Official emblem of Imperial College London

Imperial College London

London, United Kingdom • Founded 1907 • QS 2027 #2 =

Updated Sep 2026 · Source: imperial.ac.uk

Overview

English Name: Imperial College London
Founded: 1907
Institution Type: Higher education institution
Control Type: Public
Entity Type: Non-profit
Rankings:
QS World University Rankings 2027 #2 = Times Higher Education 2026 #8 ARWU (Shanghai) 2026 #29 CWTS Leiden 2025 #14 SCImago 2026 #28
Motto: Scientia imperii decus et tutamen
Official emblem of Imperial College London

Imperial College London is a public research university in London, England, founded in 1907 through the merger of the Royal College of Science, the Royal School of Mines and the City and Guilds College.

Its main site is the South Kensington campus, with further campuses at White City, Silwood Park and the Old Oak innovation cluster, plus several affiliated teaching hospitals across the city, including Hammersmith, St Marys, Charing Cross, Royal Brompton and Chelsea and Westminster. The institution is organised into four faculties, Engineering, Medicine, Natural Sciences and Imperial Business School, concentrating on science, engineering, medicine and business education and research rather than a broad humanities offering.

Its community draws students from more than 150 nationalities, with undergraduate entry mainly through UCAS and a wide range of postgraduate taught and research programmes. Imperial holds a Gold rating in the UK Teaching Excellence Framework and counts numerous Nobel laureates and Fields Medal winners among its staff and alumni.

Location & Contact

Address, contact details, and online presence for Imperial College London are summarised below.

Address: South Kensington Campus
Postal Code: SW7 2AZ
Phone: +44 (20) 7589 5111
Fax: +44 (20) 7584 7596
Social Media:

Academic Details

Below are the institutional metrics for Imperial College London: scale, staffing, and accreditation.

Academic Year: October to June. Dates of terms for the School of Medicine differ
Recognition: Privy Council
Admission Requirements: Undergraduate applicants apply via UCAS. Institution English-language minimum: IELTS 6.5 overall with at least 6.0 in each component (standard level); some courses require the higher level of 7.0 overall with at least 6.5 in each component. See https://www.imperial.ac.uk/study/apply/undergraduate/entry-requirements/accepted-qualifications/ for accepted international qualifications.
Total Students: 22,525
Female Students: 9,725
Academic Staff Range: 1,500-1,999
Campus Setting: Urban
Memberships & Networks
Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) European University Association (EUA) Conference of European Schools for Advanced Engineering Education and Research (CESAER) Russell Group Universities UK

Academic Structures

Imperial College London's academic structure — schools, colleges, and divisions — is listed below.

Unit 7 items
  • Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine
  • Department of Humanities
  • Graduate Schools
  • Imperial College Business School
  • Imperial College Faculty of Engineering
  • Imperial College Faculty of Medicine
  • Imperial College Faculty of Natural Sciences

Faculties & Divisions

All faculties operate under Privy Council.

Co-Curricular Studies (Centre) 7 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Ethics
  • History
  • Modern Languages
  • Music
  • Philosophy
  • Political Sciences
  • Writing
Environmental Policy (Centre) 1 subject offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Environmental Studies
Population Biology (Centre) 4 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Biology
  • Demography and Population
  • Ecology
  • Environmental Management
Engineering (Faculty) 10 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Aeronautical and Aerospace Engineering
  • Bioengineering
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Civil Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Earth Sciences
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • Environmental Engineering
  • Materials Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
Medicine (Faculty) 14 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Anaesthesiology
  • Biomedicine
  • Cardiology
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Epidemiology
  • Medicine
  • Neurosciences
  • Obstetrics and Gynaecology
  • Oncology
  • Paediatrics
  • Pneumology
  • Psychiatry and Mental Health
  • Rheumatology
  • Surgery
Natural Sciences (Faculty) 8 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Biological and Life Sciences
  • Biology
  • Cell Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Environmental Studies
  • Mathematics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Physics
Business (School) 7 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Accountancy
  • Business Administration
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Health Administration
  • Management
  • Marketing

Programs Offered

The full set of programmes Imperial College London offers is searchable and grouped by level below.

217 programmes on record. Each level below shows a sample. Compare these on the programs page All programs in United Kingdom

Honours Degree 63 programmes

Showing 10 of 63.

Master of Business Administration 4 programmes

Global Online MBA
Business & Management · Online
Start: January 2027 Deadline: Oct 27, 2026

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree 134 programmes

Advanced Aeronautical Engineering MSc
Transportation Engineering · 1 year
Start: October 2027

2:1, preferably First, in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering with some experience of fluid and structural dynamics.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Advanced Chemical Engineering MSc
Chemistry · 1 year
Start: October 2027

2:1 in Engineering, Physical Sciences, Mathematics, Life Sciences or Biomedical Sciences.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Advanced Chemical Engineering with Biotechnology MSc
Biotechnology · 1 year
Start: October 2027

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Advanced Computational Methods for Aeronautics, Flow Management and Fluid-Structure Interaction MSc
Business & Management · 1 year
Start: October 2027

2:1, preferably First, in Engineering, Physics, Mathematics or Computer Science.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Advanced Materials for Sustainable Infrastructure MSc
Start: October 2026

2:1 in an Engineering or Science-based subject.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Showing 10 of 134.

Professional Doctorate 1 programme

Postgraduate Certificate 8 programmes

Postgraduate Certificate in Digital Chemistry with AI and Automation
Robotics & Automation

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Postgraduate Certificate in Genes, Drugs and Stem Cells – Novel Therapies
Health Sciences · 1 year
Start: October 2027

2:1 in an appropriate subject.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Postgraduate Certificate in Genomic Medicine
Medicine
Start: October 2027

2:1 in a Medical, Biomedical or Healthcare subject.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Postgraduate Certificate in Health Policy
Start: October 2027

2:1, applicants should be current or future health policy practitioners.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Postgraduate Diploma 5 programmes

Postgraduate Diploma in Genomic Medicine
Medicine
Start: October 2027

2:1 in a Medical, Biomedical or Healthcare subject.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Postgraduate Diploma in Health Policy
Start: October 2027

2:1, applicants should be current or future health policy practitioners.

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Scholarships in United Kingdom

These scholarships are open to students studying in the United Kingdom and may apply to programmes at Imperial College London.

Ash Music Scholarships
University funded · International students · Renewable
Provides free instrumental or vocal tuition at the Royal College of Music, tenable for three years of your first undergraduate degree, for exceptionally talented new-entrant musicians.
Business School Excellence Award
University funded · International students · Renewable · Partial Tuition
Covers 50% of tuition fees each year, for up to three years, for exceptional new undergraduate entrants to Imperial Business School.
Cambridge Trust International Scholarship
Cambridge Trust · Foundation funded · International students · Renewable · Combined · Covers Living
Covers tuition fees at the international rate, an annual maintenance stipend, and support towards the student visa and Immigration Health Surcharge, for postgraduate (and some undergraduate) study at Cambridge; there is no separate application form.
Commonwealth Shared Scholarship
University funded · International students · Full Tuition · Covers Living
Covers full tuition fees, a living stipend and allowances, and economy return airfare for students from developing Commonwealth countries who could not otherwise afford to study in the UK, on selected Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering MSc courses.
Gates Cambridge Scholarship
Gates Cambridge Trust · Foundation funded · International students · Renewable · Combined
Funds full-time or part-time PhD study, the one-year MLitt, or (with some exceptions) other one-year postgraduate courses at the University of Cambridge; fee and stipend amounts are set through the University's own student-funding process rather than published on the eligibility page.
Grantham Institute Scholarship
University funded · 25,000 GBP per total · Full Tuition
Covers full Home tuition fees, worth £25,000, for a widening-participation place on the MSc Climate Change, Management & Finance, funded by the Khodorkovsky Foundation.
IB Excellence Scholarships
University funded · International students · Renewable · 5,000 GBP per year · Partial Tuition
A £5,000 award for each year of your course, given to International Baccalaureate diploma students with outstanding academic results.
Imperial Alumni Scholarship
University funded · International students · Partial Tuition
A tuition-fee discount for Imperial alumni returning for a postgraduate degree: 10% off MSc programmes, and 20% off Full-Time, Executive, Weekend or Global Online MBA programmes.
Imperial Athletes Sport Scholarship
University funded · International students · Renewable
A tailored support package worth £250 to £3,000, plus access to strength & conditioning, physiotherapy, psychology, nutrition, and performance lifestyle services, for talented student athletes.
Imperial Bursary
University funded · Renewable · 5,000 GBP per year · Living Stipend · Covers Living
A sliding-scale bursary: £5,000 a year for household income up to £16,000, £4,400 up to £50,000, £3,300 up to £55,000, £2,200 up to £60,000 and £1,000 up to £70,000.
Imperial Excellence Scholarship
University funded · International students · 15,000 GBP per total · Partial Tuition
A merit award for exceptional MSc and MBA applicants: up to £15,000 off an MSc, or up to 30% off tuition on Full-Time, Executive, Weekend, or Global Online MBA programmes.
Imperial Inspires Scholarships
University funded · International students · Renewable · 15,000 GBP per year · Partial Tuition · Covers Living
Worth £15,000 for each year of your course, towards tuition fees and living costs, for international undergraduate and selected postgraduate taught students.
Imperial Loyalty Bursary
University funded · International students · Partial Tuition
A 10% tuition-fee discount for Imperial alumni with a strong academic record returning for an MSc or MBA at Imperial Business School.
President's PhD Scholarships
University funded · International students · Renewable · 27,036 GBP per year · Combined · Covers Living
Covers full tuition fees, an annual stipend of £27,036, a consumables fund of £2,000 a year for the first three years, and access to the Early Career Researcher Institute's professional development programme.
Presidential Scholarships for Students of Black Heritage
University funded · Renewable · Full Tuition
Covers the full cost of tuition for up to four years, plus dedicated mentoring, for Home-fee undergraduate students of Black heritage in Engineering, Medicine, Natural Sciences, or Imperial Business School.
Rhodes Scholarship
Rhodes Trust · Foundation funded · International students · Renewable · 20,400 GBP per year · Combined · Covers Living, Travel
Covers University of Oxford course and college fees, an annual stipend of £20,400 (£1,700 a month, 2025-26 rate), the Oxford application fee, student visa and Immigration Health Surcharge costs, two economy flights to and from the UK, and a settling-in allowance.
Undergraduate Sanctuary Scholarship
University funded · International students · Renewable · 16,500 GBP per year · Combined · Covers Living
Pays your tuition fees in full, a living-cost stipend of £16,500 a year, and a one-off £1,500 payment in your first year for a laptop or other study equipment.
Weidenfeld-Hoffmann Scholarships and Leadership Programme
Weidenfeld-Hoffmann Trust · Foundation funded · International students · Renewable · 18,622 GBP per year · Combined · Covers Living
Covers 100% of course fees and a living-cost grant (at least £18,622 a year through the St Antony's College partnership) for the full period of fee liability, plus participation in a tailored leadership programme.

How to apply to Imperial College London

A short guide to applying to Imperial College London — five steps.

  1. 1
    Browse the programme catalogue

    Imperial College London's catalogue includes 217 programmes. Browse by level, identify candidates matching your prior qualifications, and note their entry requirements for the next step.

  2. 2
    Check eligibility for your chosen programme

    Entry requirements vary by programme and degree level. Verify academic minimums, language tests (if international), and any additional documents required for Imperial College London's admissions process.

  3. 3
    Get your documents ready

    Typical documents include academic transcripts, identity proof (passport or national ID), language proficiency test scores, a personal statement or motivation letter, and recommendation letters. International applicants should account for translation and notarisation time.

  4. 4
    Apply through UCAS or direct entry

    For undergraduate study, apply centrally through UCAS (ucas.com), listing Imperial College London as one of your choices. For postgraduate study, apply directly through Imperial College London's own admissions portal at www.imperial.ac.uk.

  5. 5
    Reach out and track your application

    Follow up to confirm your application was received and is being processed. Reach the institution by phone at +44 (20) 7589 5111. Admissions teams may request interviews or additional documents — respond promptly to keep your application active.

Frequently Asked Questions about Imperial College London

Concise answers to common questions about Imperial College London.

How old is Imperial College London?

The institution opened in 1907 (approximately 119 years ago).

Where can I find Imperial College London?

The institution is located in London, United Kingdom.

Is Imperial College London public or private?

Imperial College London is a public institution.

How many students does Imperial College London have?

The institution has a student body of 22,525.

What is Imperial College London's ranking?

It ranks QS 2027 #2 =.

What degrees does Imperial College London offer?

Imperial College London delivers bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes across its academic units.

How many faculties does Imperial College London have?

The institution comprises 7 academic units.

Who recognises Imperial College London?

Imperial College London is accredited by Privy Council.

Where can I learn more about Imperial College London?

The institution's website is www.imperial.ac.uk.

Members of European University Association (EUA)

These universities are also members of European University Association (EUA).

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