Newcastlehigh Competitors

Newcastle University is a Russell Group university in the North East of England with a thriving international community of some 27,750 students from over 130 countries worldwide. As a member of the Russell Group of research intensive universities we have a world-class reputation for research excellence in the fields of medicine, science and engineering, social sciences and the humanities. Our academics are sharply focused on responding to the major challenges facing society today. Our research and teaching are world-leading in areas as diverse as health, culture, technology and the environment. We are committed to providing our students with excellent, research-led teaching delivered by dedicated and passionate teachers. Newcastle is among the top 20 universities in the country for our employment rate with 95% of our graduates going on to employment or further study, more than three quarters in graduate-level jobs. We are also one of the top 20 universities targeted by graduate employers in the UK.

Northumbria is in the UK top ten for the highest number of graduates entering professional employment and has the largest number of postgraduate taught students of any university in the region. It provides a comprehensive range of programmes and offers courses in 23 of the top 30 academic disciplines in the UK Higher Education sector. This year Northumbria University climbed thirteen places in the 2015 Times Higher Education Student Experience Survey, rated as the 18th best in the UK. The University Library achieves some of the highest levels of student satisfaction in the UK and has held the Cabinet Office accreditation for Customer Service Excellence since 2010. Northumbria has campuses in Newcastle city centre and at Coach Lane, under two miles away, as well as a small satellite base in Islington, London. The city campus has undergone a £160 million investment in recent years, with the construction of the award-winning City Campus East and Sport Central buildings, the extensive refurbishment of the existing estate and the pedestrianisation and greening of its site, making one of the most attractive city-based campuses in the UK. Northumbria is one of the top 30 UK universities for international students, making a significant contribution to the cultural diversity of Newcastle upon Tyne and the North East. The University has more than 4,000 international students from approximately 130 countries studying on campus and a further 6,000 on overseas franchised courses. It is also the largest UK provider of Higher Education in Hong Kong. Northumbria University has an excellent and growing research base and a distinguished record in innovation and support for the development of cutting edge industries. The University places a real focus on academic quality and research-informed teaching and is influenced by its global and national links with professional bodies and associations.

Although the exact date is subject to debate, tradition holds that the Newcastle upon Tyne Royal Grammar School was founded in 1525. Now, 500 years on, the RGS continues to flourish as the premier independent school in the North East of England and as one of the country’s leading schools. Over the centuries the school has moved five times but has occupied its present site in Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne, since 1906. The RGS has grown substantially in recent years. There are now some 1317 students, 264 of whom are in the Junior School. The Sixth Form of 342 is one of the largest in the independent sector. The school has a strong tradition of welcoming students from all backgrounds; the school used to have over 300 students on Assisted Places and has introduced a bursary scheme to replace them in some measure. The efforts of the bursary campaign and the support from its benefactors has made it possible to provide financial assistance for some 80 students, the great majority of whom receive support at a level of 90% or above. In September 2001, we welcomed our first group of girls into the Sixth Form and girls have been represented in all year groups since 2008; they now comprise 46% of the school. In addition to its reputation for academic excellence, the school also enjoys a wide range of excellent resources and facilities, and its accommodation has been extensively rebuilt and refurbished in recent years. We recently completed our multi-million building and development programme, Project XL, which will take the school forward to the year 2040 with outstanding facilities matched by few independent day schools. In September 2019, phase 3 of Project XL opened. The building is home to a new state-of-the-art library, art studios, maths classrooms, a pastoral suite and an assembly space. January 2020 saw the opening of our new Sixth Form centre - the combination of the old sixth form and old library into a modern, and much larger area.