Abertay University, Dundee

Age: 123, or 17

History: It's been a centre of learning since being founded in 1888. But described by the Scottish Office as "an industrial university" in 1902, it wasn't allowed to call itself a university until April 1994. It's also had three previous incarnations: Dundee Institute of Technology; Dundee College of Technology; and Dundee Technical Institute.

Address: Centre of Dundee.

Ambience: One of the UK's smallest universities, with many local students, however, overseas students make up almost 20 per cent of the student body with over 60 nationalities represented. Mix of Edwardian, 1960s and award-winning 1990s buildings with a brand new £6m student centre. Great beaches with hill-walking and ski slopes close by. Dundee is the centre of Scotland's biotechnology and digital industries.

Vital statistics: The university has 5,084 students, almost a third of which are mature. The focus is still firmly on technical and career-relevant courses, with four schools covering business, computing and creative technologies, social and health sciences, and contemporary sciences.

Added value: Was accredited as the first UK Centre of Excellence for Computer Games Education in 2009. Also boasts some of the most modern sports performance labs in the country, an elite athletes programme, a hi-tech library which has won awards all over the place, a £5m environmental science research centre and a wholly new concept combining research and learning facilities mysteriously named 'White Space'. There is a swanky £6m student centre which includes an art gallery and cinema. Popular degrees are computer games technology, computer arts, forensic science, bioinformatics, and business. Very strong on getting graduates into business, with Scotland's first graduate business incubator unit.

Easy to get into? The minimum requirements are three passes at Scottish Highers (two A-levels) while more sought-after courses set the bar higher at 264 points (AABB in Highers; BBC in A-levels) for computer games technology or computer arts. Five applications per place.

Glittering alumni: Brian Souter, chairman of the transport giant Stagecoach; David Jones, who designed Lemmings and Grand Theft Auto II and founded Realtime Worlds; sporty types Maurice Malpas of Dundee United, rugby internationals Andy Nicol, Craig Redpath and Tom Smith.

Transport links: Takes six hours by train from King's Cross. One hour by road from Edinburgh and Aberdeen. Airport for the well-heeled with flights direct to London City airport, Birmingham and Belfast.

Who's the boss? Irishman Professor Bernard King CBE, a wood-rot expert who launched Scotland's first biotechnology degree.

Teaching: Ranked 53rd out of 116 universities for teaching in the Complete University Guide.

Research: Came 99th out of 115 in the Research Assessment Exercise. A leader in bioinformatics and biotechnology and in areas not covered by the RAE such as computer games technology and computer arts.

Overall ranking: 95th out of 116 in the Complete University Guide.

Nightlife: The main students' union bar is open seven nights a week. Dundee has everything from ballet to beer.

How green is it? Not very, if you listen to the people at People and Planet - the university came 130th out of 138 universities in its Green League 2011, meaning it failed. However, it's the top-rated university in Scotland for environmental science research, with its Abertay Centre for the Environment, which promotes green business practices, and the Urban Water Technology Centre, which develops innovative new drainage and pollution-control technology.

Any accommodation: Yes. There are five options for halls offered by the university. Rents start at £64.75 a week and go up to £115.21 a week for a studio flat in the recently opened £25m complex five minutes from the university.

Cheap to live there? Not too pricey. Private rents can be anywhere between £40 and £80 per week, with plenty of student-friendly bars to grab a cheap pint.

Sports ranking: 93rd in the BUCS league.

Fees: Scottish and EU students do not have to pay fees, but other UK students pay £1,820 for 2011/2012. Fees for 2012/12 are yet to be decided by the Scottish government.

Bursaries: There are various means-tested grants available from the university, as well as a number of trust funds and bursaries. For details see www.abertay.ac.uk/applying/ukeu/fees/financing

Prospectus: 01382 308 000; www.abertay.ac.uk/studying/find/prospectus

UCAS code: A30