Address: South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
Science, Engineering, Medicine
A public research university specializing in science, engineering, medicine, and business. Consistently ranked among the world’s top universities. Formed in 1907 from earlier institutions.
Imperial College London is a public research university focused on science, engineering, medicine and business. It was formed in 1907 by merging the Royal College of Science, the Royal School of Mines and the City and Guilds College, and its identity is rooted in the ambitions of the Victorian era to support industry and the empire with technical education. It has about 20,500 students and 8,100 staff, and around 60 percent of the students come from abroad. The main South Kensington campus lies behind the Royal Albert Hall, among the great museums.
Other campuses are located at White City, where new research and innovation buildings stand, and at the hospital sites of Hammersmith, St Mary’s and Charing Cross. The Queen’s Tower, a remnant of the Imperial Institute, is the symbol of the campus. In 1988 the medical school of St Mary’s Hospital, where Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928, became part of Imperial, and the college now has one of the largest medical research centres in the United Kingdom.
Notable names include the physicist Denis Gabor, who invented holography and received the 1971 Nobel Prize in Physics, and Abdus Salam, who worked at Imperial and received the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physics for the electroweak theory. Research areas include engineering, bioengineering, data science and artificial intelligence, climate and energy, materials, quantum technology and global health. The Dyson School of Design Engineering and the Business School are part of the college’s offer.
Undergraduate applications go through UCAS, and most courses require strong results in mathematics and science. Tuition for home students is capped by the government at about nine and a half thousand pounds a year, while international students pay much higher fees, often between thirty and forty-five thousand pounds depending on the course, and more for medicine. Check the current tariff. Teaching is in English, and scholarships and bursaries exist.
London is expensive, and student housing is scarce, but Imperial guarantees accommodation for first-year students in many cases. The campus is served by the Underground at South Kensington.
Domains taught:
AI and Machine Learning, Engineering, Life Sciences, Materials, Mathematics, Physics, Software Engineering
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master, MBA
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Extensive partnerships with global industry (e.g. Shell, GSK, Microsoft), research institutions, and healthcare providers (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust). Strong focus on innovation and entrepreneurship.
Research:
World-leading research across science, engineering, medicine, and business. Major contributions to numerous fields, including penicillin, holography, and fibre optics. Many Nobel laureates.
Famous Alumnis:
Alexander Fleming, H.G. Wells, Brian May, Rajiv Gandhi, Sir Magdi Yacoub
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
8100
Current students***:
20500
Foreign students***:
60%
Cumulative former students***:
195000
Pros
World-class STEM and business university, exceptional research and innovation, located in London’s museum quarter, strong entrepreneurial culture.
Cons
Extremely competitive, high workload, focus is primarily on STEM and business, London cost of living.
Best For
Exceptionally talented students aiming for a world-leading education in science, engineering, medicine, or business, with a passion for research and innovation.
Both schools build their programmes around physics, mathematics and life sciences, and University of Cambridge is the one to compare first within the country, since it is also a public institution and does not run the mba programmes found here.
University of Oxford shares the core fields of this school, namely physics, mathematics and life sciences; it does not run the mba programmes found here and covers chemistry as well.
Both schools build their programmes around physics, mathematics and life sciences, and University of Glasgow is the one to compare first within the country, since it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba.
The University of Manchester offers a comparable education in physics, materials and life sciences: it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers chemistry as well.
A good alternative in the same country is University of Birmingham, which likewise covers physics, life sciences and AI and machine learning; it runs the same bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba programmes, and covers chemistry and mechanical engineering as well.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States pursues a similar profile in physics, mathematics and materials, and it covers robotics as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 11,900 students against roughly 20,500 here.
McMaster University, based in Canada, is built around physics, materials and life sciences much like this school, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba.
Nanyang Technological University, based in Singapore, is built around physics, mathematics and materials much like this school, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers chemistry and data analytics as well.
In the United States, Stanford University teaches much the same core subjects, physics, life sciences and AI and machine learning, and it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's, doctoral and mba, and covers bioengineering and data analytics as well.
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in Hong Kong shares the physics, mathematics and life sciences orientation of this school, and it covers finance and chemistry as well, and has almost the same size, at about 20,475 students.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is Imperial College London?
The main South Kensington campus is in London, England, behind the Royal Albert Hall.
When was it formed?
In 1907, by merging the Royal College of Science, the Royal School of Mines and the City and Guilds College.
How large is it?
About 20,500 students and 8,100 staff, with around 60 percent of students from abroad.
What is it known for?
Engineering, science, medicine, data science, artificial intelligence, climate and energy.
Which medical discovery is linked to Imperial?
Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin at St Mary's Hospital in 1928, and its medical school joined Imperial in 1988.
Which Nobel laureates are linked to it?
Denis Gabor, who invented holography, and Abdus Salam, who worked at Imperial.
What other campuses does it have?
White City, Hammersmith, St Mary's and Charing Cross.
How do you apply?
Through UCAS, and most courses require strong results in mathematics and science.
What does it cost?
Home tuition is capped at about nine and a half thousand pounds a year. International fees are much higher, often between thirty and forty-five thousand pounds. Check the current tariff.
Is housing guaranteed?
Imperial guarantees accommodation for first-year students in many cases.
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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