Royal Holloway is planning a step change in size and academic character through a merger with St George’s, University of London, the capital’s last freestanding medical school. If all goes according to plan, a single college of some 13,000 students will encompass biomedicine, science, social sciences, arts and humanities by the start of the 2010-11 academic year. The two intended partners are already collaborating, with Kingston University, of the South West London Academic Network

As the University of London’s “campus in the country”, Royal Holloway occupies 135 acres of woodland between Windsor Castle and Heathrow. The 600-bed Founder’s Building, modelled on a French chateau and opened by Queen Victoria, is one of Britain’s most remarkable university buildings. More than £100 million has been spent on the campus. Recent projects have included a major auditorium, extensions to the School of Management and other academic buildings, an extension to the main library and new student residences, which have been praised for their comfort and eco-friendly features.

Development

Other developments have included expansion of the academic staff, better student services and a portfolio of scholarships and bursaries that predated top-up fees. One offers free places or reduced fees to those who stay on for a postgraduate degree. The conversion of the huge Victorian boilerhouse into a performance space for drama and the establishment of formal links with institutions such as New York, Sydney and Yale universities, demonstrate that progress has not just been a matter of bricks and mortar. Closer to home, another link allows music students to take lessons at the Royal College of Music.

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Both Bedford College and Royal Holloway, which amalgamated to form the existing college, were founded for women only, their legacy commemorated in the Bedford Centre for the History of Women. However, the gender balance in the student population is now roughly equal. Royal Holloway is not just about the arts: the college offers a science foundation year at further education colleges in the region, and the balance of disciplines is gradually shifting.

Sixty per cent of the work entered for the Research Assessment Exercise was rated world-leading or internationally excellent, cementing Royal Holloway’s place among the top 25 research universities. Music was ranked top in the UK, with 90 per cent of its research in the top two categories, while biology, drama, earth sciences, economics, geography, German, media arts and psychology were all in the top ten in their fields.

Student satisfaction

The college has also had consistently good results in the National Student Survey, with 85 per cent of final-year undergraduates satisfied with their courses in 2008. Physics, geography, geology, computer science and classics all produced extremely high levels of satisfaction. All 18 departments encourage interdisciplinary work, which is facilitated by a modular course structure with examinations at the end of every year. An Advanced Skills Programme, covering information technology, communication skills and foreign languages, further encourages breadth of study.

Royal Holloway offers e-degrees in classics, history, business management and postgraduate courses in information security and management. It is also spearheading the development of the University of London Institute in Paris, allowing students to spend part of their course in France.

Applications for courses beginning in 2009 were down by more than 6 per cent, although that followed a big increase in the previous year. The college still draws nearly a quarter of its undergraduates from independent schools, although the proportion coming from working-class homes has been rising. The ethnic mix is above average and the projected dropout rate is back down to 7 per cent – well below the official benchmark.

Student Scene

Over 2,900 students are in halls of residence, many of them in the Founder’s Building itself. The college’s green belt location at Egham, Surrey, 35 minutes from the centre of London by rail, ensures that social life is concentrated on an extended students’ union. However, the West End is close for those determined to seek the high life. Sports facilities are good and have been upgraded recently – Royal Holloway claims to be "the University of London’s best sporting college".

A high proportion of students come from London and the Home Counties, so many go home at the weekend, but the lively students’ union puts on entertainment and activities seven days a week.

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