London

==Education==
{{main|Education in London}}

===Tertiary education===
{{See also|List of universities and higher education colleges in London}}
[[File:University College London -quadrant-11Sept2006 (1).jpg|thumb|[[University College London]] (UCL), established by Royal Charter in 1836, is one of the founding colleges of the [[University of London]].]]
[[File:Imperial College London down Exhibition Road.jpg|thumb|[[Imperial College London]], a technical research university focusing on science, engineering, medicine and business, in [[South Kensington]]]]
[[File:Centre Building, LSE from LSE Square.jpg|thumb|The [[London School of Economics]] (Centre Building pictured) was established in 1895]]

London is a major global centre of higher education teaching and research and has the largest concentration of higher education institutes in Europe.<ref name="london2"/> According to the QS World University Rankings 2015/16, London has the greatest concentration of top class universities in the world<ref>{{Cite web |date=11 September 2015 |title=QS World University Rankings® 2015/16 |url=http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2015#sorting=rank+region=+country=+faculty=+stars=false+search= |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150914234029/https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2015#sorting=rank+region=+country=+faculty=+stars=false+search= |archive-date=14 September 2015 |access-date=27 March 2021 |website=Top Universities}}</ref> and its international student population of around 110,000 is larger than any other city in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Malthouse |first=Kit |date=1 January 1990 |title=Capital offer |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2013-14/world-ranking/analysis/capital-offer |access-date=27 March 2021|website=timeshighereducation.com}}</ref> A 2014 [[PricewaterhouseCoopers]] report termed London the global capital of higher education.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://pdf.pwc.co.uk/cities-of-opportunity-2014-london.pdf |title=Pricewaterhousecoopers |access-date=26 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143014/http://pdf.pwc.co.uk/cities-of-opportunity-2014-london.pdf |archive-date=12 June 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
A number of world-leading education institutions are based in London. In the 2022 ''[[QS World University Rankings]]'', [[Imperial College London]] is ranked No. 6 in the world, [[University College London]] (UCL) is ranked 8th, and [[King's College London]] (KCL) is ranked 37th.<ref>{{Cite web |title=QS World University Rankings 2023: Top Global Universities |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2023 |access-date=19 September 2022 |website=Top Universities |language=en}}</ref> All are regularly ranked highly, with Imperial College being the UK's leading university in the [[Research Excellence Framework]] ranking 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 May 2022 |title=REF 2021: Quality ratings hit new high in expanded assessment |url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ref-2021-research-excellence-framework-results-announced |access-date=19 September 2022 |website=Times Higher Education  |language=en}}</ref> The [[London School of Economics]] (LSE) has been described as the world's leading social science institution for both teaching and research.<ref name="london_156">{{Cite news |last=Hipwell |first=Deirdre |date=23 September 2007 |title=London School of Economics and Political Science |work=The Times |location=London |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/sunday_times_university_guide/article2496158.ece |url-status=dead |access-date=27 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202225123/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/sunday_times_university_guide/article2496158.ece |archive-date=2 December 2008}}</ref> The [[London Business School]] is considered one of the world's leading business schools and in 2015 its MBA programme was ranked second-best in the world by the ''[[Financial Times]]''.<ref name="ft">{{Cite news |url=http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-rankings |title=FT Global MBA Rankings |work=Financial Times |access-date=25 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110504135153/http://rankings.ft.com/businessschoolrankings/global-mba-rankings |archive-date=4 May 2011 |url-status=live |location=London}}</ref> The city is also home to three of the world's top ten performing arts schools (as ranked by the 2020 QS World University Rankings<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university-subject-rankings/2020/performing-arts |title=Performing Arts |date=25 February 2020 |website=Top Universities}}</ref>): the [[Royal College of Music]] (ranking 2nd in the world), the [[Royal Academy of Music]] (ranking 4th) and the [[Guildhall School of Music and Drama]] (ranking 6th).<ref>{{cite news |title=2022 QS World University Rankings by Subject: Performing Arts |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university-subject-rankings/2022/performing-arts |access-date=26 June 2022 |website=Top Universities.com}}</ref>

With{{HESA student population|INSTID=LON}} students in London and around 48,000 in [[University of London Worldwide]],<ref name=External>{{Cite web |url=https://london.ac.uk/sites/default/files/governance/university-of-london-financial-statement-2018-19.pdf |title=Financial Statements 2018–19 |publisher=University of London |access-date=1 March 2020 |page=8}}</ref> the federal [[University of London]] is the largest contact teaching university in the UK.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2007|title=Table 0a – All Students by Institution, Mode of Study, Level of Study, Gender and Domicile 2005/06 |url=https://www.hesa.ac.uk/dox/dataTables/studentsAndQualifiers/download/institution0506.xls |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928044330/http://www.hesa.ac.uk/dox/dataTables/studentsAndQualifiers/download/institution0506.xls |archive-date=28 September 2007 |access-date=27 March 2021 |website=HESA}}</ref> It includes five multi-faculty universities – [[City, University of London|City]], King's College London, [[Queen Mary, University of London|Queen Mary]], [[Royal Holloway]] and UCL – and a number of smaller and more specialised institutions including [[Birkbeck College|Birkbeck]], the [[Courtauld Institute of Art]], [[Goldsmiths, University of London|Goldsmiths]], the London Business School, the London School of Economics, the [[London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine]], the [[Royal Academy of Music]], the [[Central School of Speech and Drama]], the [[Royal Veterinary College]] and the [[School of Oriental and African Studies]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Member institutions |url=https://london.ac.uk/ways-study/study-campus-london/member-institutions |access-date=27 March 2021 |website=University of London |language=en}}</ref>

Universities in London outside the University of London system include [[Brunel University]], [[Imperial College London]],{{refn|Imperial College London was a constituent college of the University of London between 1908 and 2007. Degrees during this time were awarded by the federal university; however, the college now issues its own degrees.|group=note}} [[Kingston University]], [[London Metropolitan University]], [[University of East London]], [[University of West London]], [[University of Westminster]], [[London South Bank University]], [[Middlesex University]], and [[University of the Arts London]] (the largest university of art, design, fashion, communication and the performing arts in Europe).<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2008/may/01/universityguide.highereducation42 |title=University of the Arts London |date=1 May 2008 |work=The Guardian |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501135123/http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2008/may/01/universityguide.highereducation42 |archive-date=1 May 2011 |url-status=live |location=London}}</ref> In addition, there are three international universities – [[Regent's College|Regent's University London]], [[Richmond, The American International University in London]] and [[Schiller International University]].

[[File:KCL Guys Campus1.jpg|thumb|left|[[King's College London]]'s [[Guy's Campus]], home to the university's [[King's College London School of Medicine|Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine]] and the Dental Institute]]
London is home to [[United Hospitals|five major medical schools]]&nbsp;– [[Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry]] (part of [[Queen Mary, University of London|Queen Mary]]), [[King's College London School of Medicine]] (the largest medical school in Europe), [[Imperial College School of Medicine]], [[UCL Medical School]] and [[St George's, University of London]]&nbsp;– and has many affiliated teaching hospitals. It is also a major centre for biomedical research, and three of the UK's eight [[academic health science centre]]s are based in the city&nbsp;– [[Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust|Imperial College Healthcare]], [[King's Health Partners]] and [[UCL Partners]] (the largest such centre in Europe).<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2008/aug/07/health.highereducation |title=NHS hospitals to forge £2bn research link-up with university |last=Carvel |first=John |date=7 August 2008 |work=The Guardian |access-date=6 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501140334/http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/aug/07/health.highereducation |archive-date=1 May 2011 |url-status=live |location=London}}</ref> Additionally, many biomedical and biotechnology spin out companies from these research institutions are based around the city, most prominently in [[White City, London|White City]]. Founded by pioneering nurse [[Florence Nightingale]] at [[St Thomas' Hospital]] in 1860, the [[Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery|first nursing school]] is now part of King's College London.<ref>{{cite news |title=Florence Nightingale: The Mother of Nursing |work=National Institutes of Health|year=2015 |pmc=4557413 |last1=Karimi |first1=H. |last2=Masoudi Alavi |first2=N. |volume=4 |issue=2 |pages=e29475 |pmid=26339672 }}</ref> It was at King's in 1952 where a team led by [[Rosalind Franklin]] captured ''[[Photo 51]]'', the critical evidence in identifying the structure of [[DNA]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/photo51/anat-flash.html |title=Anatomy of Photo 51 |last=Krock |first=Lexi |work=NOVA online |publisher=PBS |date=22 April 2003 |access-date=19 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100729050654/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/photo51/anat-flash.html |archive-date=29 July 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> There are a number of business schools in London, including the [[London School of Business and Finance]], [[Cass Business School]] (part of [[City University London]]), [[Hult International Business School]], [[ESCP Europe]], [[European Business School London]], [[Imperial College Business School]], the [[London Business School]] and the [[UCL School of Management]].

[[File:Central School Eton Avenue.jpg|thumb|Opened in 1906, the [[Royal Central School of Speech and Drama]] is a member of [[Conservatoires UK]] and the [[Federation of Drama Schools]].]]
London is also home to many specialist arts education institutions, including the [[Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]] (RADA), [[Central School of Ballet]], [[London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art]] (LAMDA), [[London College of Contemporary Arts]] (LCCA), [[London Contemporary Dance School]], [[The Circus Space|National Centre for Circus Arts]], [[Rambert Dance Company|Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance]], the [[Royal College of Art]], [[Sylvia Young Theatre School]] and [[Trinity Laban]]. The [[BRIT School]] in the London borough of Croydon provides training for the performing arts and technologies.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.croydonadvertiser.co.uk/whats-on/music-nightlife/11-famous-former-pupils-you-432659|title=11 of the most famous people who studied at Croydon's BRIT School|last=Truelove|first=Sam|date=13 October 2016|work=Croydon Advertiser|access-date=17 July 2022}}</ref>

===Primary and secondary education===
{{see also|Centre for School Design}}
The majority of primary and secondary schools and further-education colleges in London are controlled by the [[London boroughs]] or otherwise state-funded; leading examples include [[Ashbourne College]], [[Bethnal Green Academy]], [[Brampton Manor Academy]], [[City and Islington College]], [[City of Westminster College]], [[David Game College]], [[Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College]], [[Leyton Sixth Form College]], [[London Academy of Excellence]], [[Tower Hamlets College]], and [[Newham Collegiate Sixth Form Centre]]. There are also a number of private schools and colleges in London, some old and famous, such as [[City of London School]], [[Harrow School|Harrow]], [[St Paul's School (London)|St Paul's School]], [[Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School]], [[University College School]], [[The John Lyon School]], [[Highgate School]] and [[Westminster School]].

===Royal Observatory, Greenwich and learned societies===
[[File:Tourists taking pictures at Prime Meridian monument, Greenwich Observatory, London.jpg|thumb|upright=1|right|Tourists queuing to take pictures on the line of the historic [[Prime meridian (Greenwich)|prime meridian]] at the [[Royal Observatory, Greenwich]].]]
Founded in 1675, the [[Royal Observatory, Greenwich|Royal Observatory]] in [[Greenwich]] was established to address the problem of calculating [[longitude]] for navigational purposes. This pioneering work in solving longitude featured in astronomer royal [[Nevil Maskelyne]]'s ''[[Nautical Almanac]]'' which made the Greenwich meridian the universal reference point, and helped lead to the international adoption of Greenwich as the [[prime meridian]] (0° longitude) in 1884.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ridpath |first1=Ian |title=A Dictionary of Astronomy |date=2012 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=198}}</ref>

Important scientific [[learned societies]] based in London include the [[Royal Society]]—the UK's national [[academy of sciences]] and the oldest national scientific institution in the world—founded in 1660,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Royal Society|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Royal-Society|access-date=23 July 2022|last=Hunter|first=Michael}}</ref> and the [[Royal Institution]], founded in 1799. Since 1825, the [[Royal Institution Christmas Lectures]] have presented scientific subjects to a general audience, and speakers have included physicist and inventor [[Michael Faraday]], aerospace engineer [[Frank Whittle]], naturalist [[David Attenborough]] and evolutionary biologist [[Richard Dawkins]].<ref>{{cite web|title=History of the Christmas Lectures|url=http://www.rigb.org/christmas-lectures/history|publisher=The Royal Institution|access-date=22 April 2015}}</ref>