Royal Holloway, University of London
Ranked #26

Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL) is situated in 135 acres of parkland in the affluent area of Egham, Surrey, less than 20 miles from central London and close to Windsor Castle. Its campus is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful in the world and is based on the design of the Château Chambord, one of the most distinctive châteaux in France’s Loire Valley. It also has a central London base at Bedford Square in Bloomsbury.

• The University is formed from two colleges, founded by two social pioneers, Elizabeth Jesser Reid and Thomas Holloway. They were among the first places in Britain where women could access higher education. 
• Royal Holloway has 21 academic departments and schools spanning the arts and humanities, sciences, social sciences, management, economics and law. 
• The distinctive Founder's Building on campus – built around two quadrangles and comprising a gilded chapel and picture gallery with works by world-class artists – has featured as a backdrop in several film and TV productions including Downton Abbey, Inspector Morse and Midsomer Murders.  
• The university boasts a recent multi-million pound estate investment programme and a new drama complex, the Caryl Churchill Theatre.  
• Notable alumni include novelist George Eliot, suffragette Emily Davison, the first woman doctor in the west Dr Elizabeth Blackwell.