University of Birmingham

Drawing on the foundations of Mason Science College, established in 1875, and Queen's College, the University of Birmingham was granted its royal charter in 1900. It is considered the first English redbrick institution to obtain a charter of its own. It helped found the Russell Group and is a member of the Universitas 21 network. Around 40,000 students make it one of the biggest universities in the UK.

Roughly three miles to the south-west of the city centre, the principal Edgbaston campus has a railway station of its own. Towering over the site is the Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower, locally called Old Joe, and the campus is also home to the Cadbury Research Library, the Lapworth Museum of Geology and the Barber Institute of Fine Arts. The nearby Selly Oak campus accommodates drama and theatre arts, and postgraduate study of Renaissance drama and literature is offered at the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-upon-Avon. Subjects span business, law, medicine, engineering, the sciences and the arts, and its research has made notable contributions to gravitational-wave astronomy. Former staff and alumni include eleven Nobel laureates. It also runs a campus in Dubai.

Information for International Students

Run directly by the university on the Edgbaston campus, Birmingham International Academy offers Foundation Pathways that prepare international students for undergraduate entry, pre-sessional English courses of various lengths for offer holders who have an English language condition, and support with academic English while students take their degree. University staff teach Academy students, and all campus facilities are open to them. Each programme sets its own English language requirements.

Once new international students have firmly accepted their offer, a first-year accommodation guarantee applies, with residences an easy walk from campus. Dependants, eVisas, the Student visa and other immigration matters are covered by the International Student Team. A CAS is issued when every offer condition has been satisfied, although applicants for postgraduate taught courses must first pay a tuition deposit. During Welcome Week, a programme of events helps newcomers settle, meet other students and sign up for clubs and societies. The university funds an extensive range of international scholarships for undergraduates and postgraduates; the majority reward merit, and some are restricted to specific regions or subjects. Eligible graduates may then apply for the UK Graduate Route.