University of Kent
Encyclopedia
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, (abbreviated as Cantuar. for post-nominals) is a public
research university based in Kent
, United Kingdom
. It was founded in 1965 and is regarded as one of the UK's "plate glass universities
".
The University of Kent's main site is a rural campus near Canterbury situated within 300 acres of park land, which houses over 4,300 students. The university has additional UK sites in Medway and Tonbridge, and postgraduate centres in Brussels and Paris. In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise the University of Kent was placed 24th out of 118 participating institutions in terms of the best, or 4*, research (according to the RAE league tables in The Times Higher Education Supplement).
The University of Kent is ranked amongst the top 25 institutions in the United Kingdom at 23rd place. According to the Telegraph
, just under 30,000 students applied to the University of Kent through UCAS and just 5,242 were accepted in 2010 - meaning applicants approximately had a 17.5% success rate. The average UCAS points offer given for 2009/10 was 328 or ABB-AAB.
Kent is also a member of the Santander Group of european universities encouraging social and economic development.
was first considered in 1947, when an anticipated growth in student numbers led several localities to seek the creation of a new university, including Kent. However, the plans came to nothing.
A decade later both population growth and greater demand for university places led to new considerations. In 1959 Kent County Council explored the possibilities of a university through its Education Committee, formally accepting the proposal unanimously on 24 February 1960. Two months later the Education Committee agreed to seek a site at or near Canterbury, given the historical associations of the city, subject to the support of Canterbury City Council. By 1962 a site was found at Beverley Farm, straddling the then boundary between the City of Canterbury and the administrative county
of Kent. The University was granted its Royal Charter
on 4 January 1965 and the first students arrived in the October of that year. On 30 March 1966 Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent was formally installed as the first Chancellor
.
The university's original name, chosen in 1962, was the University of Kent at Canterbury, reflecting the fact that the campus straddled the boundary between the county borough
of Canterbury
and Kent County Council
. At the time it was the normal practice for universities to be named after the town or city whose boundaries they were in, with both "University of Kent" and "University of Canterbury" initially proposed. The name adopted reflected the support of both the city and county authorities, as well as the existence of the University of Canterbury
in New Zealand
, which officially opposed the use of a name too similar to its own. The abbreviation UKC became a popular abbreviation for the university. Part of the original reasoning for the name disappeared when local government reforms in the 1970s
resulted in the Canterbury campus falling entirely within the City of Canterbury
, which no longer has county borough status, and Kent County Council.
The University of Kent at Canterbury was envisaged as being a collegiate
establishment, with most students living in one of the colleges on campus, and as specialising in inter-disciplinary
studies in all fields. Over the years, changing demands have largely destroyed this original concept, leading to the present state, which is nearer the norm for a British University. However, the four original colleges - Darwin, Eliot, Keynes and Rutherford - remain, each with their own Master, and new college, Woolf, opened in 2008.
The university grew at a rapid rate throughout the 1960s, with three colleges and many other buildings on campus being completed by the end of the decade. The 1970s saw further construction, but the university also encountered the biggest physical problem in its history. The university had been built above a tunnel on the disused Canterbury and Whitstable Railway
. In July 1974 the tunnel collapsed, damaging part of the Cornwallis Building, which sank nearly a metre within about an hour on the evening of 11 July. Fortunately, the university had insurance against subsidence, so it was able to pay for the south-west corner of the building to be demolished and replaced by a new wing at the other end of the building.
In 1982 the university opened the University Centre at Tonbridge (now the University of Kent at Tonbridge) for its School of Continuing Education
, helping to enhance the availability of teaching across the county.
During the 1990s and 2000s the University expanded beyond its original campus. It now has campuses in Medway
, Tonbridge
and Brussels
, and works in partnership with Canterbury College
, West Kent College
, South Kent College
and MidKent College
. In 2003 the title was changed to University of Kent. University of Kent at Canterbury and UKC are still used to refer to the Canterbury site, with other variants such as University of Kent at Medway and University of Kent at Brussels in use for the other sites. The term UKC is also still heavily used by both students and alumni for the University as a whole.
In the 2000s the university entered a collaboration named Universities at Medway
with the University of Greenwich
, Mid Kent College and Canterbury Christ Church University
to deliver university provision in the Medway
area. This led to the development of the University of Kent at Medway, opened from 2001. Initially based at Mid-Kent College, a new joint campus opened in 2004. As a consequence of the expansion outside Canterbury the university's name was formally changed to the University of Kent on 1 April 2003.
In 2007 the university was rebranded with a new logo and website. The logo was chosen following consultation with existing university students and those in sixth form
s across the country.
The proposed changes to UK and EU undergraduate tuition fees will not apply to international student fees. Check the Kent Tuition Fee FAQ here: http://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/funding/undergraduate/costs/faq.html
campus
covers 300 acres (1.2 km²) and is in an elevated position just over two miles (3 km) from the city centre. It currently has approximately 12,000 full-time and 6,200 part-time students and some 600 academic and research staff.
In addition to the 5 main colleges, the following 2 associate colleges:
There was much discussion about the names adopted for most of the colleges with the following alternative names all in consideration at one point or another:
(Both Becket and Tyler were eventually used as the names for residential buildings on campuses and the building housing both the Architecture and Anthropology departments is named Marlowe.)
Each college has residential rooms, lecture
theatres, study rooms, computer
rooms and social areas. The intention of the colleges was that they should not be just Halls of Residence, but complete academic communities. Each college has its own bar
, all rebuilt on a larger scale, and originally its own dining hall (only Rutherford has a functioning dining hall; Darwin's is hired out for conferences and events; Keynes's was closed in 2000 and converted into academic space; and Eliot's was closed in 2006). It was expected that each college (more were planned) would have around 600 students as members, with an equivalent proportion of staff, with half the students living within the college itself and the rest coming onto campus to eat and study within their colleges. Many facilities, ranging from accommodation, tutorials and alumni relations, would be handled on a college basis. With no planned academic divisions below the Faculty level, the colleges would be main focus of students' lives and there would be no units of a similar or smaller size to provide a rival focus of loyalties.
This vision of a collegiate university has increasingly fallen away. The funding for colleges did not keep pace with the growth in student numbers, with the result that only four colleges were built. In later years when there was heavy student demand for scarce accommodation in Canterbury the solution was found in building additional on-campus accommodation but not in the form of further colleges. The hopes that students living off campus would stay around to eat dinner in their colleges were not met, whilst the abolition of college amenities fees removed students' direct stake in their colleges. With the growth of specialist subject departments as well as of other university wide facilities, more and more of the role of colleges was transferred to the central university. Accommodation and catering were transferred to the centralised University of Kent at Canterbury Hospitality (UKCH).
Today the University cannot be considered collegiate
in any true sense - applications are made to the University as a whole, and many of the colleges rely on each other for day-to-day operation. Academic departments have no formal ties to colleges other than those that are located within particular college buildings due to availability of space, with lectures, seminars and tutorials taking place wherever there is an available room rather than on a college basis. Many students are allocated accommodation in their respective college, but some are housed in developments with no defined collegiate link whilst others are housed in different colleges. In addition to these college accommodations there are also:
A fifth college, named Woolf College
after the writer Virginia Woolf
, was opened in 2008. The new college accommodates only postgraduate and mature students.
(named after Dr Geoffrey Templeman, the University's first Vice-Chancellor) contains over a million items in stock including book
s, journals, video
s, DVD
s, and archive materials (for example, a full text of The Times
from 1785 onwards), yet it is still only half its planned size. It has a materials fund of approximately £1million a year, and adds 12,000 items every year. It is open every day in term time. It receives 800,000 visits a year, with approximately half a million loans per annum.
It also houses the British Cartoon Archive, (established 1975) a national collection of, mainly, newspaper cartoons, with over 90,000 images catalogued.
which helped fund its construction. The Gulbenkian complex also hosts a cafe/ bar and restaurant facility open to students, staff and the general public.
The Gulbenkian Cinema is an independent cinema in the Gulbenkian complex open to students and the general public. It is Kent's regional film theatre showing new mainstream and non mainstream releases as well as archive and foreign language films not otherwise available in the region. In the daytime the cinema is used as a lecture theatre for University students.
Additionally, a £1.5 million sports facility called the Sport Centre was completed in 2003. Its facilities include tennis
and squash
courts, hockey
and football
pitches, a state of the art gym
nasium, a cardio theatre, a dance studio, a multi-purpose sports hall and a fair trade
cafe, but no swimming pool.
There are eight dining areas on campus:
In addition to these main eating outlets there are many vending machines and some bars.
In 2010 the campus nightclub The Venue, was refurbished and modernised. The upstairs area was transformed into a live music venue, formally known as The Lighthouse and now called The Attic. Both established and local bands and DJs are featured throughout the term. The Venue is open Wednesday- Saturday, The Attic is open Monday- Saturday.
The Canterbury innovation centre launched at Kent in 2010.
The closest railway station to the campus is Canterbury West which is, as of 2009, served by Southeastern
High Speed trains. High Speed trains connect Canterbury with London St Pancras International in 56 minutes. These services stop at Ashford International en route, thus providing a direct connection to Eurostar services to France and Belgium. Standard Southeastern services also connect Canterbury West and Canterbury East Stations with London Victoria and Charing Cross
. Both of the Canterbury stations can be accessed by the UniBus service.
The campus is also served by two National Express coach services (Route 007) to/from London each day, with further services operating from Canterbury bus station
in the Medway Towns
. The following year the University of Kent at Medway formally opened, initially based at Mid-Kent College. By 2004 a new campus for the university had been established in the old Chatham Dockyard
, sharing a campus with Canterbury Christchurch University and University of Greenwich
.
The campus accommodation was finished in late 2009 (called Liberty Quays), and caters for over 600 students. The accommodation building includes a Tesco Metro, Subway, and Domino's Pizza.
The University of Kent and Medway Park Leisure Centre have gone a into multi-million pound partnership to provide high quality leisure facilities for university students and the general public. Medway Park was re-opened in 2011 by Princess Anne
for use as a training venue for the 2012 London Olympics.
in Tonbridge
, aiming to make teaching available across the entire county of Kent. Development of the campus has continued almost constantly, with many new buildings added in the 1980s and 1990s. The campus is now called the University of Kent at Tonbridge.
The original plan was to have no academic sub-divisions within the three faculties (initially Humanities, Social Sciences and Natural Sciences) and to incorporate an interdisciplinary element to all degrees through common first year courses ("Part I") in each faculty, followed by specialist study in the second and final years ("Part II"). The lack of Departments encouraged the development of courses that crossed traditional divides, such as Chemical Physics, Chemistry with Control Engineering, Biological Chemistry and Environmental Physical Science.
However the interdisciplinary approach proved increasingly complex for two reasons. The levels of specialisation at A Levels meant that many students had not studied particular subjects for some years and this made it impossible to devise a course that both covered areas unstudied by some and did not bore others. This proved an especial problem in Natural Sciences, where many Mathematics students had not studied Chemistry at A Level and vice versa.
Additionally many subjects, particularly those in the Social Sciences, were not taught at A Level and required the first year as a grounding in the subject rather than an introduction to several different new subjects. Problems were especially encountered in the Faculty of Natural Sciences where the differing demands of Mathematics and physical sciences led to two almost completely separate programmes and student bases. In 1970 this led to the creation of the School of Mathematical Studies, standing outside the Faculties. The addition of other subjects led to increased pressure on common Part I programmes and increasingly students took more specialised Part I courses designed to prepare them for Part II study.
The University now has the Faculties further divided into 18 Departments and Schools, ranging from the School of English to the Department of Biosciences, and from the Kent Law School to the Department of Economics. Also of note is the University's Brussels School of International Studies
, located in Brussels
, Belgium
. The School offers Master's degree
s in international relations
theory and international conflict analysis, along with an LLM
in international law
. In 2005 a new department, The Kent School of Architecture, began teaching its first students. In 2008, Wye College
came under Kent's remit, in joint partnership with Imperial College London
.
The University of Kent's coat of arms
was granted by the College of Arms
in September 1967. The white horse of Kent
is taken from the arms of the County of Kent
(and can also be seen on the Flag of Kent
). The three Cornish choughs, originally belonging to the arms of Thomas Becket
, were taken from the arms of the City of Canterbury
. The Crest depicts the West Gate of Canterbury with a symbolic flow of water, presumably the Great Stour
, below it. Two golden Bishops' Crosier
s in the shape of a St. Andrews Cross
are shown in front of it. The supporters - lions with the sterns of golden ships - are taken from the arms of the Cinque Ports
.
The Coat of Arms is now formally used only for degree certificates, degree programmes and some merchandise, as a result of the University seeking a consistent identity branding.
University League Tables (published in 2011) placed Kent's ranking at 23rd in the UK, while The Times
Good University Guide 2011 (published 2010) puts Kent in 39th place. The Independent
(published in 2011) puts Kent in 34th place nationally. (There are some 125 ranked university institutions in the UK).
According to many sources, the requirements to get into The University of Kent have increased dramatically, ranging from AAA (Applied Psychology) and AAB (Law and Actuarial Science), and within the Business School, requirements changing from points based to grades based with the average for Business at ABB and Economics AAB. The Complete University Guide shows that the average number of tariff points to get in are around 329 UCAS points (ABB-AAB) in 2012. An overwhelming majority of Kent's 33 subjects are placed nationally within the top 30 (82%), with 3 subject areas in the top 10.
The National Student Survey
in 2011 placed Kent in 3rd in London and the South-East for student satisfaction. In addition, Kent has been voted into a top 20 position for the majority of its subjects and has 14 subjects in the top 10 based on overall student satisfaction nationally.
In addition, The Complete University Guide - in association with The Independent
2011 found that Kent ranked 19th for Accounting and Finance, and in 2012 13th for Psychology. Furthermore, The Times Good University Guide ranked the University of Kent 20th for English in 2011
The students of the Franco-British double-degree programme receive, at the end of the fourth year, the Bachelor of Arts
(BA) degree from the University of Kent, the Diplôme by the IEP of Lille and, at the end of the fifth year, either the Master of Arts
(MA) degree in Canterbury or in Brussels or the Master delivered by the IEP of Lille, chosen between 14 parcours de formation by the IEP of Lille.
the University of Kent was placed 24th out of 118 participating institutions in terms of the best, or ★★★★, research (according to the RAE league tables in The Times Higher Education Supplement
).
, Pendulum
, DJ Hype
, Goldie
, the former boxer Nigel Benn
, Starsky & Hutch original Huggy Bear
, the Scratch Perverts
, members of B*Witched and Tim Westwood
. In recent years it has also played host to Chesney Hawkes, Wagner (of X Factor,) Nero, Santero. The union, having organised the Kent Summerball has managed to secure Dizzee Rascal, Florence and the Machine and McFly to headline in recently, being supported by the likes of Feeder, Tinie Tempah and Tinchy Stryder.
In the early 1980s the Students' Union had a strong reputation for live music and played host to such acts as U2
, Depeche Mode
, Duran Duran
, The Smiths
', Echo & the Bunnymen
and Elvis Costello
, and more recently Chas and Dave. With the development in summer 2010 of the Attic, a new live music venue above the Venue nightclub, the Union seeks to host more live acts than ever before with Devlin, Toploader, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. and Zane Lowe appearing to name a few.
The website itself was similar to other social networking sites such as Facebook
and MySpace
. Members were able to create a profile which included information about their course of study, personal details and interests as well as upload photos. The mainstay of The Student Bar was the ability to create and join groups for discussion on a range of topics. It created a closer unity between students at the university that wasn't usually provided for students prior to 2006 and added an extra level of socialising. The Student Bar was opened to students at other universities in the UK but is now defunct.
cy consisting of permanent Anglican
and Catholic
priest
s and a Pentecostal minister, as well as part-time chaplains from other denominations and faiths.
The chaplaincy runs the annual Carol Service that takes place every year in the Cathedral
at the end of Autumn Term.
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 based in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, 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...
. It was founded in 1965 and is regarded as one of the UK's "plate glass universities
Plate glass university
The term plate glass university has come into use by some to refer to one of the several universities founded in the United Kingdom in the 1960s in the era of the Robbins Report on higher education. In some cases these were older schools with new Royal Charters, now making them universities...
".
The University of Kent's main site is a rural campus near Canterbury situated within 300 acres of park land, which houses over 4,300 students. The university has additional UK sites in Medway and Tonbridge, and postgraduate centres in Brussels and Paris. In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise the University of Kent was placed 24th out of 118 participating institutions in terms of the best, or 4*, research (according to the RAE league tables in The Times Higher Education Supplement).
The University of Kent is ranked amongst the top 25 institutions in the United Kingdom at 23rd place. According to the Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, just under 30,000 students applied to the University of Kent through UCAS and just 5,242 were accepted in 2010 - meaning applicants approximately had a 17.5% success rate. The average UCAS points offer given for 2009/10 was 328 or ABB-AAB.
Kent is also a member of the Santander Group of european universities encouraging social and economic development.
History
A university in the ancient city of CanterburyCanterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
was first considered in 1947, when an anticipated growth in student numbers led several localities to seek the creation of a new university, including Kent. However, the plans came to nothing.
A decade later both population growth and greater demand for university places led to new considerations. In 1959 Kent County Council explored the possibilities of a university through its Education Committee, formally accepting the proposal unanimously on 24 February 1960. Two months later the Education Committee agreed to seek a site at or near Canterbury, given the historical associations of the city, subject to the support of Canterbury City Council. By 1962 a site was found at Beverley Farm, straddling the then boundary between the City of Canterbury and the administrative county
Administrative counties of England
Administrative counties were a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government from 1889 to 1974. They were created by the Local Government Act 1888 as the areas for which county councils were elected. Some large counties were divided into several administrative...
of Kent. The University was granted its 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...
on 4 January 1965 and the first students arrived in the October of that year. On 30 March 1966 Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent was formally installed as the first Chancellor
Chancellor (education)
A chancellor or vice-chancellor is the chief executive of a university. Other titles are sometimes used, such as president or rector....
.
The university's original name, chosen in 1962, was the University of Kent at Canterbury, reflecting the fact that the campus straddled the boundary between the county borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
of Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
and Kent County Council
Kent County Council
Kent County Council is the county council that governs the majority of the county of Kent in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are 12 district councils, and around 300 town and parish councils. The county council has 84 elected councillors...
. At the time it was the normal practice for universities to be named after the town or city whose boundaries they were in, with both "University of Kent" and "University of Canterbury" initially proposed. The name adopted reflected the support of both the city and county authorities, as well as the existence of the University of Canterbury
University of Canterbury
The University of Canterbury , New Zealand's second-oldest university, operates its main campus in the suburb of Ilam in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand...
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, which officially opposed the use of a name too similar to its own. The abbreviation UKC became a popular abbreviation for the university. Part of the original reasoning for the name disappeared when local government reforms in the 1970s
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
resulted in the Canterbury campus falling entirely within the City of Canterbury
City of Canterbury
The City of Canterbury is a local government district with city status in Kent, England. The main settlement in the district is Canterbury, the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury.-History:...
, which no longer has county borough status, and Kent County Council.
The University of Kent at Canterbury was envisaged as being a collegiate
Collegiate university
A collegiate university is a university in which governing authority and functions are divided between a central administration and a number of constituent colleges...
establishment, with most students living in one of the colleges on campus, and as specialising in inter-disciplinary
Interdisciplinarity
Interdisciplinarity involves the combining of two or more academic fields into one single discipline. An interdisciplinary field crosses traditional boundaries between academic disciplines or schools of thought, as new needs and professions have emerged....
studies in all fields. Over the years, changing demands have largely destroyed this original concept, leading to the present state, which is nearer the norm for a British University. However, the four original colleges - Darwin, Eliot, Keynes and Rutherford - remain, each with their own Master, and new college, Woolf, opened in 2008.
The university grew at a rapid rate throughout the 1960s, with three colleges and many other buildings on campus being completed by the end of the decade. The 1970s saw further construction, but the university also encountered the biggest physical problem in its history. The university had been built above a tunnel on the disused Canterbury and Whitstable Railway
Canterbury and Whitstable Railway
The Canterbury and Whitstable Railway, sometimes referred to colloquially as the Crab and Winkle Line, was an early British railway that opened in 1830 between Canterbury and Whitstable in the county of Kent, England.- Early history :...
. In July 1974 the tunnel collapsed, damaging part of the Cornwallis Building, which sank nearly a metre within about an hour on the evening of 11 July. Fortunately, the university had insurance against subsidence, so it was able to pay for the south-west corner of the building to be demolished and replaced by a new wing at the other end of the building.
In 1982 the university opened the University Centre at Tonbridge (now the University of Kent at Tonbridge) for its School of 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...
, helping to enhance the availability of teaching across the county.
During the 1990s and 2000s the University expanded beyond its original campus. It now has campuses in Medway
Medway
Medway is a conurbation and unitary authority in South East England. The Unitary Authority was formed in 1998 when the City of Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with Gillingham Borough Council and part of Kent County Council to form Medway Council, a unitary authority independent of Kent County...
, Tonbridge
Tonbridge
Tonbridge is a market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30,340 in 2007. It is located on the River Medway, approximately 4 miles north of Tunbridge Wells, 12 miles south west of Maidstone and 29 miles south east of London...
and Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, and works in partnership with Canterbury College
Canterbury College, Kent
Canterbury PEN IS College is a major provider of Further and Higher Education courses and training in Kent, England with more than 12,000 students each year Canterbury PEN IS College is a major provider of Further and Higher Education courses and training in Kent, England with more than 12,000...
, West Kent College
West Kent College
South & West Kent College is a college of Further and Higher Education in southeast England that was formed from the merger of West Kent College with South Kent College in April 2010...
, South Kent College
South Kent College
South Kent College was a college of further and higher education in southeast England. The main campus was in Folkestone, with satellites in Dover and at several sites in Ashford...
and MidKent College
MidKent College
MidKent College is a further education college in Kent, England. It runs courses from three separate campuses across Maidstone and Medway....
. In 2003 the title was changed to University of Kent. University of Kent at Canterbury and UKC are still used to refer to the Canterbury site, with other variants such as University of Kent at Medway and University of Kent at Brussels in use for the other sites. The term UKC is also still heavily used by both students and alumni for the University as a whole.
In the 2000s the university entered a collaboration named Universities at Medway
Universities at Medway
The Universities at Medway is a tri-partite collaboration of the University of Greenwich, the University of Kent and Canterbury Christ Church University on a single campus in Chatham, Medway, Kent, England.-Site:...
with the University of Greenwich
University of Greenwich
The University of Greenwich is a British university located in the London Borough of Greenwich, London, England. The main campus is located on the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College, a central location within the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:The history of the...
, Mid Kent College and Canterbury Christ Church University
Canterbury Christ Church University
Canterbury Christ Church University is a university in Canterbury, Kent, England. Founded as a Church of England college for teaching training it has grown to full university status and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2012. The focus of its work is in the education of people going into...
to deliver university provision in the Medway
Medway
Medway is a conurbation and unitary authority in South East England. The Unitary Authority was formed in 1998 when the City of Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with Gillingham Borough Council and part of Kent County Council to form Medway Council, a unitary authority independent of Kent County...
area. This led to the development of the University of Kent at Medway, opened from 2001. Initially based at Mid-Kent College, a new joint campus opened in 2004. As a consequence of the expansion outside Canterbury the university's name was formally changed to the University of Kent on 1 April 2003.
In 2007 the university was rebranded with a new logo and website. The logo was chosen following consultation with existing university students and those in sixth form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
s across the country.
Tuition Fees 2012
The University of Kent is to set its tuition fees for UK and European Union undergraduates at £9,000 for new entrants in 2012. The fee level has been approved by the Office for Fair Access (OFFA). The University’s proposed fee of £9000 was approved by Council on 1 April 2011 and was confirmed by OFFA in July 2011.The proposed changes to UK and EU undergraduate tuition fees will not apply to international student fees. Check the Kent Tuition Fee FAQ here: http://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/funding/undergraduate/costs/faq.html
Canterbury Campus
The main CanterburyCanterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
covers 300 acres (1.2 km²) and is in an elevated position just over two miles (3 km) from the city centre. It currently has approximately 12,000 full-time and 6,200 part-time students and some 600 academic and research staff.
Colleges
The university is now divided into five colleges, named after distinguished scholars. In chronological order of construction:- EliotEliot College, KentEliot College is the oldest college of the University of Kent. It was established in 1965, the same year the university opened.-Namesake:The college is named after T. S. Eliot, the poet who died on January 4, 1965, the same day the university was formally established...
(named after the poetPoetA poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
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...
) (1965) - RutherfordRutherford College, KentRutherford College is the second oldest college of the University of Kent. It is located on the university's Canterbury campus and was established in 1966.-Namesake:...
(named after the physicistPhysicistA physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
Ernest RutherfordErnest RutherfordErnest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson OM, FRS was a New Zealand-born British chemist and physicist who became known as the father of nuclear physics...
) (1966) - KeynesKeynes College, KentKeynes College is the third oldest college of the University of Kent. It was established in 1968.-Namesake:It was named, after much debate, after the economist John Maynard Keynes. Other names considered included Richborough, a town in Kent, and Anselm, a former Archbishop of Canterbury...
(named after the economistEconomistAn economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
John Maynard KeynesJohn Maynard KeynesJohn 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...
) (1968) - DarwinDarwin College, KentDarwin College is the fourth oldest college of the University of Kent, an English institution in the United Kingdom. It was opened in 1970.- Namesake :After heavy debate, it was named after Charles Darwin, the biologist...
(named after the biologist Charles DarwinCharles DarwinCharles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
) (1970) - WoolfWoolf College, KentWoolf College is the University's fifth college and the first new one for 35 years. This college offers 544 en suite bedrooms, all with network connections and access to fully equipped kitchens....
(the writerWriterA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
Virginia WoolfVirginia WoolfAdeline 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....
) (2008)
In addition to the 5 main colleges, the following 2 associate colleges:
- ChaucerChaucer CollegeChaucer College Canterbury is an independent college for Japanese University and High School students. It was founded in 1992 by Mr Hiroshi Kawashima, the Head of the Shumei Foundation, and is located in a prize-winning building featuring a combination of western and oriental architectural styles...
- WyeWye CollegeThe College of St. Gregory and St. Martin at Wye, more commonly known as Wye College, was an educational institution in Kent, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1447 by John Kempe, the Archbishop of York, as a college for the training of priests. It is located in the small village of Wye, Kent, 60...
There was much discussion about the names adopted for most of the colleges with the following alternative names all in consideration at one point or another:
- For Eliot: Caxton, after William CaxtonWilliam CaxtonWilliam Caxton was an English merchant, diplomat, writer and printer. As far as is known, he was the first English person to work as a printer and the first to introduce a printing press into England...
- For Keynes: RichboroughRichboroughRichborough is a settlement north of Sandwich on the east coast of the county of Kent, England. Richborough lies close to the Isle of Thanet....
, a town in Kent; AnselmAnselm of CanterburyAnselm of Canterbury , also called of Aosta for his birthplace, and of Bec for his home monastery, was a Benedictine monk, a philosopher, and a prelate of the church who held the office of Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1109...
, a former Archbishop of CanterburyArchbishop of CanterburyThe Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group... - For Darwin: Anselm (again); Attlee, after Clement AttleeClement AttleeClement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC, FRS was a British Labour politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955...
, the post war Prime Minister; Becket, after Thomas BecketThomas BecketThomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion...
, another former Archbishop (this was the recommendation of the college's provisional committee but rejected by the Senate); Conrad; Elgar, after Edward ElgarEdward ElgarSir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...
; Maitland; Marlowe, after Christopher MarloweChristopher MarloweChristopher Marlowe was an English dramatist, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. As the foremost Elizabethan tragedian, next to William Shakespeare, he is known for his blank verse, his overreaching protagonists, and his mysterious death.A warrant was issued for Marlowe's arrest on 18 May...
; Russell, after Bertrand RussellBertrand RussellBertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic. At various points in his life he considered himself a liberal, a socialist, and a pacifist, but he also admitted that he had never been any of these things...
(this was the recommendation of the Senate but rejected by the Council); Tyler, after both Wat TylerWat TylerWalter "Wat" Tyler was a leader of the English Peasants' Revolt of 1381.-Early life:Knowledge of Tyler's early life is very limited, and derives mostly through the records of his enemies. Historians believe he was born in Essex, but are not sure why he crossed the Thames Estuary to Kent...
and Tyler Hill on which the campus stands. The name for the College proved especially contentious and was eventually decided by a postal ballot of members of the Senate, choosing from: Attlee, Conrad, Darwin, Elgar, Maitland, Marlowe and Tyler.
(Both Becket and Tyler were eventually used as the names for residential buildings on campuses and the building housing both the Architecture and Anthropology departments is named Marlowe.)
Each college has residential rooms, lecture
Lecture
thumb|A lecture on [[linear algebra]] at the [[Helsinki University of Technology]]A lecture is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical information, history,...
theatres, study rooms, computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
rooms and social areas. The intention of the colleges was that they should not be just Halls of Residence, but complete academic communities. Each college has its own bar
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
, all rebuilt on a larger scale, and originally its own dining hall (only Rutherford has a functioning dining hall; Darwin's is hired out for conferences and events; Keynes's was closed in 2000 and converted into academic space; and Eliot's was closed in 2006). It was expected that each college (more were planned) would have around 600 students as members, with an equivalent proportion of staff, with half the students living within the college itself and the rest coming onto campus to eat and study within their colleges. Many facilities, ranging from accommodation, tutorials and alumni relations, would be handled on a college basis. With no planned academic divisions below the Faculty level, the colleges would be main focus of students' lives and there would be no units of a similar or smaller size to provide a rival focus of loyalties.
This vision of a collegiate university has increasingly fallen away. The funding for colleges did not keep pace with the growth in student numbers, with the result that only four colleges were built. In later years when there was heavy student demand for scarce accommodation in Canterbury the solution was found in building additional on-campus accommodation but not in the form of further colleges. The hopes that students living off campus would stay around to eat dinner in their colleges were not met, whilst the abolition of college amenities fees removed students' direct stake in their colleges. With the growth of specialist subject departments as well as of other university wide facilities, more and more of the role of colleges was transferred to the central university. Accommodation and catering were transferred to the centralised University of Kent at Canterbury Hospitality (UKCH).
Today the University cannot be considered collegiate
Collegiate university
A collegiate university is a university in which governing authority and functions are divided between a central administration and a number of constituent colleges...
in any true sense - applications are made to the University as a whole, and many of the colleges rely on each other for day-to-day operation. Academic departments have no formal ties to colleges other than those that are located within particular college buildings due to availability of space, with lectures, seminars and tutorials taking place wherever there is an available room rather than on a college basis. Many students are allocated accommodation in their respective college, but some are housed in developments with no defined collegiate link whilst others are housed in different colleges. In addition to these college accommodations there are also:
- Darwin Houses, a set of 26 student houses next to Darwin College, opened in 1989
- Becket Court, next to Eliot College, opened in 1990
- Tyler Court, three blocks of halls of residence. Block A was opened in 1995 mostly for postgraduatesPostgraduate educationPostgraduate education involves learning and studying for degrees or other qualifications for which a first or Bachelor's degree generally is required, and is normally considered to be part of higher education...
; Blocks B and C were completed in 2004 for undergraduatesUndergraduate educationUndergraduate education is an education level taken prior to gaining a first degree . Hence, in many subjects in many educational systems, undergraduate education is post-secondary education up to the level of a bachelor's degree, such as in the United States, where a university entry level is...
. - Parkwood, a mini student villageVillageA village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
comprising 262 two-storey houses and a recently built apartment complex, about 10 minutes walk from the main campus. The initial houses were opened in 1980. A large addition to the Parkwood area was completed in 2005, comprising a number of en-suite fitted rooms grouped into four, five and six bedroom flats.
A fifth college, named Woolf College
Woolf College, Kent
Woolf College is the University's fifth college and the first new one for 35 years. This college offers 544 en suite bedrooms, all with network connections and access to fully equipped kitchens....
after the writer 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....
, was opened in 2008. The new college accommodates only postgraduate and mature students.
Library
The Templeman LibraryLibrary
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
(named after Dr Geoffrey Templeman, the University's first Vice-Chancellor) contains over a million items in stock including book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
s, journals, video
Video
Video is the technology of electronically capturing, recording, processing, storing, transmitting, and reconstructing a sequence of still images representing scenes in motion.- History :...
s, DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
s, and archive materials (for example, a full text of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
from 1785 onwards), yet it is still only half its planned size. It has a materials fund of approximately £1million a year, and adds 12,000 items every year. It is open every day in term time. It receives 800,000 visits a year, with approximately half a million loans per annum.
It also houses the British Cartoon Archive, (established 1975) a national collection of, mainly, newspaper cartoons, with over 90,000 images catalogued.
Other facilities
The Gulbenkian arts complex acts as the front door to the Canterbury campus. The building includes a foyer and cafe bar and is a meeting place for students, staff and the general public. The foyer also includes the small stage which hosts monthly comedy nights as well as occasional shows such as Jazz at Five and The Chortle Student Comedy Awards. The Gulbenkian Theatre seats 340 and presents student, professional and amateur shows throughout the year. The theatre was opened in 1969 and was named after the Calouste Gulbenkian FoundationCalouste Gulbenkian Foundation
The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is a Portuguese private foundation of public utility whose statutory aims are in the fields of arts, charity, education, and science...
which helped fund its construction. The Gulbenkian complex also hosts a cafe/ bar and restaurant facility open to students, staff and the general public.
The Gulbenkian Cinema is an independent cinema in the Gulbenkian complex open to students and the general public. It is Kent's regional film theatre showing new mainstream and non mainstream releases as well as archive and foreign language films not otherwise available in the region. In the daytime the cinema is used as a lecture theatre for University students.
Additionally, a £1.5 million sports facility called the Sport Centre was completed in 2003. Its facilities include tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
and squash
Squash (sport)
Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...
courts, hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
and football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
pitches, a state of the art gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
nasium, a cardio theatre, a dance studio, a multi-purpose sports hall and a fair trade
Fair trade
Fair trade is an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help producers in developing countries make better trading conditions and promote sustainability. The movement advocates the payment of a higher price to producers as well as higher social and environmental standards...
cafe, but no swimming pool.
There are eight dining areas on campus:
- Woody's (Pub Classics)
- Dolce Vita (Fusion)
- Mungo's (Burgers, Salads & Waffles)
- Rutherford Bar (Tapas & Mediterranean)
- Gulbenkian Cafe (Lunch, Theatre and Themed menus)
- Origin's Bar & Bistro (Tex-Mex)
- Templeman Library Cafe (Snacks, hot & cold drinks)
- The Beagle (Local Specialities)
In addition to these main eating outlets there are many vending machines and some bars.
In 2010 the campus nightclub The Venue, was refurbished and modernised. The upstairs area was transformed into a live music venue, formally known as The Lighthouse and now called The Attic. Both established and local bands and DJs are featured throughout the term. The Venue is open Wednesday- Saturday, The Attic is open Monday- Saturday.
The Canterbury innovation centre launched at Kent in 2010.
Transport and Access
Despite its rural location, the Canterbury Campus is in easy reach for local, national and international visitors. Canterbury is the transport hub of East Kent and numerous bus services, including the dedicated 'UniBus' (operated by Stagecoach East Kent) which connects the campus with Canterbury bus station and other locations.The closest railway station to the campus is Canterbury West which is, as of 2009, served by Southeastern
Southeastern (train operating company)
London & South Eastern Railway Limited, trading as Southeastern is a train operating company in south-east England. On 1 April 2006 it became the franchisee for the new Integrated Kent Franchise , replacing the publicly owned South Eastern Trains on the former South East Franchise...
High Speed trains. High Speed trains connect Canterbury with London St Pancras International in 56 minutes. These services stop at Ashford International en route, thus providing a direct connection to Eurostar services to France and Belgium. Standard Southeastern services also connect Canterbury West and Canterbury East Stations with London Victoria and Charing Cross
Charing Cross station
Charing Cross station may refer to:In London, England:*Charing Cross railway station*Charing Cross tube station **Embankment tube station was previously named Charing CrossIn Glasgow, Scotland:...
. Both of the Canterbury stations can be accessed by the UniBus service.
The campus is also served by two National Express coach services (Route 007) to/from London each day, with further services operating from Canterbury bus station
Medway Campus
In 2000 the University joined with other educational institutes to form the "Universities for Medway" initiative, aimed at increasing participation in higher educationHigher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in the Medway Towns
Medway
Medway is a conurbation and unitary authority in South East England. The Unitary Authority was formed in 1998 when the City of Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with Gillingham Borough Council and part of Kent County Council to form Medway Council, a unitary authority independent of Kent County...
. The following year the University of Kent at Medway formally opened, initially based at Mid-Kent College. By 2004 a new campus for the university had been established in the old Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
, sharing a campus with Canterbury Christchurch University and University of Greenwich
University of Greenwich
The University of Greenwich is a British university located in the London Borough of Greenwich, London, England. The main campus is located on the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College, a central location within the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:The history of the...
.
The campus accommodation was finished in late 2009 (called Liberty Quays), and caters for over 600 students. The accommodation building includes a Tesco Metro, Subway, and Domino's Pizza.
The University of Kent and Medway Park Leisure Centre have gone a into multi-million pound partnership to provide high quality leisure facilities for university students and the general public. Medway Park was re-opened in 2011 by Princess Anne
Anne, Princess Royal
Princess Anne, Princess Royal , is the only daughter of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
for use as a training venue for the 2012 London Olympics.
Tonbridge Campus
In 1982 the university established the School of Continuing EducationContinuing 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...
in Tonbridge
Tonbridge
Tonbridge is a market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30,340 in 2007. It is located on the River Medway, approximately 4 miles north of Tunbridge Wells, 12 miles south west of Maidstone and 29 miles south east of London...
, aiming to make teaching available across the entire county of Kent. Development of the campus has continued almost constantly, with many new buildings added in the 1980s and 1990s. The campus is now called the University of Kent at Tonbridge.
Organisation and structure
The University is divided into three faculties:- Humanities
- Social Sciences
- Sciences (formerly known as the faculty of Science, Technology and Medical Studies, or STMS)
The original plan was to have no academic sub-divisions within the three faculties (initially Humanities, Social Sciences and Natural Sciences) and to incorporate an interdisciplinary element to all degrees through common first year courses ("Part I") in each faculty, followed by specialist study in the second and final years ("Part II"). The lack of Departments encouraged the development of courses that crossed traditional divides, such as Chemical Physics, Chemistry with Control Engineering, Biological Chemistry and Environmental Physical Science.
However the interdisciplinary approach proved increasingly complex for two reasons. The levels of specialisation at A Levels meant that many students had not studied particular subjects for some years and this made it impossible to devise a course that both covered areas unstudied by some and did not bore others. This proved an especial problem in Natural Sciences, where many Mathematics students had not studied Chemistry at A Level and vice versa.
Additionally many subjects, particularly those in the Social Sciences, were not taught at A Level and required the first year as a grounding in the subject rather than an introduction to several different new subjects. Problems were especially encountered in the Faculty of Natural Sciences where the differing demands of Mathematics and physical sciences led to two almost completely separate programmes and student bases. In 1970 this led to the creation of the School of Mathematical Studies, standing outside the Faculties. The addition of other subjects led to increased pressure on common Part I programmes and increasingly students took more specialised Part I courses designed to prepare them for Part II study.
The University now has the Faculties further divided into 18 Departments and Schools, ranging from the School of English to the Department of Biosciences, and from the Kent Law School to the Department of Economics. Also of note is the University's Brussels School of International Studies
Brussels School of International Studies
The University of Kent's The Brussels School of International Studies is a specialised postgraduate school offering international studies in Brussels, Belgium. Students benefit from the advantages of a degree from a British university offered by its location in the 'Capital of Europe'...
, located in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. The School offers Master's degree
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...
s in international relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
theory and international conflict analysis, along with an LLM
Master of Laws
The Master of Laws is an advanced academic degree, pursued by those holding a professional law degree, and is commonly abbreviated LL.M. from its Latin name, Legum Magister. The University of Oxford names its taught masters of laws B.C.L...
in international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
. In 2005 a new department, The Kent School of Architecture, began teaching its first students. In 2008, Wye College
Wye College
The College of St. Gregory and St. Martin at Wye, more commonly known as Wye College, was an educational institution in Kent, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1447 by John Kempe, the Archbishop of York, as a college for the training of priests. It is located in the small village of Wye, Kent, 60...
came under Kent's remit, in joint partnership with Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
.
Coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
was granted by the College of Arms
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
in September 1967. The white horse of Kent
White horse of Kent
The White horse of Kent, or the White Horse Rampant, is a symbol of Kent, a county in South East England.The figure of the prancing white horse can also be referred to as Invicta, which is the motto of Kent.-Origin:...
is taken from the arms of the County of Kent
Kent County Council
Kent County Council is the county council that governs the majority of the county of Kent in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are 12 district councils, and around 300 town and parish councils. The county council has 84 elected councillors...
(and can also be seen on the Flag of Kent
Flag of Kent
The Flag of Kent is the flag of the English county of Kent. It features the white horse of Kent on a red background, a theme used in several other Kent related coats of arms and logos or symbols...
). The three Cornish choughs, originally belonging to the arms of Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion...
, were taken from the arms of the City of Canterbury
City of Canterbury
The City of Canterbury is a local government district with city status in Kent, England. The main settlement in the district is Canterbury, the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury.-History:...
. The Crest depicts the West Gate of Canterbury with a symbolic flow of water, presumably the Great Stour
River Stour, Kent
The River Stour is the river in Kent, England that flows into the English Channel at Pegwell Bay. Above Plucks Gutter, where the Little Stour joins it, the river is normally known as the Great Stour. The upper section of the river, above its confluence with the East Stour at Ashford is sometimes...
, below it. Two golden Bishops' Crosier
Crosier
A crosier is the stylized staff of office carried by high-ranking Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and some Lutheran and Pentecostal prelates...
s in the shape of a St. Andrews Cross
Saltire
A saltire, or Saint Andrew's Cross, is a heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross or letter ex . Saint Andrew is said to have been martyred on such a cross....
are shown in front of it. The supporters - lions with the sterns of golden ships - are taken from the arms of the Cinque Ports
Cinque Ports
The Confederation of Cinque Ports is a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex. It was originally formed for military and trade purposes, but is now entirely ceremonial. It lies at the eastern end of the English Channel, where the crossing to the continent is narrowest...
.
The Coat of Arms is now formally used only for degree certificates, degree programmes and some merchandise, as a result of the University seeking a consistent identity branding.
Academic profile
The 2012 Guardian newspaperThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
University League Tables (published in 2011) placed Kent's ranking at 23rd in the UK, while The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
Good University Guide 2011 (published 2010) puts Kent in 39th place. The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
(published in 2011) puts Kent in 34th place nationally. (There are some 125 ranked university institutions in the UK).
According to many sources, the requirements to get into The University of Kent have increased dramatically, ranging from AAA (Applied Psychology) and AAB (Law and Actuarial Science), and within the Business School, requirements changing from points based to grades based with the average for Business at ABB and Economics AAB. The Complete University Guide shows that the average number of tariff points to get in are around 329 UCAS points (ABB-AAB) in 2012. An overwhelming majority of Kent's 33 subjects are placed nationally within the top 30 (82%), with 3 subject areas in the top 10.
The National Student Survey
National student survey
The National Student Survey is a survey, launched in 2005, of all final year degree students at institutions in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
in 2011 placed Kent in 3rd in London and the South-East for student satisfaction. In addition, Kent has been voted into a top 20 position for the majority of its subjects and has 14 subjects in the top 10 based on overall student satisfaction nationally.
Top 20 Subjects & Recent Performance
According to The Guardian University of Kent is ranked 9th in the UK for Business and Economics, 12th for Architecture, 14th for Modern Languages.In addition, The Complete University Guide - in association with The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
2011 found that Kent ranked 19th for Accounting and Finance, and in 2012 13th for Psychology. Furthermore, The Times Good University Guide ranked the University of Kent 20th for English in 2011
Franco-British programme
The bilingual Franco-British double-degree programme combines subjects in one degree and is taught in two countries. The first year is spent at the Institut d'études politiques de Lille (IEP), the second and third years at the University of Kent, the fourth year at the IEP of Lille and the fifth is spent in Canterbury, Brussels or Lille.The students of the Franco-British double-degree programme receive, at the end of the fourth year, the Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
(BA) degree from the University of Kent, the Diplôme by the IEP of Lille and, at the end of the fifth year, either the Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
(MA) degree in Canterbury or in Brussels or the Master delivered by the IEP of Lille, chosen between 14 parcours de formation by the IEP of Lille.
Research
In the 2008 Research Assessment ExerciseResearch 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...
the University of Kent was placed 24th out of 118 participating institutions in terms of the best, or ★★★★, research (according to the RAE league tables in The Times Higher Education Supplement
The Times Higher Education Supplement
The Times Higher Education , formerly Times Higher Education Supplement , is a weekly British magazine based in London reporting specifically on news and other issues related to higher education...
).
Student life
The student population is quite mixed, with approximately 22% of students coming from overseas. No fewer than 128 different nationalities are currently represented. The female to male ratio is 55 women to every 45 men.Students' Union
The Students' Union is known as "Kent Union" and has a considerable presence on campus. Kent Union runs four shops on campus, Essentials (all-purpose food and essentials), Parkwood Essentials (ditto, but in student village Parkwood), Extras (off-licence) and "Unique" (a clothing shop). The Union also runs the Parkwood bar Woody's, "Rutherford bar" (Rutherford) and nightclub The Venue, which from 1999 played host to big names such as Zane LoweZane Lowe
Zane Lowe also known as 'Zipper', is a radio DJ and television presenter. He was born in New Zealand and grew up in Auckland, where he was a presenter on the local music station Max TV, before moving to England...
, Pendulum
Pendulum (band)
Pendulum is an Australian drum and bass and electronic rock band founded in 2002 in Perth by Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen, and Paul Harding.Swire and McGrillen were members of the rock band known as Xygen. After hearing Konflict's "Messiah" at a club, they were inspired to enter into the drum and...
, DJ Hype
DJ Hype
DJ Hype is a stage name of drum and bass producer and DJ, Kevin Ford. His 1993 track, "Shot in the Dark", appeared in the UK Singles Chart in 1993.-Biography:...
, Goldie
Goldie
Clifford Joseph Price, better known as Goldie is an English electronic music artist, disc jockey, visual artist and actor. He is well known for his innovations in the jungle and drum and bass music genres, having previously gained exposure for his work as a graffiti artist...
, the former boxer Nigel Benn
Nigel Benn
Nigel Benn , known as "The Dark Destroyer", is a British former boxer who held world titles in the middleweight and super middleweight divisions....
, Starsky & Hutch original Huggy Bear
Huggy Bear
Huggy Bear were an English riot grrrl band, formed in 1991 in London, and based in Brighton.-History:Rising up in tandem with the Olympia, Washington-based riot grrrl movement led by feminist bands such as Bikini Kill, Huggy Bear called themselves "boy-girl revolutionaries," both in reference to...
, the Scratch Perverts
Scratch Perverts
The Scratch Perverts are a collective of turntablist DJs from London, formed in 1996 by Tony Vegas, Prime Cuts and DJ Renegade.-Biography:The Scratch Perverts originally consisted of 4 members; Tony Vegas, Renegade, First Rate and Mr Thing. The Scratch Perverts later expanded to an 8-member...
, members of B*Witched and Tim Westwood
Tim Westwood
Timothy Westwood is an English DJ and presenter of radio and television. He also presents the UK version of the MTV show Pimp My Ride...
. In recent years it has also played host to Chesney Hawkes, Wagner (of X Factor,) Nero, Santero. The union, having organised the Kent Summerball has managed to secure Dizzee Rascal, Florence and the Machine and McFly to headline in recently, being supported by the likes of Feeder, Tinie Tempah and Tinchy Stryder.
In the early 1980s the Students' Union had a strong reputation for live music and played host to such acts as U2
U2
U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
, Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
, The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
', Echo & the Bunnymen
Echo & the Bunnymen
Echo & the Bunnymen are an English post-punk band, formed in Liverpool in 1978. The original line-up consisted of vocalist Ian McCulloch, guitarist Will Sergeant and bass player Les Pattinson, supplemented by a drum machine. By 1980, Pete de Freitas had joined as the band's drummer, and their debut...
and Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, and more recently Chas and Dave. With the development in summer 2010 of the Attic, a new live music venue above the Venue nightclub, the Union seeks to host more live acts than ever before with Devlin, Toploader, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. and Zane Lowe appearing to name a few.
Kent Hospitality
The University runs its own Hospitality agency known as Kent Hospitality. They run "Mungo's" (Eliot College Bar), "Origins" (Darwin College Bar), "The Beagle" (A restaurant in Darwin) as well as many other outlets on campus.The Student Bar
The Student Bar was an online community, developed by a student at the university, which had over 6,000 members that consisted of people that either studied or worked at the University of Kent, or were members of the university's alumni.The website itself was similar to other social networking sites such as Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
and MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
. Members were able to create a profile which included information about their course of study, personal details and interests as well as upload photos. The mainstay of The Student Bar was the ability to create and join groups for discussion on a range of topics. It created a closer unity between students at the university that wasn't usually provided for students prior to 2006 and added an extra level of socialising. The Student Bar was opened to students at other universities in the UK but is now defunct.
CSR 97.4FM
University of Kent and Canterbury Christ Church University, as well as their associated Student Unions, fund Canterbury's only student and community radio station—CSR 97.4FM. The radio station is broadcasting from studios at both universities 24 hours a day, with live broadcasting from 7 am - 12 am.inQuire Media group
The University has a student newspaper named inQuire and an online news website inQuirelive (launched in January 2008). The newspaper is published every two weeks and is edited by a group of student volunteers. While the newspaper and website are funded by the Students' Union, they are independent in content.Chaplaincy
Whilst the University is secular, there is a strong chaplainChaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
cy consisting of permanent Anglican
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
and Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
s and a Pentecostal minister, as well as part-time chaplains from other denominations and faiths.
The chaplaincy runs the annual Carol Service that takes place every year in the Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
at the end of Autumn Term.
Notable alumni
Notable alumni of the University of Kent include:- Sir David Akers-JonesDavid Akers-JonesSir David Akers-Jones, KBE, CMG, GBM, JP was the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong from 1985 to 1987, and was briefly Acting Governor of Hong Kong.-Biography:...
- Former acting Governor of Hong Kong, 1986/87 - Fu YingFu YingFu Ying has been serving as vice foreign minister of People's Republic of China after served as the Chinese ambassador to the United Kingdom from March 2007 to 2009. From 2004 to 2007 she was the ambassador to Australia...
- Vice Foreign Minister of People's Republic of China - Michael BaigentMichael BaigentMichael Baigent is an author and speculative theorist who co-wrote a number of books that question mainstream perceptions of history and the life of Jesus. He is best known as co-writer of the book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail....
- author - Valerie BloomValerie BloomValerie Bloom MBE is a poet and a novelist.-Early years:She was born in Clarendon, Jamaica in 1956 and later moved to England in 1979. She attended the University of Kent at Canterbury and earned an honours degree, and was later awarded an honorary Masters degree...
– poet - Ivo H. DaalderIvo H. DaalderIvo H. Daalder, has been the U.S. Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization since May 2009. He is a specialist in European security...
Senior Fellow of the Brookings InstitutionBrookings InstitutionThe Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., in the United States. One of Washington's oldest think tanks, Brookings conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, and... - Alan DaviesAlan DaviesAlan Davies is an English comedian, writer and actor best known for starring in the TV mystery series Jonathan Creek and as the permanent panellist on the TV panel show QI.- Early life :...
- English comedian and actor - Gavin EslerGavin EslerGavin Esler is a Scottish author and BBC television presenter, currently one of the four main presenters on BBC Two's flagship political analysis programme, Newsnight.-Education:...
- BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
journalist and author - David FultonDavid FultonDavid Paul Fulton is a former English cricketer. He was a right-handed opening batsman, who occasionally bowled left-arm orthodox spin. He played first-class cricket for Kent for 15 years until 2006...
- Cricketer, former Captain of Kent CCC - Ellie GouldingEllie GouldingElena Jane "Ellie" Goulding is an English singer-songwriter. In 2010 she became only the second artist to both top the BBC's annual Sound of... poll, and win the Critics' Choice Award at the BRIT Awards in the same year, following Adele's win of both in 2008...
- Singer and Songwriter - Kazuo IshiguroKazuo IshiguroKazuo Ishiguro OBE or ; born 8 November 1954) is a Japanese–English novelist. He was born in Nagasaki, Japan, and his family moved to England in 1960. Ishiguro obtained his Bachelor's degree from University of Kent in 1978 and his Master's from the University of East Anglia's creative writing...
- writer (Remains of the Day) - Rebecca LenkiewiczRebecca LenkiewiczRebecca Lenkiewicz is a British playwright. She attended Plymouth High School for Girls, then progressed to a BA in Film and English at the University of Kent from 1985 to 1989 and then to a BA Acting Course at the Central School of Speech and Drama from 1996 to 1999.-Career:As a writer, her plays...
- playwright - Mark MardellMark MardellMark Mardell is the North American Editor for BBC News. He has provided coverage for each United Kingdom general election since 1992.-Education:...
- BBC North America Editor - David MitchellDavid Mitchell (author)David Stephen Mitchell is an English novelist. He has written five novels, two of which were shortlisted for the Booker Prize.- Biography :...
- writer (Cloud AtlasCloud AtlasCloud Atlas is a 2004 novel, the third book by British author David Mitchell. It won the British Book Awards Literary Fiction Award and the Richard & Judy Book of the Year award, and was short-listed for the 2004 Booker Prize, Nebula Award, Arthur C...
) - Sir Hugh Orde OBE - former Chief Constable of Northern Ireland
- Howard ReadHoward ReadHoward Oliver Drinkwater Read is a British comedian, animator and aspiring song writer best known for his work with his animated sidekick, Little Howard. His other creations include an angry manager with a conversational style and the worldview of Bernard Manning, Roger T Pigeon, and H:BOT 2000, a...
- Perrier nominated comedian - Crown Prince ShwebominShwebomin, Crown Prince of BurmaCrown Prince Shwebomin was born in 1942 and is a pretender to the throne of Burma. The last monarch to rule Burma was King Thibaw Min and was exiled in 1885...
- Exiled Crown Prince of Burma - Robert WadeRobert WadeRobert, Bob or Bobby Wade may refer to:*Robert Wade , screenwriter who has worked on several James Bond films*Bob Wade , American college basketball coach and football player...
– screenwriter - Sarah WatersSarah WatersSarah Waters is a British novelist. She is best known for her novels set in Victorian society, such as Tipping the Velvet and Fingersmith.-Childhood:Sarah Waters was born in Neyland, Pembrokeshire, Wales in 1966....
- writer (Tipping the VelvetTipping the VelvetTipping the Velvet is an historical novel written by Sarah Waters published in 1998. Set in Victorian England during the 1890s, it tells a coming of age story about a young woman named Nan who falls in love with a male impersonator, follows her to London, and finds various ways to support herself...
) - Tom WilkinsonTom WilkinsonThomas Geoffrey "Tom" Wilkinson, OBE is a British actor. He has twice been nominated for an Academy Award for his roles in In the Bedroom and Michael Clayton...
OBE - actor, Oscar nominee - Nick WiltonNick WiltonNick Wilton is an English actor and scriptwriter. His best known roles are playing Mr Lister in the BBC soap opera EastEnders a recurring character, making his first appearance on the 3 January 2008. He also appeared in Carrott's Lib, Fast Forward and Jackanory.-Early and personal life:Wilton was...
- actor, screenwriter - Christopher WrenchChristopher WrenchChristopher Wrench is a renowned organist and lecturer.- Education :Wrench attended Brisbane Grammar School, the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and undertook postgraduate studies in Vienna at the Vienna Conservatorium and then at the Hochschule für Musik .- Awards :Wrench has gained...
- Shanter Publisher's Writer of the Year 2009 - Patrick Wright - journalist and author
- Sam HoldenSam HoldenSam Holden is the pseudonym of a British author and journalist. A former feature writer on The Times, Holden is the author of Diary of a Hapless Househusband, a comic novel concerning a father-of-two who loses his job and reluctantly agrees to stay at home while his wife returns to work...
- World Series of Poker 2011 November Niner