Loughborough University

Loughborough University

Age: 103

History: Began in 1909 as a small technical institute in Loughborough. Transformed itself into Loughborough College and then Loughborough College of Technology. Became a university in 1966 following the Robbins report.

Address: One mile west of the town, Loughborough is the largest single site campus of any UK university.

Ambience: Supremely sporty, but non-sporty types, and even couch potatoes, are welcome too. It’s a single-site campus of 433 acres with low-rise buildings, playing fields and sports facilities. Students work hard and play hard. The university has a strong reputation for engineering and science.

Vital statistics: Around 11,300 undergrads. Most popular subjects are engineering, sciences, design, sports science and business management. Sandwich placements available on 65 per cent of degrees. The university claims to be one of the top 20 targeted by large, graduate employers and its careers centre has been voted as one of the top ten. Phenomenally successful in sport, Loughborough has won the national student sports title, BUCS, for the last 31 years.

Added value: Some degree programmes are designed and sponsored by the giants of UK industry. Sited on campus are the £10m Henry Ford College, Intelligent Energy, The Energy Technology Institute and the Systems Engineering Innovation Centre (SEIC). Has the UK's leading sports scholarship programme. Fantastic sports facilities, as you'd expect: two sports halls, a fitness training suite, a high performance strength and conditioning gym, a dance studio, a 50m swimming pool, five squash courts, three floodlit pitches, an all-weather athletics track, acres of playing fields, eight indoor and three outdoor tennis courts. And (deep breath) an international standard hockey pitch, a badminton centre with four courts, a gymnastics research centre, the ECB's national high performance cricket centre, a netball centre with two courts and an indoor athletics training centre. With all this to offer it’s little surprise that they are one of the UKA’s two 2012 Performance Centres for athletics.

Easy to get into? Not particularly. Many courses set offers in A-level grades instead of UCAS tariff points, with the most competitive asking for AAB and above.

Glittering alumni: Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe, runners; Steve Backley, javelin-thrower; Sir Clive Woodward, ex-England rugby coach; Monty Panesar, England cricketer; Tanni Grey-Thompson, athlete; Tom Karen, designer; Malcolm Sayer, designer of the E-type Jaguar; Lisa Rogers, TV presenter; Ian Storey, international opera singer; Mihir Bose, former BBC sports editor. Currently, the university is home to 250 international level athletes.

Transport links: Loughborough station is two miles away and lies on the Sheffield to London St Pancras line. One mile from the M1, with good bus links to campus from the station and town and cycling also an easy option. East Midlands Airport is a fifteen minute drive.

Who's the boss? Professor Shirley Pearce CBE is the vice-chancellor and president, a clinical psychologist who has worked in both the NHS and the higher education sector.

Teaching: 8th out of 116 in the Complete University Guide.

Research: 26th out of 115 in the Research Assessment Exercise.

Overall ranking: Came 14th out of 116 in the Complete University Guide.

Nightlife: Nine bars in the union building plus theatre, concert hall, and Cope auditorium.

How green is it? Improving – 52nd out of 138 universities graded by People and Planet for their 'Green League 2012'.

Any accommodation? Yes a room is guaranteed for all new undergrads who have made Loughborough their firm choice and applied for accommodation before the end of July. Rents range between £60 – 100 for a standard room. An ensuite will set you back £70 – 120. Self-contained units are few and far between.

Cheap to live there? Yes indeed. Private rents are between £50 and £70 per week.

Sports ranking: Simply the best year on year; 1st out of 146 in the BUCS league table, and by quite a long way.

Fees: £9,000 for full-time home undergrads starting after September 2012.

Bursaries: The university's bursary scheme offers up to £2,910 per year to students depending on household income and age. There is also a massive sports scholarship scheme. In 2012, £3,000 of financial help will be available for each year of study to students from lower income families. Scholarships are available too, with 25% programme discounts offered to some international students.

Prospectus: 01509 223 522; www.lboro.ac.uk

UCAS code: L79