University of Bradford
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The University of Bradford is a university in Bradford, West Yorkshire in the United Kingdom.
History
The university has its origins in the Bradford Schools of Weaving, Design and Building which in 1882 became the Bradford Technical College. This was succeeded by the Bradford Institute of Technology in 1957, and in 1966 a Charter of Incorporation was granted to create the University of Bradford. In 1996 the university joined with the former Bradford and Airedale College of Health, which then became the School of Health Studies (http://www.brad.ac.uk/acad/health) within the university. The Department of Physics was bizarrely closed in the 1980s to make room for the subject known as Peace Studies.
The Bradford Race Riots of 2001 lead to a sharp fall in applications to the university, however the situation has improved since and in 2005 undergraduate applications from home students was up by 35% on the previous year.
In 2003, a merger with the nearby Bradford College was proposed, to create a combined further and higher education institution. This plan was discarded later in the year and the institutions remain separate, however the university still validates the college's degree courses. 94% of students are from the state sector, though overseas students may count for most of the remaining 6%, leaving little room, if any, for independent-schooled students. 15% of students drop out, which is average though not low for UK universities. There are many overseas students at Bradford, especially in science subjects.
In 2005, a £79million redevelopment of the campus was announced, which included new halls of residence, sports facilities and a cancer therapeutics research centre.
Schools
The University of Bradford is comprised of eight Schools:
The School of Archaeological, Geographical and Environmental Sciences
Consists of the Department of Archeology and Archeological Sciences and the Department of Geography and Environmental Science. It specialises in areas such as Geoarcheology and Biosciences.
The School of Engineering, Design and Technology
Offers courses in the broad areas of Mechanical, Electrical, Civil and Medical Engineering, as well as courses which focus on technology management. Recently the Ford Motor Company invested in new facilities for its Automotive Design and Engineering courses.
The School of Health Studies
Formally the Bradford and Airedale College of Health, this became part of the university in 1996. It is currently located on a separate site on Trinity Road, about 10 minutes walk from the main campus, but its facilities will be moved into new purpose-built premises onto the main campus in the coming years. Specialises in courses in nursing, physiotherapy, midwifery and radiography.
The School of Informatics
Consists of the departments of Computing, Cybernetics and Electronic Imaging and Media Communications (EIMC), and offers computing and IT-related degrees. The EIMC department has links with the nearby National Museum of Photography, Film and Television and in 2005 opened a new Digital Arts Centre, offering an innovative degree in Computer Animation. It is the second-largest school in the university. The School of Computing and Mathematics is housed in the Phoenix Building, next to the Theatre in the Mill.
The School of Lifelong Education and Development
Offers mostly part-time and specialist degrees, focussing on areas such as community regeneration and social studies.
The School of Life Sciences
Has the highest number of students of all of the schools, and offers degrees in areas such as optometry, pharmacy and biomedical sciences.
The School of Management
This is located 3 miles away from the main campus on Emm Lane, and teaches courses in the realm of business, management and marketing. It has a number of MBA and doctoral students alongside undergraduates.
The School of Social and International Studies
Offers courses in social sciences and humanities, and is home to the internationally-renowned Department of Peace Studies.
Motto
The motto which appears on most current University of Bradford publications is "Making Knowledge Work", which relates to the institution's focus on courses that lead to employment. In 2005 it was ranked 2nd in the country (after the University of Cambridge) by The Times University Guide for graduate employment and many of its courses have 100% records for graduates getting jobs within 6 months of graduating.
However, the motto inscribed beneath the official coat of arms is "Give Invention Light". It has also used the slogans "Be Inspired" and "Confronting Inequality, Celebrating Diversity" in recent promotional material.
Student Union
The University of Bradford Union is located in the Communal Building on campus. It is politically active and runs regular campaigns, as well as boycotting companies like Nestle and Bacardi for their unethical business practices, but ironically has no quandaries selling cigarettes. There are two excellent venues to eat during the day in Escape and Colours, with Colours being much larger and greater choice. It has Ramair, the UK's longest running student radio station broadcasting on 1350AM, two bars and two nightclubs. It holds the legendary and much recommended Friday Night Disco (FND) each week. The student monthly magazine is called Scrapie, another biological reference to the Union's symbol (a sort of sheep's head). A daily news-sheet called Ram is published daily with items for sale and general student notices, and even romantic messages.
On the ground floor of the Richmond Building is the main Biko Bar, named after Steve Biko, a former student union political hero. The Student Union has its JBs bar, which used to be called the Mainline. In the last few years, many excellent local bars have opened for students which have forcefully cornered the evening-entertainment market, although Bradford does not have many good nightclubs and neither does the university attract many big-name bands. For connoisseurs of beautifully-flavoured curries, Bradford is second-to-none.
The south end of the university, near the Phoenix Building, is inconveniently only a stone's throw from a large red-light district where young women stand on street corners. Sometimes coming back from local pubs, scantily-clad female university students have been embarrassingly mistaken by loitering kerb-crawlers for trades-women.
Alumni
John Hegley - poet - European Literature.
External links
- University of Bradford website. (http://www.brad.ac.uk)
- University of Bradford Union. (http://www.ubuonline.co.uk)
- Ramair radio station. (http://www.ramair.co.uk)
- Scrapie student magazine. (http://www.scrapie.co.uk)
- Theatre in the Mill. (http://www.brad.ac.uk/theatre)
- The much-renowned FND. (http://www.ubuonline.co.uk/main/yourunion/services/ents/friday)
- Unofficial Guide. (http://www.unofficial-guides.com/guides/bradford.html)
News Items
- BBC News article on perpetrators of the 2001 shameful riots. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/frontpage/4463973.stm)
- Mismanagement of university marketing funds. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_yorkshire/2935427.stm)
- New cricketing chancellor. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_yorkshire/4501271.stm)
- The disgraceful 2001 riots and how Bradford University inevitably suffered. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/1654845.stm)
- Bradford students study how beer is drunk. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2401595.stm)
- Selling the inexpensiveness of Bradford to students. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_yorkshire/3150741.stm)
- Peace Studies, doves and riots. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2096504.stm)
- Two students aged 23 and 24 jailed for 4 and 9 years by Bradford Crown Court for assault using a knife and rape of a prostitute. (http://www.thisisbradford.co.uk/bradford__district/archive/2005/03/08/brad_news03.int.html)
- Students of law and economics get a chance to learn about prison life as they get 15 years each from Leeds Crown Court in August 2003 as part of a gang who robbed a Securicor van of £358,000 in Leeds in January 2002. (http://www.thisisbradford.co.uk/bradford__district/archive/2003/08/15/brad_news02.int.html)
- Accountancy student gets community service from Bradford Crown Court for his part in the events of July 7th 2001. (http://www.thisisbradford.co.uk/bradford__district/archive/2003/07/29/brad_news10.int.html)
- Sociology female student given six months by Bradford Crown Court in June 2001 for growing 150 cannabis plants in her basement. (http://www.thisisbradford.co.uk/bradford__district/archive/2001/06/29/brad_news02.int.html)