We are UAL

Who we are

University of the Arts London (UAL) offers an extensive range of courses in art, design, fashion, communication and performing arts. The University is made up of 6 renowned Colleges and 4 institutes. UAL is ranked highly across the board. We are ranked 1^st for specialist art and design, 2^nd in the world for Art and Design in the 2022 QS World University Rankings (for the 5^th year in a row), ranked 5^th in sustainability and two of our colleges were rated in the top 3 fashion schools in the world.

The origins of UAL lie in the 19th century with the foundation of the schools that became our 6 constituent Colleges: Camberwell College of Arts, Central Saint Martins, Chelsea College of Arts, London College of Communication, London College of Fashion and Wimbledon College of Arts. These schools educated young people to prepare them for a world transformed by technological change. Students learned new skills for growing industries, like architecture, communication, fashion, design and performance. And their work brought beauty into people’s everyday lives.

In 1986, the 6 Colleges joined together as one. In 2003, they became a university: University of the Arts London (UAL). Though much has changed since the 19th century, our social purpose, “to change society through our knowledge and creativity”, remains unchanged. We remain rooted in London’s heritage of vocational education. And we are developing into a global force for change, advancing the case for creativity at the regional, national and international level.

We have become one of the world’s most international Universities, welcoming staff and students and staff from 130 countries. And, as a global university, staff and students learn from different cultures and perspectives, which leads to new conversations and innovative work.

Our strategy

In 2022, we launched our new 10-year strategy ‘The world needs creativity’. Our strategy, developed by and with our staff, has three Guiding Policies:

1. To give our students the education they need to flourish in a changing world
2. To bring a high-quality creative education to more students than ever before
3. To change the world through our creative endeavour

We identified the challenges and opportunities that are most important to UAL and our future, and the guiding policies are our response to each of these issues in turn. Creativity is a skill vital across the economy and society. In today’s knowledge economy, this will become increasingly so. In years to come, the world we hope to see will be more creative and innovative.

To give our students the skills they need, we must change the way we teach and deliver a rich and rewarding student experience. By doing so, in partnership with our staff and students, we will ensure our students are equipped to work in sectors beyond the creative industries. Our students will have the careers they want, the economy will have the creative skills it needs, and we will build a better world where people across disciplines, like the arts and sciences, share ideas far and wide and work together to solve common challenges.

Colleges and Institutes

Departments, Teams and People