University of Bath

Although the University of Bath was granted its royal charter in 1966, its origins lie in the Bristol Trade School of 1856, which later became the Merchant Venturers' Technical College and then the Bristol College of Science and Technology. Its university status followed the Robbins Report's recommendations, and from the mid-1960s a new campus was built at Claverton Down. The university belongs to the GW4 research consortium.

Claverton Down, where most activity is concentrated, is a compact modernist campus roughly a mile and a half from the centre of Bath. It was laid out to keep pedestrians apart from traffic, with a central walkway called the Parade, and the university also occupies buildings in the city centre. About 20,500 students are enrolled; around three-quarters are undergraduates, and roughly a third come from outside the UK, spanning more than 140 nationalities. The university is known for architecture, engineering, management, mathematics, pharmacy, the physical sciences and sport, and many of its degrees have long included a placement year with an employer. On campus, the Sports Training Village provides for elite athletes and for the Team Bath sports programme.

Information for International Students

Two services support international students at Bath: the International Support Service, which gives practical advice, and the Student Immigration Service, which provides guidance on Student visas and, where they apply, ATAS certificates. The Students' Union's international community helps newcomers find their feet. Each course sets its own English language requirements, and students who must raise their level before starting can take the university's pre-sessional English course. Further preparation comes from the University of Bath International Study Centre, which Study Group operates on the Claverton Down campus and which provides a Pre-Masters programme as well as an International Foundation Year leading to undergraduate entry.

New first-year undergraduates who hold a firm offer and apply before the published deadline have a guaranteed place in university-managed accommodation. Taught postgraduates paying overseas fees are likewise guaranteed a room if they hold an unconditional firm offer and apply by the relevant deadline. Rooms are located on campus as well as in the city centre. International undergraduates are eligible for consideration for the Bath International Excellence Scholarship, while other scholarships fund taught postgraduate and doctoral study. The Graduate Route is open to eligible graduates.