A Quick Guide to UK University Groups

You’ve probably heard of ‘red brick’ but have you ever heard of the N8 Research Partnership? Okay, if you’re from the north of England then you might have. . .

Universities in the UK love forming alliances. Many institutions with similar origins and ambitions join themselves together in order to encourage collaboration, build relationships with local businesses and produce impactful research. The extent to which these groups encourage collaboration is hotly debated but whether you agree with university mission groups or not, the UK seems to have quite a few.

If you’re planning on studying in the UK then hopefully this guide will give you an idea of the diversity of universities this country houses, and maybe even some inspiration to help you choose somewhere to study!

The Russell Group is probably the most famous grouping of universities. Made up of 24 of the UK’s world-class institutions, more than two thirds produce world-leading research and together they award over 60% of UK PhDs.

Set up in 1994, they became an official professional organisation in 2007. Like the 1994 Group, which was set up in the same year (but then disbanded in 2013), the Russell Group focuses heavily on producing high quality teaching and research and is often perceived to house the best universities in the country, though this is commonly disputed.

The most self-explanatory of the groups, Oxbridge is made up of the UK’s two top-ranking universities: Oxford and Cambridge.

Both are run by a college system where Oxford is made up of 40 colleges and Cambridge, 30. While both universities are known for their world-renowned research, they’re also famous for their bizarre (and sometimes entertaining) historical traditions such as tortoise fairs or following ‘local time’ which was enforced before the advent of railways (Oxford runs five minutes and 2 seconds behind Greenwich Mean Time and so all their classes are technically scheduled for 5 minutes past the hour).

If you’ve heard of the Russell Group, then it is likely you have also heard the term ‘red brick’. As a result of the industrial revolution there was an increase in specialist schools designed to train a more technical workforce. Some of these schools were granted independent status and became fully fledged universities due to their success. The term ‘red brick’ comes from the architectural brick style used during the period.

Red brick universities consistently rank highly in research quality and the original six are also part of the Russell Group (listed below).

However, red brick is not an official grouping and it’s not clear how many universities are actually considered members. As the original six universities were termed after their architectural style, the introduction of plate glass style universities in the latter half of the twentieth century meant that the inclusion of newer universities under the red brick umbrella is often debated, even if they too started as specialist schools.

Formed in 2006, the Alliance of Non-Aligned Universities took their current name, University Alliance, in 2007. Predominantly made up of professional and technical universities, their mission is to drive local growth through research, teaching, and enterprising activity. Their institutions are also world-leading in practical outcomes.

University Alliance consists of 12 member institutions and teach around one quarter of the UK’s undergraduate students.

MillionPlus, or the Million+ Group, are a collection of institutions who promote the role of the ‘modern university’. They’re a not-for-profit grouping of 23 universities who consider themselves as new (although many have a history as colleges or polytechnics). Their mission statement is to support a quality university system that will contribute to the needs of international business. They also consider themselves to be an information and public policy think tank.

One of two formal representative bodies of the heads of higher education institutes, Guild HE is a collaboration between universities, schools and colleges which aims to be an advocate for smaller specialist universities. They are a very proactive group in government and higher education issues.

Currently their member organisation specialisms include art, design, teacher training, agriculture, music and drama.

Guild HE also has a number of associate members, though they have not been listed above.

Lastly, but most certainly not least, the N8 Research Partnership is a collaboration between eight research-intensive universities located in the north of England. Each aim to promote collaboration between universities and business to encourage economic growth.

Founded in 2007 under the name Northern Way Partnership, their original specialisms included energy, health, molecular engineering and regenerative medicine. They have since branched out into subjects such as bioeconomy, urban transformation and digital creativity (to name a few).

There are of course many other smaller and more specialist groups in the UK, such as UKADIA or the Cathedrals Group, but this blog would be far too long if it were list them all!

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