tate is an institution that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of British Art, and International Modern and Contemporary Art...
, the Institute of Contemporary Arts
Institute of Contemporary Arts
The Institute of Contemporary Arts is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. It is located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch...
, the Architectural Association, and, until 1999, the British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
- has been running since the mid-1990s, offering masters and doctoral degrees in the interdisciplinary humanities and cultural studies, resourced and jointly taught by all the participating institutions. Its permanent and adjunct faculty include figures such as Tom McCarthy
Tom McCarthy
Tom McCarthy can refer to :*Tom McCarthy , ice hockey player in the NHL*Tom McCarthy , ice hockey player in the NHL*Tom McCarthy Tom McCarthy can refer to :*Tom McCarthy (ice hockey), ice hockey player in the NHL*Tom McCarthy (ice hockey b. 1960), ice hockey player in the NHL*Tom McCarthy Tom...
, Colin MacCabe
Colin MacCabe
Colin MacCabe is a British writer and film producer. He is distinguished professor of English and film at the University of Pittsburgh, professor of English and humanities at Birkbeck, University of London, and a visiting professor at the University of Exeter....
, Laura Mulvey
Laura Mulvey
Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist. She was educated at St Hilda's College, Oxford. She is currently professor of film and media studies at Birkbeck, University of London...
, Steven Connor
Steven Connor
Steven Connor is the Academic Director of the London Consortium and Professor of Modern Literature and Theory at Birkbeck, University of London.- Biography :* Born: Bognor Regis, Sussex, in 1955....
, Marina Warner, Juliet Mitchell
Juliet Mitchell
Juliet Mitchell is a British Psychoanalyst and socialist feminist, who was a fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge and Professor of Psychoanalysis and Gender Studies at Cambridge University. In 2010, she's appointed to be the Director of the Expanded Doctoral School in Psychoanalytic Studies at...
, Stuart Hall
Stuart Hall (cultural theorist)
Stuart Hall is a cultural theorist and sociologist who has lived and worked in the United Kingdom since 1951. Hall, along with Richard Hoggart and Raymond Williams, was one of the founding figures of the school of thought that is now known as British Cultural Studies or The Birmingham School of...
, Roger Scruton
Roger Scruton
Roger Vernon Scruton is a conservative English philosopher and writer. He is the author of over 30 books, including Art and Imagination , Sexual Desire , The Aesthetics of Music , and A Political Philosophy: Arguments For Conservatism...
, Salman Rushdie, Tilda Swinton
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Mathilda "Tilda" Swinton is a British actress known for both arthouse and mainstream films. She has appeared in a number of films including The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Burn After Reading, The Beach, We Need to Talk About Kevin and was nominated for a Golden Globe for her...
as well as Žižek. Its current chair is Anthony Julius
Anthony Julius
Anthony Julius is a prominent British lawyer and academic, best known for his actions on behalf of Diana, Princess of Wales, Deborah Lipstadt and more recently Heather Mills...
.
Science research at Birkbeck has a notable tradition. Physicist David Bohm
David Bohm
David Joseph Bohm FRS was an American-born British quantum physicist who contributed to theoretical physics, philosophy, neuropsychology, and the Manhattan Project.-Youth and college:...
who made notable contributions to the theory of Quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic...
was professor of Theoretical Physics
Theoretical physics
Theoretical physics is a branch of physics which employs mathematical models and abstractions of physics to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena...
from 1961–87 and Nobel Laureates Aaron Klug
Aaron Klug
Sir Aaron Klug, OM, PRS is a Lithuanian-born British chemist and biophysicist, and winner of the 1982 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his development of crystallographic electron microscopy and his structural elucidation of biologically important nucleic acid-protein complexes.-Biography:Klug was...
and Derek Barton both worked in the faculty of crystallography
Crystallography
Crystallography is the experimental science of the arrangement of atoms in solids. The word "crystallography" derives from the Greek words crystallon = cold drop / frozen drop, with its meaning extending to all solids with some degree of transparency, and grapho = write.Before the development of...
. Birkbeck is part of the Institute of Structural Molecular Biology, which includes the Bloomsbury Centre for Structural biology
Structural biology
Structural biology is a branch of molecular biology, biochemistry, and biophysics concerned with the molecular structure of biological macromolecules, especially proteins and nucleic acids, how they acquire the structures they have, and how alterations in their structures affect their function...
, established in 1998. This is a collaborative venture between Birkbeck College and University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
and is a leading academic centre for translating gene sequences and determining protein structure
Protein structure
Proteins are an important class of biological macromolecules present in all organisms. Proteins are polymers of amino acids. Classified by their physical size, proteins are nanoparticles . Each protein polymer – also known as a polypeptide – consists of a sequence formed from 20 possible L-α-amino...
and function. It also includes the Bloomsbury Centre for Bioinformatics, a collaborative venture also between Birkbeck College and University College London for research into Bioinformatics
Bioinformatics
Bioinformatics is the application of computer science and information technology to the field of biology and medicine. Bioinformatics deals with algorithms, databases and information systems, web technologies, artificial intelligence and soft computing, information and computation theory, software...
, Genomics
Genomics
Genomics is a discipline in genetics concerning the study of the genomes of organisms. The field includes intensive efforts to determine the entire DNA sequence of organisms and fine-scale genetic mapping efforts. The field also includes studies of intragenomic phenomena such as heterosis,...
, Systems Biology
Systems biology
Systems biology is a term used to describe a number of trends in bioscience research, and a movement which draws on those trends. Proponents describe systems biology as a biology-based inter-disciplinary study field that focuses on complex interactions in biological systems, claiming that it uses...
, GRID computing
Grid computing
Grid computing is a term referring to the combination of computer resources from multiple administrative domains to reach a common goal. The grid can be thought of as a distributed system with non-interactive workloads that involve a large number of files...
and Text mining
Text mining
Text mining, sometimes alternately referred to as text data mining, roughly equivalent to text analytics, refers to the process of deriving high-quality information from text. High-quality information is typically derived through the devising of patterns and trends through means such as...
.
College
Birkbeck is often not included in British Newspaper University league tables, since these are usually based on the statistics for full-time undergraduates (of which Birkbeck had none in 2005-2006), but Birkbeck was ranked 13th in The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
Research Assessment Exercise
The Research Assessment Exercise is an exercise undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions...
league table and 26th by the Times Higher Education Supplements equivalent 2001 RAE league table. Birkbeck also appears in the Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Shanghai Jiao Tong University or SJTU), sometimes referred to as Shanghai Jiaotong University , is a top public research university located in Shanghai, China. Shanghai Jiao Tong University is known as one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in China...
's Top 500 World Universities ranking; the 2010-11 Times Higher Education World University Rankings lists Birkbeck at number 152 in the World.
The data also shows that Birkbeck is ranked 23rd in the UK and is rated above several large Russell Group
Russell Group
The Russell Group is a collaboration of twenty UK universities that together receive two-thirds of research grant and contract funding in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1994 to represent their interests to the government, parliament and other similar bodies...
universities.
On 23 September 2010, it was announced that Birkbeck has been shortlisted for the prestigious 2010 Times Higher Education University of the Year award.
Departmental
The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
Birkbeck's School of English and Humanities was rated 5* in the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise, as were the School of History, Classics and Archaeology, the School of Crystallography, and the section for Spanish and Latin American studies within the School of Languages, Linguistics and Culture, and the Dept. of Psychological Sciences in the School of Psychology—ranking these departments with, and in some cases above, Oxford and Cambridge.
Student life
As Birkbeck primarily offers part-time courses, often in the evenings, student life is less centralised than in other universities. It does not offer its own halls of residence, for instance, though Birkbeck students do have access to the University of London's intercollegiate halls.Birkbeck Students' Union offers a number of societies for students, as well as a football club that competes in the University of London league. It also provides student representation and support, a student magazine, a student shop and a bar. Birkbeck students also have access to the societies and clubs of the University of London Union
University of London Union
The University of London Union is the university-wide students' union for the University of London...
(whose building adjoins Birkbeck's Bloomsbury site). Accordingly, London Student
London Student
London Student is the newspaper of the University of London Union. It began publishing in 1979. It is an editorially independent publication with ultimate control over content and editorial appointments vested in the elected full-time Editor, who is currently Joe Rennison.It distributes 12,500...
distributes at the Union.
The college arms include a lamp
Oil lamp
An oil lamp is an object used to produce light continuously for a period of time using an oil-based fuel source. The use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and is continued to this day....
and an owl
Owl
Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
, symbolising the college's motto In nocte consilium (translated as "study by night"). Because of this, the student magazine was called Lamp and Owl. Its name was later changed to Lampanelle, and after briefly ceasing production in 2009 under the editorship of Zein Sufi, it was relaunched in 2010 by the Birkbeck Journalism Society.
The original name of the institution was the London Mechanics' Institute. For this reason, the annual literary magazine published by the Birkbeck MA Creative Writing programme is called The Mechanics' Institute Review
The Mechanics' Institute Review
The Mechanics' Institute Review is an annual literary anthology published by Birkbeck, University of London, as part of its MA Creative Writing course. The MIR Project Director is Julia Bell.- History :...
.
The college has entered teams in University Challenge
University Challenge
University Challenge is a British quiz programme that has aired since 1962. The format is based on the American show College Bowl, which ran on NBC radio from 1953 to 1957, and on NBC television from 1959 to 1970....
over the years, with varied results. In 1997, a team scored just 40 points - at that stage the lowest score since the series had been revived, though this has since been broken by New Hall, Cambridge
New Hall, Cambridge
Murray Edwards College is a women-only constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It was founded as "New Hall" in 1954, at a time when Cambridge had the lowest proportion of women undergraduates of any university in the United Kingdom, and when only two other colleges admitted women...
, the University of Bradford
University of Bradford
The University of Bradford is a British university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The University received its Royal Charter in 1966, making it the 40th University to be created in Britain, but its origins date back to the early 1800s...
and the University Challenge: The Professionals team of Members of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
. 1998 saw a reversal of fortunes when Birkbeck reached the final, losing to Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
. In 2003, Birkbeck again reached the final, facing another team of mature students from Cranfield University
Cranfield University
Cranfield University is a British postgraduate university based on two campuses, with a research-oriented focus. The main campus is at Cranfield, Bedfordshire and the second is the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom based at Shrivenham, Oxfordshire. The main campus is unique in the United...
. On this occasion, Birkbeck won.
Fellows
- Edward DaveyEdward DaveyEdward Jonathan "Ed" Davey is a British Liberal Democrat politician. He has been the Member of Parliament for Kingston and Surbiton since 1997, and in May 2010 was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...
Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Kingston and Surbiton - Julia GoodfellowJulia GoodfellowProfessor Dame Julia Mary Goodfellow, DBE, FMedSci, FInstP is Vice-Chancellor of the University of KentShe completed her undergraduate degree in physics at the University of Bristol and completed a PhD in biophysics at the Open University Research Unit in Oxford. She began her career at Birkbeck...
former Chief Executive of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council - Leonard Wolfson, Baron WolfsonLeonard Wolfson, Baron WolfsonSir Leonard Gordon Wolfson, 1st Baron Wolfson, 2nd Bt FRS was a British businessman, the former Chairman of GUS, and son of GUS magnate Sir Isaac Wolfson, 1st Baronet. He was Chairman of the Wolfson Foundation...
Notable people
- Derek Barton, organic chemist and Nobel Laureate for Chemistry
- Antony BeevorAntony BeevorAntony James Beevor, FRSL is a British historian, educated at Winchester College and Sandhurst. He studied under the famous military historian John Keegan. Beevor is a former officer with the 11th Hussars who served in England and Germany for five years before resigning his commission...
, historian - Julia BellJulia BellJulia Bell was a pioneering English human geneticist. She attended Girton College in Cambridge and took the Mathematical Tripos exam in 1901. But because women could not officially receive degrees from Oxford or Cambridge, she was awarded a master's degree at Trinity College, Dublin for her work...
, author - Marian BellMarian BellMarian Bell is a British economist, and was a member of the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee from June 2002 to June 2005....
, member of the Monetary Policy Committee - J. D. BernalJ. D. BernalJohn Desmond Bernal FRS was one of Britain’s best known and most controversial scientists, called "Sage" by his friends, and known for pioneering X-ray crystallography in molecular biology.-Origin and education:His family was Irish, of mixed Italian and Spanish/Portuguese Sephardic Jewish origin...
, pioneer of X-ray crystallography - Annie BesantAnnie BesantAnnie Besant was a prominent British Theosophist, women's rights activist, writer and orator and supporter of Irish and Indian self rule.She was married at 19 to Frank Besant but separated from him over religious differences. She then became a prominent speaker for the National Secular Society ...
, prominent theosophist - Annette Karmiloff-Smith, prominent developmental psychologist
- Simon BirdSimon BirdSimon Antony Bird is an actor, writer and comedian. He is best known for playing Will McKenzie in E4’s BAFTA-winning TV comedy The Inbetweeners.-Early life:...
, star of The Inbetweeners - George BirkbeckGeorge BirkbeckGeorge Birkbeck was a British doctor, academic, philanthropist, pioneer in adult education and founder of Birkbeck College.-Biography:...
(1776–1841), doctor, academic, philanthropist and pioneer in adult education, founder of Birkbeck - Patrick Blackett, professor and Nobel Laureate for Physics, 1948
- Tessa BlackstoneTessa Blackstone, Baroness BlackstoneTessa Ann Vosper Blackstone, Baroness Blackstone , PC, born 1942, is an English politician and university administrator.-Academic background:Blackstone was educated at Ware Grammar School for Girls and the London School of Economics, where she gained a doctorate...
Master of the College, House of Lords, ex-government minister, Vice-Chancellor of University of Greenwich - Tom BlundellTom BlundellSir Tom Leon Blundell, FRS, FMedSci is a British biochemist and science administrator. Up until 2009, he was the Sir William Dunn Professor of Biochemistry and head of the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge....
, crystallographer, Fellow of the Royal Society - David BohmDavid BohmDavid Joseph Bohm FRS was an American-born British quantum physicist who contributed to theoretical physics, philosophy, neuropsychology, and the Manhattan Project.-Youth and college:...
, quantum physicist - Andrew Donald BoothAndrew Donald BoothAndrew Donald Booth was a British electrical engineer, physicist and computer scientist who led the invention of the magnetic drum memory for computers and invented Booth's multiplication algorithm....
, head of Numerical Automation - Ian ChristieIan Christie (film scholar)Ian Christie is a British film scholar. He has written several books including studies of the works of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, Martin Scorsese and the development of cinema. He is a regular contributor to Sight & Sound magazine and a frequent broadcaster...
, professor - Andrea ChristofidouAndrea ChristofidouAndrea Christofidou is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Keble College and Lecturer in Philosophy at Worcester College, Oxford. She has taught philosophy at the University of Oxford since 1992, and at Keble since 2001. She previously held lectureships at New College, Balliol, and Wadham College.She...
, philosopher - Steven ConnorSteven ConnorSteven Connor is the Academic Director of the London Consortium and Professor of Modern Literature and Theory at Birkbeck, University of London.- Biography :* Born: Bognor Regis, Sussex, in 1955....
, professor - Diana CooleDiana CooleDiana Coole is Professor of Political and Social Theory in the School of Politics and Sociology, Birkbeck, University of London. Her main field of research covers, broadly, contemporary continental philosophy with special interests in poststructuralism , and feminism and gender in political thought...
, social scientist - Beth CordinglyBeth CordinglyBeth Cordingly is an English actress, most famous for her role as PC Kerry Young in the ITV police drama The Bill.-Biography:...
, actress - David CoxDavid Cox (statistician)Sir David Roxbee Cox FRS is a prominent British statistician.-Early years:Cox studied mathematics at St. John's College, Cambridge and obtained his PhD from the University of Leeds in 1949, advised by Henry Daniels and Bernard Welch.-Career:He was employed from 1944 to 1946 at the Royal Aircraft...
, statistician - Bernard CrickBernard CrickSir Bernard Rowland Crick was a British political theorist and democratic socialist whose views were often summarised as "politics is ethics done in public"...
, political theorist - H. R. Ellis DavidsonH. R. Ellis DavidsonDr. Hilda Roderick Ellis Davidson was an English antiquarian and academic, writing in particular on Germanic paganism and Celtic paganism. Davidson used literary, historical and archaeological evidence to discuss the stories and customs of Northern Europe...
, academic - Jennifer DonnellyJennifer DonnellyJennifer Donnelly is a historical fiction author best-known for her novel A Northern Light . She has also written The Tea Rose, The Winter Rose, and Revolution, as well as Humble Pie, a picture book for children...
, writer - Costas DouzinasCostas DouzinasCostas Douzinas is Professor of Law and Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at Birkbeck, University of London. He is well known for his work in Human Rights, Aesthetics, Postmodern Legal Theory and Political Philosophy...
, law professor - T. S. EliotT. S. EliotThomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
, Nobel Laureate for Literature, 1948 - Tracey EminTracey EminTracey Karima Emin RA is a British artist of English and Turkish Cypriot origin. She is part of the group known as Britartists or YBAs ....
, artist - Richard J. EvansRichard J. EvansRichard John Evans is a British academic and historian, prominently known for his history of Germany.-Life:Evans was born in London, of Welsh parentage, and is now Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Cambridge and President of Wolfson College...
, Regius Professor of Modern History at Cambridge - Nissim EzekielNissim Ezekiel' was an Indian Jewish poet, playwright, editor and art-critic. He was a foundational figure in postcolonial India's literary history, specifically for Indian writing in English....
, professor, poet - Dame Millicent FawcettMillicent FawcettDame Millicent Garrett Fawcett, GBE was an English suffragist and an early feminist....
, suffragist - Orlando FigesOrlando FigesOrlando Figes is a British historian of Russia, and Professor of History at Birkbeck, University of London.-Overview:Figes is the son of the feminist writer Eva Figes. His sister is the author and editor Kate Figes. He attended William Ellis School in north London from 1971-78...
, history professor - Ben FineBen FineFor the New York Times reporter see Benjamin FineBen Fine is Professor of Economics at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies. He is the author of a number of works in the broad tradition of Marxist economics, and has made contributions on economic imperialism and social...
, professor - Mark Fox, journalistJournalistA journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and public policy analyst - Rosalind FranklinRosalind FranklinRosalind Elsie Franklin was a British biophysicist and X-ray crystallographer who made critical contributions to the understanding of the fine molecular structures of DNA, RNA, viruses, coal and graphite...
, crystallographer - Hugh GaitskellHugh GaitskellHugh Todd Naylor Gaitskell CBE was a British Labour politician, who held Cabinet office in Clement Attlee's governments, and was the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1955, until his death in 1963.-Early life:He was born in Kensington, London, the third and youngest...
, lecturer - Marcus GarveyMarcus GarveyMarcus Mosiah Garvey, Jr., ONH was a Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator who was a staunch proponent of the Black Nationalism and Pan-Africanism movements, to which end he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League...
, Harlem Renaissance Writer - Julia GoldsworthyJulia GoldsworthyJulia Anne Goldsworthy is a Special Adviser in HM Treasury to Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander. She was the Member of Parliament for Falmouth and Camborne from 2005 until she lost her seat by 66 votes to George Eustice, the Conservative candidate in the 2010 general election in...
, Liberal Democrat MP for Falmouth and Camborne - A. C. GraylingA. C. GraylingAnthony Clifford Grayling is a British philosopher. In 2011 he founded and became the first Master of New College of the Humanities, a private undergraduate college in London. Until June 2011, he was Professor of Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London, where he taught from 1991...
, philosopher - Bear GryllsBear GryllsEdward Michael "Bear" Grylls is an English adventurer, writer and television presenter. He is best known for his television series Man vs. Wild, known as Born Survivor in the United Kingdom...
, adventurer - John Joseph HaldaneJohn Joseph HaldaneJohn Joseph Haldane is a leading Scottish philosopher, commentator and broadcaster. He is a Papal Adviser to the Vatican. He is credited with coining the term Analytical Thomism, and is himself a Thomist in the analytic tradition....
, philosopher - Kenneth HareKenneth HareFredrick Kenneth Hare, CC, O.Ont, FRSC was a Canadian climatologist and academic, who researched atmospheric carbon dioxide, climate change, drought, and arid zone climates and was a strong advocate for preserving the natural environment.- Biography :Born in Wiltshire, England, he received a...
, Master of the College - Basil HileyBasil HileyBasil Hiley, born 1935, is a British quantum physicist and professor emeritus of the University of London.- Work :Hiley published a paper in 1961 on the random walk of a macromolecule, which was followed by further papers on the Ising model, and lattice constant systems defined in graph theoretical...
, quantum physicist and emeritus professor - Paul HirstPaul HirstPaul Hirst was a British sociologist and political theorist. He became Professor of Social Theory at Birkbeck, University of London....
, professor - Eric HobsbawmEric HobsbawmEric John Ernest Hobsbawm , CH, FBA, is a British Marxist historian, public intellectual, and author...
, professor and President of the College - DidoDido (singer)Dido Florian Cloud de Bounevialle O'Malley Armstrong , known as Dido, is an English singer-songwriter.Dido shot to worldwide success with her debut album, No Angel...
, award winning singer - Mark JohnsonMark H. Johnson (professor)Mark Johnson is a British cognitive neuroscientist who since 1997 is head of the Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development at Birkbeck, University of London....
, professor - Annette Karmiloff-SmithAnnette Karmiloff-SmithAnnette Karmiloff-Smith is a professorial research fellow at the Developmental Neurocognition Lab at Birkbeck, University of London. Before moving to Birbeck, she was Head of the Neurocognitive Development Unit at Institute of Child Health, University College, London...
, professor
- Kenneth HolmesKenneth HolmesKenneth Charles Holmes FRS is a British scientist.He was born in Hammersmith, London. He was a former colleague of Rosalind Franklin at Birkbeck College with Aaron Klug, and John Finch and moved to the Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge in 1962...
, crystallographer - Zhu HuaZhu HuaZhù Huá , female, is Professor of Applied Linguistics and Communication, at Birkbeck College, University of London. She was born in China, of Manchu parents, and studied telecommunication and English at Beijing Post and Telecommunication University （北京邮电大学）...
, applied linguist - Vernon IngramVernon IngramVernon M. Ingram, Ph.D., FRS was a German American professor of biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.-Biography:Ingram was born in Breslau, Lower Silesia...
, Fellow of the Royal Society - C. E. M. JoadC. E. M. JoadCyril Edwin Mitchinson Joad was an English philosopher and broadcasting personality. He is most famous for his appearance on The Brains Trust, an extremely popular BBC Radio wartime discussion programme...
, professor - William JoyceWilliam JoyceWilliam Joyce , nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an Irish-American fascist politician and Nazi propaganda broadcaster to the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He was hanged for treason by the British as a result of his wartime activities, even though he had renounced his British nationality...
, Deputy Leader of the British Union of Fascists and Nazi wartime broadcaster - Anthony JuliusAnthony JuliusAnthony Julius is a prominent British lawyer and academic, best known for his actions on behalf of Diana, Princess of Wales, Deborah Lipstadt and more recently Heather Mills...
, visiting professor - Aaron KlugAaron KlugSir Aaron Klug, OM, PRS is a Lithuanian-born British chemist and biophysicist, and winner of the 1982 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his development of crystallographic electron microscopy and his structural elucidation of biologically important nucleic acid-protein complexes.-Biography:Klug was...
, crystallographer and Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, 1982 - Toby LittToby LittToby Litt is an English writer, born in Bedford in 1968. He studied at Bedford Modern School, read English at Worcester College, Oxford and studied Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia where he was taught by Malcolm Bradbury....
, author, lecturer - James LovelockJames LovelockJames Lovelock, CH, CBE, FRS is an independent scientist, environmentalist and futurologist who lives in Devon, England. He is best known for proposing the Gaia hypothesis, which postulates that the biosphere is a self-regulating entity with the capacity to keep our planet healthy by controlling...
, student and developer of the Gaia HypothesisGaia hypothesisThe Gaia hypothesis, also known as Gaia theory or Gaia principle, proposes that all organisms and their inorganic surroundings on Earth are closely integrated to form a single and self-regulating complex system, maintaining the conditions for life on the planet.The scientific investigation of the... - Ramsay MacDonaldRamsay MacDonaldJames Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
, first Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom - John McDonnell MP, politician
- Denis MacShaneDenis MacShaneDenis MacShane is a British politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Rotherham since the 1994 by-election and served as the Minister for Europe from 2002 until 2005, as well as being a current Policy Council member for Labour Friends of Israel.On 14 October 2010, it was announced...
, politician - Leonard MandelLeonard MandelLeonard Mandel was the Lee DuBridge Professor Emeritus of Physics and Optics at the University of Rochester when he died at the age of 73 at his home in Pittsford, New York. He contributed immensely to theoretical and experimental optics...
, nuclear physicist - John Redcliffe Maud, Master of the College
- Mark MazowerMark MazowerMark A. Mazower is a British historian. His expertise is Greece, the Balkans and, more generally, 20th century Europe. He is currently a professor of history at Columbia University in New York City.-Career:...
, professor - Louis MordellLouis MordellLouis Joel Mordell was a British mathematician, known for pioneering research in number theory. He was born in Philadelphia, USA, in a Jewish family of Lithuanian extraction...
, researcher - Laura MulveyLaura MulveyLaura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist. She was educated at St Hilda's College, Oxford. She is currently professor of film and media studies at Birkbeck, University of London...
, professor - Sir Timothy O'SheaTimothy O'SheaSir Timothy Michael Martin O'Shea, FRSE is the current Vice-Chancellor and Principal of The University of Edinburgh.-Biography:...
, Master of the College, Principal of the University of Edinburgh - Nerina PallotNerina PallotNerina Pallot is a platinum selling, BRIT Award and Ivor Novello Award nominated British singer and songwriter. Although born in London, Pallot was brought up in Jersey to a half-French father and mother from Allahabad, India.-Early life:Pallot played piano as a child and wrote her first song...
, singer - Nikolaus PevsnerNikolaus PevsnerSir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
, professor - Ben PimlottBen PimlottBenjamin John Pimlott, known as Ben Pimlott , was a British historian of the post-war period in Britain...
, professor - Ehsan MasoodEhsan MasoodEhsan Masood is a science writer, journalist and broadcaster. He is the editor of Research Fortnight and and teaches international science policy at Imperial College London.- Biography :...
, science writer and Editor of Research FortnightResearch FortnightResearch Fortnight is a subscription newsletter covering research policy in the UK.Research Fortnight was founded in 1994 by William Cullerne Bown, then a reporter at New Scientist... - Ernest Millington, politician
- Roger PenroseRoger PenroseSir Roger Penrose OM FRS is an English mathematical physicist and Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford and Emeritus Fellow of Wadham College...
, theoretical physicist - Arthur Wing PineroArthur Wing PineroSir Arthur Wing Pinero was an English actor and later an important dramatist and stage director.-Biography:...
, actor and dramatist - Lucy RiallLucy RiallLucy Riall is Professor of History at Birkbeck, University of London.Riall studied at the London School of Economics and the University of Cambridge. She was a lecturer in Modern European history at the University of Essex before moving to Birkbeck...
, historian - J. Philippe RushtonJ. Philippe RushtonJean Philippe Rushton is a Canadian psychology professor at the University of Western Ontario who is most widely known for his work on racial group differences, such as research on race and intelligence, race and crime, and the application of r/K selection theory to humans in his book Race,...
, eminent psychologist - Richard SambrookRichard SambrookRichard Sambrook is Global Vice Chairman and Chief Content Officer of the Edelman public relations agency. For 30 years, until February 2010, he was a BBC journalist and news executive, becoming successively Director of BBC Sport, BBC News and, latterly, Director of BBC World Service and Global...
, broadcaster - Frank SandoFrank SandoFrank Dennis Sando is a retired British World Cross-Country Champion. Regarded as one of Britain's most accomplished athletes, Frank was a dominant force throughout the 1950s, winning the International Cross-Country Championship in 1955 and 1957, and representing Great Britain in two consecutive...
, former International Cross-Country Champion - Andy SaullAndy SaullAndy Saull is a rugby union player who plays at flanker for Saracens F.C. in the Aviva Premiership.He was educated at Bancroft's School and Birkbeck, University of London....
, rugby player - Roger ScrutonRoger ScrutonRoger Vernon Scruton is a conservative English philosopher and writer. He is the author of over 30 books, including Art and Imagination , Sexual Desire , The Aesthetics of Music , and A Political Philosophy: Arguments For Conservatism...
, professor - Helen SharmanHelen SharmanHelen Patricia Sharman, OBE PhD , is a British chemist. She was the first Briton in space, visiting the Mir space station aboard Soyuz TM-12 in 1991....
, chemist and cosmonaut - Joost SmiersJoost SmiersJoost Smiers is a leading expert on decision-making in cultural matters and new approaches to cultural and intellectual property. He is perhaps best known for his proposals to eliminate copyright and to break up large publishers, music producers, and movie studios in order to encourage cultural...
, academic - Nick SmithNick Smith (British politician)Nicholas Desmond John Smith , known as Nick Smith, is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Blaenau Gwent since the May 2010 election...
, politician - Vaughan SmithVaughan SmithDuring the 90s Smith also ran Frontline News TV, an agency set up in 1989 to represent the interests of young video journalists who wanted to push the envelope of their profession. The workings of Frontline News TV captured the imagination of a generation of young freelancers and was described by...
, soldier, journalist, cameraman, and social entrepreneur - William Stanley, Victorian inventor, engineer and philanthropist
- Laurie TaylorLaurie Taylor (sociologist)Laurence John "Laurie" Taylor is an English sociologist and radio presenter originally from Liverpool.-Academic career:After attending Roman Catholic schools including the direct grant grammar school St Mary's College in Crosby at the same time as Liverpool poet, Roger McGough, Taylor first...
, sociologist - Ronald TressRonald TressRonald C Tress, CBE, BSc, DSc, LLD, DSc, DUniv, DCL.*1941 Economic adviser to the British War Cabinet for four years*1951 Professor of Political Economy at the University of Bristol...
, economist - Kitty UssherKitty UssherKatharine Anne "Kitty" Ussher is a British economist and former Labour Party politician.After training as an economist, she was elected Member of Parliament for Burnley from 2005 until 2010, succeeding Peter Pike. Ussher formerly held the position of Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury in Gordon...
, politician - Sidney James Webb, 1st Baron PassfieldSidney James Webb, 1st Baron PassfieldSidney James Webb, 1st Baron Passfield PC OM was a British socialist, economist, reformer and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. He was one of the early members of the Fabian Society in 1884, along with George Bernard Shaw...
, founder of the London School of Economics - Alfred Russel WallaceAlfred Russel WallaceAlfred Russel Wallace, OM, FRS was a British naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist and biologist...
, co-founder of the theory of EvolutionEvolutionEvolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
, father of BiogeographyBiogeographyBiogeography is the study of the distribution of species , organisms, and ecosystems in space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities vary in a highly regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, isolation and habitat area...
was a student at the London Mechanics' Institute later Birkbeck - Professor Li Wei, academic, linguist
- Ralph Vaughan WilliamsRalph Vaughan WilliamsRalph Vaughan Williams OM was an English composer of symphonies, chamber music, opera, choral music, and film scores. He was also a collector of English folk music and song: this activity both influenced his editorial approach to the English Hymnal, beginning in 1904, in which he included many...
, lecturer - Barbara Wootton, lecturer
- Tony WrightTony Wright (Cannock Chase MP)Dr. Anthony Wayland Wright is a British Labour Party politician and author, who was the Member of Parliament for Cannock Chase from 1997 to 2010...
, politician, distinguished professor at Birkbeck - Samir El-YoussefSamir El-YoussefSamir El-Youssef is a Palestinian writer and critic, who was born in Rashidieh, a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon, where he lived until he was ten, before moving to Sidon. El-Youssef's father is a Sunni and his mother is from the only Shi'ite Palestinian family...
, writer - Kim ThomsonKim ThomsonKim Thomson is an English actress who has appeared on stage, television and film since the early 1980s in both the United Kingdom and the United States.-Early life:...
, stage,film and television actress - Slavoj ŽižekSlavoj ŽižekSlavoj Žižek is a Slovenian philosopher, critical theorist working in the traditions of Hegelianism, Marxism and Lacanian psychoanalysis. He has made contributions to political theory, film theory, and theoretical psychoanalysis....
, philosopher