Student London - 200 Years of Student Life in the Capital

Students have formed a significant part of London’s population since the foundation of its first university in 1826. This talk centres their experiences in the capital’s history and is based on Student London: A New History of Higher Education in the Capital (UCL Press, 2026). The book offers a detailed examination of life at the original London University (known as University College London since 1836) alongside many other institutions that eventually joined with UCL, allowing us to examine a diverse range of higher education experiences across medical schools, teacher training colleges and specialist institutes.