Imperial College London is a public research university
located in London, United Kingdom. It was founded by Prince Albert who
envisioned an area composed of the Natural History Museum, Victoria and Albert
Museum, Royal Albert Hall and the Imperial Institute. The Imperial Institute
was opened by his wife, Queen Victoria, who laid the first stone. In 1907, Imperial
College London was formed by Royal Charter, and soon joined the University of
London, with a focus on science and technology. The college has expanded its
coursework to medicine through mergers with St Mary's Hospital. In 2004, Queen
Elizabeth II opened the Imperial College Business School. Imperial became an
independent university from the University of London during its one hundred
year anniversary.
Imperial is organised into faculties of science,
engineering, medicine and business. Its main campus is located in South
Kensington, adjacent to Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens in central London. The
university formed the first academic health science centre in the United
Kingdom. Imperial is a member of the Russell Group, G5, Association of
Commonwealth Universities, League of European Research Universities, and the
"Golden Triangle" of British universities.
Imperial is included among the best universities in the
world by numerous university rankings. According to The New York Times,
recruiters consider its students among the top ten most valuable graduates in
the world, receiving the highest salaries of any UK university. Imperial
faculty and alumni include 15 Nobel laureates, 2 Fields Medalists, 70 Fellows
of the Royal Society, 82 Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering and 78
Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
