Their values reflect their motto. To do justice to the hopes and the expectations of those on whose shoulders they now stand, they strive to make a difference in everything that they do.
Today the University is a lively, energetic and global community, in which dedicated and talented people are anticipating, working towards and helping to shape the future.
They are committed both to undertaking research that saves, improves and enriches lives, and to fostering a teaching and learning environment that transforms the prospects of their students and those they will go on to influence. Find out about some of their greatest discoveries.
They envision being a University which is open to talent, not privilege and accessible to everyone with the ability to benefit from higher education.
The University was founded as Leicestershire and Rutland University College in 1921. The site for the University was donated by a local textile manufacturer, Thomas Fielding Johnson, in order to create a living memorial for those who lost their lives in First World War. This is reflected in the University's motto Ut Vitam Habeant – 'so that they may have life'.
Students were first admitted to the college in 1921. In 1927, after it became University College, Leicester, students sat the examinations for external degrees of the University of London. In 1957 the college was granted its Royal Charter, and has since then had the status of a University with the right to award its own degrees.
The University won the first ever series of University Challenge, in 1963.
The very compact campus contains a wide range of twentieth century architecture, though the oldest building, the Fielding Johnson Building, dates from 1837. The main campus is a mile south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park and Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College.
The central building, now known as the Fielding Johnson Building, houses the University's administration offices and Leicester Law School. This was formerly the Leicestershire and Rutland Lunatic Asylum. Adjacent to the Fielding Johnson Building are the Astley Clarke Building, home to the School of Economics, and the Danielle Brown Sports Centre.
The skyline of Leicester University is punctuated by three distinctive, towering, buildings from the 1960s: the Engineering Building, the Attenborough Tower and the Charles Wilson Building.
The University's Engineering Building was the first major building by important British architect Sir James Stirling. It comprises workshops and laboratories at ground level, and a tower containing offices and lecture theatres. It was completed in 1963 and is notable for the way in which its external form reflects its internal functions.
The 18-storey Attenborough Tower, housing several departments within the College of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities, has one of the very few remaining paternosters in the UK. The Ken Edwards Building, built in 1995, lies adjacent to the Fielding Johnson Building and is home to the School of Management.
Built in 1957, the Percy Gee Building is home to Leicester University's Students' Union. The David Wilson Library was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in December 2008, following an extensive refurbishment.
A University of 20,000 students, their turnover is in excess £250m per annum. Their students’ spending contributes a further £140m directly and indirectly into the economy and their international students generate a further £61m. In total the University's turnover has a knock on effect that contributes £729m of activity annually to the economy. The University directly employs over 3,300 people and indirectly supports the employment of over 4,300 others.
