About Glasgow Caledonian

Glasgow Caledonian – the largest and leading modern university in Scotland - is a vibrant, values-led university with campuses in the heart of Glasgow and London. With a strong commitment to high quality education and research which supports the communities we serve, we have strong partnerships with employers to ensure our students get the careers they dream of and deserve.

With a wide range of professionally accredited courses and links with over 300 industry partners, we have the highest proportion of undergraduate level graduates in highly skilled occupations (83%) compared to other Scottish modern universities - with 91% of our students in employment or further study within fifteen months of graduating (HESA 2023). We are Scotland’s leading provider of Graduate Apprenticeships.

We are the top performing modern university in Scotland. This year we rocketed into the top 40 universities in the UK in the highly coveted Guardian University Guide, were ranked the UK’s 2nd top performing modern university in the inaugural Daily Mail guide, and entered the top highly regarded 50 UK universities in the 2024 Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide for the first time. We are the leading University in the UK in key health areas including Radiography, Physiotherapy and Subjects allied to Medicine, and first in the UK for Food Science, with Hospitality, Leisure, Recreation and Tourism ranked second in the UK, and first in Scotland.

For environmental sustainability we are the only Scottish university with EcoCampus Platinum accreditation and were ranked second in Scotland for sustainability in the most recent People and Planet league table.

Glasgow Caledonian is unsurpassed by any other Scottish modern university for the level of research (72%) considered to be world-leading or internationally excellent, our health research is only surpassed by King’s College London for outstanding impact, and 100% of our communications, culture and media research is rated as having an outstanding or very considerable impact (REF2021).

An independent economic impact report highlighted that Glasgow Caledonian is a valuable asset to the City of Glasgow, not only bringing economic and employment opportunities, but working to address the deep-rooted economic, social and health inequalities in the city (BiGGAR Economics).

Glasgow Caledonian was the first University to align its research strategy and among the first to align its organisational strategies to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) promoted by the United Nations. Central to our Strategy 2030 is the ambition to be recognised as world-leading in social innovation through our research and teaching.

Glasgow Caledonian’s research expertise spans three Schools (the School of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment, the Glasgow School for Business and Society, and our School of Health and Life Sciences), and centres including the Research Centre for Health (ReaCH), Mary Robinson Centre for Climate Justice, and Yunus Centre for Social Business and Health. Our globally recognised researchers regularly advise governments, industry and international bodies on policy development, and delivering impact.

Our welcoming University community of over 1,600 staff and more than 22,000 students from nearly 120 countries enjoy state-of-the-art facilities across our campuses in Glasgow and London. With transnational partnerships in China, South Africa, Oman, Bangladesh and Mauritius, our success as a globally connected University is demonstrated by the large number of international students studying at our UK campuses.

Pathways to success

Student Life, undergraduate students in one of GCU's breakout areas

Leaders in widening access

We are leaders in widening participation in Higher Education - 22% of our Scottish full-time, first degree entrants were drawn from the country's 20% most-disadvantaged backgrounds (SFC 2023).

Award-winning outreach

Our College Connect Team helps students transition to university, our award-winning Caledonian Club has reached 20,000 children, many from disadvantaged backgrounds, and our Advanced Higher Hub helps school pupils access higher and further education

Providing Graduate Apprenticeships

We are Scotland’s leading provider of Graduate Apprenticeships, with a wide range of professionally accredited courses and industry links.

Discover more

Academic schools

Our academic schools offer a wide range of high-quality programmes, professional training courses, research opportunities and consultancy services.

Learn more arrow_forward

Support services

Browse our A -Z directory of support departments and services for students, staff, businesses and anyone else connected to the university.

Learn more arrow_forward

University facilities

Glasgow Caledonian University provides one of the best learning environments in the UK at our modern campus in the heart of Glasgow. The hub of the campus is our striking Sir Alex Ferguson Library.

Learn more arrow_forward

University Governance

Find out how the University is governed.

Learn more arrow_forward

Welcome to the University

Glasgow Caledonian University is a distinctive, inclusive and forward-looking university that is committed to its social mission to promote the Common Good.

Learn more arrow_forward

Principal and Vice-Chancellor

Professor Steve Decent joined Glasgow Caledonian University as Principal and Vice-Chancellor in January 2023.

Learn more arrow_forward