Glasgow Caledonian University Information

Glasgow Caledonian University (informally GCU, Caledonian or Caley) is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of The Queens College, Glasgow (founded in 1875) and Glasgow Polytechnic (founded in 1971).

In June 2017, the universitys New York partner institution, which was founded in 2013, was granted permission to award degrees in the state, the first higher education institution founded by a foreign university to achieve this status.

The University traces its origin from The Queens College, Glasgow (founded 1875) and the Glasgow College of Technology (founded 1971). The Queens College, which specialised in providing training in domestic science, received the Royal accolade of being named after Queen Elizabeth in its centenary celebrations in 1975. Queen Elizabeth was, herself, Patron of the College since 1944. Glasgow Polytechnic, which was one of the largest central institutions in Scotland, offered externally validated degrees and diplomas in engineering, science, and the humanities: the first of which was a BA in Optics, followed by degrees in Social Sciences (1973) and Nursing (1977).

On 1 April 1993, the two institutions amalgamated to form Glasgow Caledonian University. The new university took its name from Caledonia, the poetic Latin name for present-day Scotland. The main campus of the university is built on the site of the former Buchanan Street Station, built by the Caledonian Railway.

Independent research carried out in 2015 revealed that the University contributes over £480m to Scotlands economy each year with the quantifiable lifetime premium of a one-year class of graduates estimated at around £400m, bringing the Universitys total annual economic impact to around £880m in Scotland alone.[unreliable source?]

Annie Lennox was installed as GCUs first female chancellor, taking over the role from Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, at a ceremony in July 2018.Pamela Gillies is the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University, appointed in 2006.

The Universitys coat of arms is the work of university academic and artist Malcolm Lochhead and draws on four elements from the coat of arms of the Universitys predecessor institutions. The Caledonian Oak Tree (of St. Mungos infamous legend) and the Book of Knowledge were borrowed from the arms of Glasgow Polytechnic while the Saltire Ermine and the Crossed Keys (intended to represent the "unlocking" of the Book of Knowledge) were taken from the arms of The Queens College. A visual feature was added to the new arms with the illuminated capital letters in the Books paragraphs reading: G C U (the three-letter abbreviation of the Universitys name). The Coat of Arms was matriculated by the Lord Lyon King of Arms and is inscribed into university degree parchments. The Universitys motto: "for the common weal", which has been adopted since 1975, features in the full design of the arms.

GCUs main campus is in Glasgow city-centre. A second campus in London is home to the British School of Fashion. In September 2013 the university founded Glasgow Caledonian New York College, which is an independent partner institution whose Wooster Street campus is based in the citys SoHo district.

GCUs IT, engineering and construction experience is housed within the School of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment. The School is composed of 8 departments:

The Schools links with industry include the £1.2m Doble Innovation Centre for On-Line Systems, which works on diagnostic test instruments and expert consulting and knowledge exchange services for the electric power industry. GCU is also a partner in five of the Scottish Government-funded collaborative Innovation Centres which bring knowledge from higher education institutions to solve real-world business challenges – these are DataLab, the Digital Health and Care Institute, Construction Scotland Innovation Centre, Oil and Gas Innovation Centre and CENSIS (sensors and imaging systems).

The School performs research into built environment and connections with industry leaders in growing markets such as games design. The School also has a Centre for Climate Justice, which is involved in policy relevant research for development, teaching and learning, and broadening knowledge in the area of climate justice.

The Glasgow School for Business and Society brings together disciplines in business, law and social sciences, teaching and research in Fashion, Tourism, Risk Management, Finance and Multimedia Journalism.

The School leads the University-wide delivery of the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRiME), a United Nations Global Compact-backed initiative which places social responsibility, ethics and sustainability at the top of the agenda for training future leaders. GCU became a PRiME signatory in January 2012 and is a founding member of the UK and Ireland PRiME Chapter.

GCU is a member of Business in the Community (BITC) Scotland and school students and staff manage the Work Ready Action Programme (WRAP), which sees students mentor school pupils from the Glasgow area.

In 2015, the Schools 10 BA Business Programme Set and its MSc International Fashion Marketing Programmes achieved the EPAS accreditation, becoming the first institution in Scotland and one of only 69 recognised worldwide.

It is designated a Centre of Excellence by the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment and is the only business school to offer triple-accredited degrees in financial services. The school is also home to the Moffat Centre, one of the worlds university research centres in tourism and travel.

The School is composed of the following three departments:

The School of Health and Life Sciences is one of Scotlands largest research and teaching centres in health care and life sciences; Scotlands only provider of optometry training; and home to an eye clinic, based on campus. GCU is ranked in the Top 20 in the UK for allied health research at world-leading and internationally excellent standards. The School is, since 1993, Scotlands only designated World Health Organization Collaborating Centre (WHOCC) for Nursing and Midwifery Education, Research, and Practice. It is also home to the Scottish Ambulance Academy; the only educational establishment in the UK to be formally endorsed by the College of Paramedics and certified by the Health and Care Professions Council, providing professional training for Paramedics on behalf of the Scottish Ambulance Service. September 2017 seen the first intake of the BSc Paramedic Science course, the first (and at present only) direct-entry Paramedic course available in Scotland. The School is composed of the following three departments:

By Statute, the University maintains two internal institutions: the University Court and the University Senate. The University Court is the supreme governing body of the University and is composed of a number of ‘governors’, statutory mandated with overseeing its overall strategic direction and appointing both the Chancellor and the Principal (and Vice-Chancellor) of the University. The universitys Principal and Vice-Chancellor and the President of the Students’ Association are ex officio governors of the Court. The University Senate, on the other hand, is statutory tasked with the overall planning, co-ordination, development and supervision of the Universitys academic affairs. University degrees and fellowship as well as academic honours and distinctions are awarded by and in the name of the Court, with the advice of the Senate. The current Chair of the Court is Rob Woodward and the Senate is presided over by the Universitys Principal and Vice-Chancellor, currently Pamela Gillies.

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