Royal College of Art

Royal College of Art

Age: 174

History: Born as the Government School of Design in 1837. The artist Alphonse Legros and the sculptor Jules Dalou worked there from 1875. Became The Royal College of Art in 1896.

Address: Kensington Gore, next to the Royal Albert Hall and facing Hyde Park. A second site, for sculpture and other heavy-duty activities, in Battersea, South London.

Ambience: Distinguished setting in the heart of ‘Albertopolis’, the stretch from Hyde Park to the V&A. Informal atmosphere.

Vital statistics: This all-postgraduate university of art and design is independent, with the power to award its own degrees. Around 800 masters and doctoral students and 120 members of staff, all of whom are practising artists, designers or writers. The college has seven schools: fine art; applied art; architecture and design; communications; design for production; fashion and textiles; humanities.

Added value: Five public galleries. Career help for students and graduates includes FuelRCA, set up to offer tailor-made advice and support, including workshops, seminars and mentoring services through a host of networks. Students can also use facilities at Imperial College, which is next door.

Easy to get into? Some courses have more applications than others. Good first degree in a relevant subject preferred. First stage of selection by portfolio; final offers based on interviews.

Glittering alumni: Architect Edwin Lutyens, and sculptors Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth. More recently: Gladiator director Ridley Scott, clothes designer Zandra Rhodes, the hat man Philip Treacy, and David Hockney and chums, including RB Kitaj and Tracey Emin.

Transport links: Plenty - this is central London.

Who's the boss? Design supremo Dr Paul Thompson, recently tempted back from the USA, where he was director of the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian National Museum of Design, in order to take up the position of rector of the Royal College of Art.

Teaching: The QAA institutional review of March 2007 resulted in two judgements of 'confidence' in the college's management of the academic standards of its awards, as well as the quality of learning opportunities available to students.

Research: The college’s position as the leading specialist art and design institution in the UK was recently confirmed by the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise Results. An outstanding 65 per cent of the RCA’s research output was deemed to be world-leading or internationally excellent in terms of originality, significance and rigour. Well ahead of any other art school for research.

Nightlife: Small but lively students' union offers the recently refurbished Artbar, RCAfe and a terrace bar. Central London on your doorstep.

How green is it? So, so – joint 60th out of 142 universities graded by People and Planet for its 'Green League 2011'.

Any accommodation? None provided by the college, but the student support office offers information and advice on finding a place in London.

Cheap to live there? No - students face steep local rents or an expensive commute from outer London. It's between £80 and £100 per week for a room in a shared house further out, or upwards of £120 nearby.

Fees: £7,500 for the first year, £6,000 for the second and £6,300 for the third year and above for students starting in 2011. Fees for 2012 are yet to be decided.

Bursaries: Students from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the EU may apply for a bursary of up to £3,500 towards fees. This is not available to PhD students.

Prospectus: 020 7590 4444; www.rca.ac.uk

UCAS code: Not part of UCAS.