History, Affiliations and Rankings
Established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, Heriot-Watt University is a public research university and was the first mechanic's institute in the world. It was granted university status by the royal charter in 1966. The university is affiliated with the Association of Commonwealth Universities, CESAER, ERASMUS, Universities Scotland and Universities UK. Heriot-Watt is the 8th oldest higher education institute in the UK. Nationally, this university is ranked 23rd by Complete and at 35th by Guardian Rankings for 2022. The QS World University rankings 2022, tied Heriot-Watt at 270th place globally. It is known for its focus on Science and Engineering and is one of the 39 old universities in the UK.
Infrastructure, Campuses and Courses
The main campus of Heriot-Watt University is located in Edinburgh and other campuses are Scottish Borders, Orkney, Dubai and Malaysia. Heriot-Watt University currently has five campuses and offers distance learning to students all over the world through 53 recognised learning partners. Heriot-Watt is divided into six schools and one institute that coordinate its teaching and research - The School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society, The School of Engineering and Physical Sciences, The School of Social Sciences, The School of Mathematical and Computer Sciences, The School of Textiles and Design, Edinburgh Business School, The Urban Institute.
Accomplishments and Alumni
The university is well regarded for its planning and construction education on a national level. The Complete University Guide ranked the university fourth in the UK and first in Scotland for Town & Country Planning and Landscape Design in 2019. In the same year, The Guardian placed it 9th in the UK and first in Scotland for Building and Town & Country Planning. it is also known for producing some very famous people who are popularly known in their respective fields, including Sir Nicholas Grimshaw (Architect of the Eden Project, president of the Royal Academy since 2004), Nivetha Pethuraj, Indian Actress and Douglas Stuart, the British Writer / Fashion Designer, winner of 2020 Booker Prize.
Student Diversity and Visiting Companies
This university has a total enrollment of around 31,000 students on all its campuses combined. On the Edinburgh campus, there are approximately 11,000 students. More than one-third of Heriot-Watt's Edinburgh campus's 9000 students are from outside the UK, and 10,000 students from 150 countries study on its international programs, demonstrating the university's global commitment. Further, visiting students foster multicultural interactions on the campus. Some of the companies that recruit graduates from Heriot-Watt University are, Baker Hughes, Ernst and Young, Schlumberger, BP and others.
