Type Public Vice-Chancellor Adrian Smith Phone +44 20 7862 8360 Founded 1858 Chancellor Anne, Princess Royal | Established 1858 Location London, England Total enrollment 50,000 (2010) Dean Mary Stiasny | |
Students More than 54,000 in over 180 countries Website londoninternational.ac.uk Address Stewart House, 32 Russell Square, Bloomsbury, London WC1B 5DN, UK Notable alumni Luísa Diogo, Nelson Mandela, Rolph Payet, Robert Mugabe, Kelvin Lancaster Similar University of London, Imperial College London, London South Bank University, Singapore University of Social, London Metropolitan University Profiles | ||
The University of London International Programmes is a division of the University of London which manages external study programmes. Several colleges and institutes of the University of London offer degrees through the programme, including Birkbeck, Goldsmiths, Heythrop College, UCL Institute of Education, King's College London, London School of Economics, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Queen Mary, Royal Holloway, Royal Veterinary College, School of Oriental and African Studies and University College London.
Contents
- History
- Current system
- Foundation
- Undergraduate
- Graduate Diplomas
- Postgraduate
- Name changes
- Participating colleges and institutes of the University of London
- Independent teaching institutions
- Influence
- Nobel laureates
- Others
- References
The System offers courses of study for undergraduate and postgraduate diplomas and degrees to more than 50,000 students around the world. A designated constituent institution of the University of London, called the 'lead college', creates materials to allow students to study at their own pace. Examinations take place at testing centres around the world on specified dates. Hallmarks of the programme are its low cost in comparison to attendance in London, and the possibility of pursuing either full-time or part-time study. As stated in the University of London Statutes, International Programmes students are graded on the same standard as internal students to ensure a uniform credentialing process. A student who completes a course of study under the programme is awarded a University of London degree with a notation specifying which lead college provided the instruction.
History
The institution that later became known as University College London was established in 1828, calling itself "London University", although without official recognition of university status. The institution – following the Scottish model in curriculum and teaching – was non-denominational and, given the intense religious rivalries at the time, there was an outcry against the "godless" university. The issue soon boiled down to which institutions had degree-granting powers and which institutions did not. The compromise solution that emerged in 1836 was that the sole authority to conduct the examinations leading to degrees would be given to a new officially recognised entity called the "University of London", which would act as examining body for the University of London colleges, originally University College London and King's College London, and award their students University of London degrees. As Sheldon Rothblatt states, "thus arose in nearly archetypal form the famous English distinction between teaching and examining, here embodied in separate institutions." With the state giving examining powers to a separate entity, the groundwork was laid for the creation of a programme within the new university that would both administer examinations and award qualifications to students taking instruction at another institution or pursuing a course of self-directed study.
Referred to as "People's University" by Charles Dickens because it provided access to higher education to students from less affluent backgrounds, the External Programme was chartered by Queen Victoria in 1858, making the University of London the first university to offer distance learning degrees to students. Several current degree-awarding universities started as colleges presenting candidates for University of London degrees, such as Owens College which later became part of the University of Manchester.
Enrolment increased steadily in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and during the Second World War there was a further increase in enrolments from soldiers stationed abroad as well as soldiers imprisoned in German POW camps. Because the Geneva Convention (1929) stipulated that every prisoner of war, in addition to being entitled to adequate food and medical care, had the right to exchange correspondence and receive parcels, many British POWs took advantage of this opportunity and enrolled in the University of London External Programme. The soldiers were sent study materials by mail, and at specified intervals sat for proctored exams in the camps. Almost 11,000 exams were taken at 88 camps between 1940 and 1945. Though the failure rate was high, substantial numbers of soldiers earned degrees while imprisoned.
With the advent of inexpensive airmail services after the war, the number of external students taking University of London courses increased dramatically. According to relevant Regulations, until 2000 University of London external students could pursue research leading to the award of MPhil or PhD albeit the completion rate had been rather low. The University of London International Programmes commemorated its 150th anniversary in 2008. A specially commissioned anniversary book was produced to mark the occasion.
Current system
The system offers courses of study for undergraduate and postgraduate diplomas and degrees to more than 50,000 students around the world. A designated constituent institution of the University of London, called the "lead college", creates materials to allow students to study at their own pace. Examinations take place at testing centres around the world on specified dates. Hallmarks of the programme are its low cost in comparison to attendance in London, and the possibility of pursuing either full-time or part-time study. As stated in the University of London Statutes, International Programmes students are graded on the same standard as internal students to ensure a uniform credentialing process. A student who completes a course of study under the program is awarded a University of London degree with a notation specifying which lead college provided the instruction.
Students enrolled in the University of London International Programmes are members of the University of London. International Programmes Students however, have very limited student representation within the University. There are also differences over the status International Programmes Students have with respect to their lead college. Some institutions co-register their International Programmes Students as college members (e.g. SOAS, LSHTM), in addition to their status as University of London member. However, other colleges deny International Programmes Students membership status and privileges when they are present in London (e.g. LSE). Academics at the University of London are responsible for the academic direction of the International Programmes. When the International Programmes was audited in 2005 by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), the auditors concluded that 'broad confidence' could be placed in the University's management and the awards made through the External System ('broad confidence' is "the best verdict any institution can be given by the auditors"). The 'confidence' was once again reiterated in the QAA's 2011 Institutional Audit, attesting to the quality of the program provision.
Most International Programmes Students are in former territories of the British Empire. There are more than 9,000 students enrolled in the programme in Singapore, 5,000 in Hong Kong, 3,000 in Trinidad and Tobago, 2,000 in Malaysia, 1,900 in Pakistan, 1,200 in Bangladesh, 800 in Sri Lanka, 1,000 in Canada, between 1,000 and 1,999 in the United States, 300 in Malta, more than 200 in Australia, more than 200 in South Africa, more than 30 in New Zealand and many hundreds in India, among other countries. Furthermore, there are around 1,000 students in Russia participating in this programme.
Foundation
Access programme for the BSc Business Administration
International Foundation Programme
Undergraduate
Graduate Diplomas
Postgraduate
Name changes
In November 2007, the University of London External Programme became known as the University of London External System. In August 2010, the name was once again changed to University of London International Programmes in response to feedback that the programme needed a clear, simpler and more inclusive name that described what the University of London offered to almost 50,000 students in 180 countries.
Participating colleges and institutes of the University of London
One of the lead colleges, Imperial College London, left the University in July 2007. The School of Oriental and African Studies has become the lead college for the external degrees previously led by Imperial, while Imperial will offer its own distance learning MBA in competition with the two MBAs offered by International Programmes, led by SOAS and Royal Holloway.
Independent teaching institutions
In Europe, North America, the Middle East, South Asia and East Asia many students participating in University of London International Programmes seek out tuition at one of the more than 150 private or non-profit institutions that prepare students for University of London examinations. Such institutions may be audited and, if found to meet quality standards, may become "recognised" by the University for the support offered.
Starting August 2010, the External System programmes were renamed University of London International Programmes. The central academic body of the university, collaborating with the colleges of the University of London, is renamed University of London International Academy, term mainly used internally.
In parallel to this change, the teaching institutions are now categorized into Registered and Affiliate centers (collectively known as recognised centres). Students can either decide to study entirely by themselves, or to enjoy the administrative and academic support of the institutions that are recognised by the University of London for the International Programmes. Registered Centres have demonstrated commitment to developing high standards in respect of teaching, support to students and administrative processes. Affiliate Centres have demonstrated a sustained commitment to developing excellence in respect of quality of teaching, support to students and administrative processes. Affiliate Centre status is the highest level of recognition awarded by the University of London. Recognition applies to specific programmes on named campuses. New College of the Humanities, a private college founded in London in 2011, though not affiliated with the University of London, also plans to register its students for degrees through the programme.
Influence
The University of London external system has played an important role in the development of higher education institutions in Britain. Many leading research universities in England started out as "university colleges" that prepared students for external degrees of the University of London. Some technical colleges in England and Scotland also awarded University of London degrees and certificates prior to becoming polytechnics and then universities. Examples include the University of Nottingham, the University of Leicester and the University of Exeter in England, Cardiff University and Bangor University prior to joining the University of Wales and becoming independent and Robert Gordon University in Scotland.
This was a common way of establishing new universities in Britain and around the British Empire during the first half of the twentieth century. Many universities in the Commonwealth began as extension institutions or a provider of the programme. Notable examples include Ceylon University College in Ceylon, University College Ibadan (now the University of Ibadan) in Nigeria, the former University of East Africa's three constituent institutions and the University of the West Indies in the Caribbean.
Nobel laureates
At least seven Nobel Prizes have been awarded to alumni of the University of London International Programmes: