University of Essex
Became a university in: 1964
Student population: 18,780
Location: Campus university, just a couple of miles outside Colchester
Subject areas: A wide range of traditional subjects in the Humanities, Social Sciences, Science and Health
Admissions: A-level grades BBB to BCC for most disciplines, and happy to accept BTECs or a mix.
📸 Snapshot
When we think of highly reputable campus universities in the UK, I guess Warwick, Loughborough and Lancaster might be the first to come to mind for many students and many advisers. But there are, of course, many more, and one such place is the University of Essex.
Like Warwick and Lancaster, Essex was set up as a brand new university in the 1960s under the proposals of the Robbins Committee. And like each of those (which also include East Anglia, York, Kent and Sussex), it is based on its own rural campus, not far from a regionally important town or city. And in Essex’s case, the campus was built on the estate of the 19th century Wivenhoe House - famous, amongst other things, for being painted by John Constable - and the local city is Colchester.
The centre-piece of the campus, like each of the others, was clearly built in the 60s, with too much concrete for many modern tastes. Over the years, however, the campus has developed, with many far more modern buildings. One such development, the student centre and library extension, won the RIBA Regional Building of the Year Award in 2016. Like many other campuses, it has a clear sense of community the moment you step (or drive) through the entrance gates.
So why does it not seem to have the same reputation as some of the other similar universities? Well, I’ll be honest, I’m not quite sure. You’ll know I’m not a fan of league tables, but as a measure of prestige they have at least some value. While Essex doesn’t typically fly quite as high as Warwick and Loughborough, it’s in the top 30 of most of the main rankings, placing it alongside (and indeed above) a number of Russell Group universities.
Perhaps it's simply that Essex as a county isn’t exactly associated with education and intellect. It's been the butt of too many jokes for far too long to be taken seriously. In the case of the university, however, this is simply unfair. The University of Essex that I have visited many times is a campus with character, community, excellent facilities, and by any sensible measure, a good level of education. Meanwhile, its local town, Colchester, has history and charm in abundance.
If you are looking for a true campus experience that is easily accessible from Central, East or South East England, and you want to study any of the traditional academic subjects with sensible entry requirements, you’ll want to give this one some serious attention.
In summary
University of Essex could be for you if…
You want the full ‘campus experience’
You want to study a traditional academic subject
You are looking for relatively straightforward entry grades
And if you like Essex, you might also like…
University of East Anglia
University of Kent
Lancaster University
University of Sussex
University of Warwick
University of York
