View source for Keele University

{{Short description|Public university in Keele, England}}
{{distinguish|University of Kiel|Keble College, Oxford}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox university
 | name                   = University of Keele
 | image                  = Keele University Coat of Arms.jpg
 | image_size             = 160px
 | caption                = [[Coat of arms]]
 | motto                  = Thanke God for All
 | established            = 1949 – as University College of North Staffordshire<br />1962 – [[royal charter]] granted for university status
 | type                   = [[Public university|Public]] [[red brick university|civic]] [[research university]]
 | endowment              = £1.04 million (2022-23)
 | budget                 = £206.3 million (2022–23)
 | chancellor             = Vacant position<ref>{{cite web |title=Meet our Chancellor |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/about/chancellor/ |website=Keele University |access-date=14 November 2025}}</ref>
 | vice_chancellor        = [[Kevin Shakesheff]]
 | head_label             = [[Visitor]]
 | head                   = The [[Lord President of the Council]] (''[[ex officio]]'')
 | faculty                = 845 (2023-24)
 | administrative_staff   = 1,100 (2023-24)
 | students               = 13,525 (2023-24)
 | undergrad              = 9,900 (2023-24)
 | postgrad               = 3,625 (2023-24)
 | city                   = [[Keele, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire]]
 | country                = UK
 | coordinates            = {{coord|53.003|N|2.273|W|region:GB_type:edu|display=inline,title}}
 | mascot                 = Herbert the Dragon<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/keelesdragonmascot/|title=Keele's Dragon mascot|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref>
 | campus                 = Rural
 | campus_size            = 625
 | colours                = {{scarf|{{Cells|2|gold}}{{Cell|red}}{{Cell|gold}}{{Cell|red}}{{Cells|3|gold}}{{Cell|red}}{{Cell|gold}}{{Cell|red}}{{Cells|2|gold}}}} Staffordshire gold and red
 | athletics_affiliations = Team Keele
 | free_label             = Newspaper
 | free                   = Concourse
 | academic_affiliations  = [[Association of Commonwealth Universities|ACU]]<br />[[European University Association|EUA]]<br />[[Universities UK]]<br />[[Midlands Innovation]]
 | website                = {{URL|https://keele.ac.uk}}
 | logo                   = Keele University logo.jpg
}}

'''Keele University''' is a [[Public university#United Kingdom|public]] [[research university]] in [[Keele]], approximately {{convert|3|mi|km|0|abbr=off|spell=on}} from [[Newcastle-under-Lyme]], [[Staffordshire]], England. Founded in 1949 as the '''University College of North Staffordshire''', it was granted university status by [[Royal Charter]] as the '''University of Keele''' in 1962.<ref name="TP">{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/discover/ourhistory/|title=History of the University of Keele|publisher=Keele University|access-date=5 October 2014}}</ref><ref name="Colours and Badges">{{cite web|url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/alumni/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/keeleheraldrycoloursandscarves/|title=Keele's Colours and Badges|work=Keele Heraldry, Colours and Scarves|publisher=Keele University|access-date=26 September 2014}}</ref>

Keele occupies a {{convert|625|acre|ha|abbr=off|adj=on}} rural campus close to the village of Keele and includes extensive woods, lakes and [[Keele Hall]] set in the [[Staffordshire Potteries]]. It has a [[science park]] and a conference centre, and is the largest campus university in the UK.<ref name="TP"/> The university's [[Keele University Medical School|Medical School]] operates the clinical part of its courses from a separate campus at the [[Royal Stoke University Hospital]]. The School of Nursing and Midwifery is based at the nearby Clinical Education Centre.

==History==
[[File:Keele Hall 0791.jpg|thumb|Keele Hall|alt=]]

===Establishment===
Cambridge and Oxford extension lectures had been arranged in the Potteries since the 1890s, but outside any organised educational framework or establishment. In 1904, funds were raised by local industrialists to support teaching by the creation of a North Staffordshire College, but the project, without the backing of [[Staffordshire County Council]], was abandoned.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.staffs.ac.uk/centenary/early_beginnings/|title=Early Beginnings|website=Staffs.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009083719/http://www.staffs.ac.uk/centenary/early_beginnings/|archive-date=9 October 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

By the late 1930s, the Staffordshire towns of [[Longton, Staffordshire|Longton]], [[Fenton, Staffordshire|Fenton]], [[Burslem]], [[Hanley, Staffordshire|Hanley]] had grown into the largest conurbation in the UK without some form of university provision.<ref>Whyte, William, ''Redbrick: A Social and Architectural History of Britain's Civic Universities'', Oxford University Press, 2015, p222.</ref> A large area including Staffordshire, Shropshire and parts of Cheshire and Derbyshire did not have its own university. [[Stoke-on-Trent|Stoke]], in particular, demanded highly qualified graduates for the regional pottery and mining industries and also additional social workers, teachers and administrators.<ref>Taylor, Richard & Steele, Tom, ''British Labour and Higher Education, 1945 to 2000: Ideologies, Policies and Practice'', Bloomsbury Publishing, 2011, p50.</ref> [[Alexander Dunlop Lindsay, 1st Baron Lindsay of Birker|A. D. Lindsay]], Professor of Philosophy and Master of [[Balliol College, Oxford]], was a strong advocate of working-class adult education,<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.balliol.ox.ac.uk/history/history/| title = Balliol College History| access-date =8 March 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070202135357/http://www.balliol.ox.ac.uk/history/history/ |archive-date = 2 February 2007}}</ref> and suggested a "people's university" in an address to the North Staffordshire [[Workers' Educational Association]] in 1925.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=8}}</ref>

====Curricular philosophy====

Recently appointed to the [[House of Lords]], Lindsay participated in producing the influential Foreign Office report ''University Reform in Germany'', which argued that no institution deserved the name of "university" unless it combined teaching and research. Consistent with his democratic ideals of education, Lindsay also warned of the dangers of training the specialist intellect in the natural sciences and the need to introduce elements of social sciences at university level by broadening the academic agenda. Lindsay believed technological excesses sponsored by the state without a review of the social and political consequences had been a major contributor to Germany's downfall. This was to heavily influence Keele's curriculum.<ref name="Kolbert13">{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=13}}</ref>

On 13 March 1946, Lindsay wrote to [[Walter Hamilton Moberly|Sir Walter Moberly]], chair of the [[University Grants Committee (UK)|University Grants Committee]] (UGC), suggesting the creation of a college "on new lines".<ref name="Kolbert19">{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=19}}</ref> The committee wanted a university for the 20th century that could overcome the division between arts and sciences, and what Moberly was calling the "evil of departmentalism". The UGC argued that "The tasks of the modern citizen and the study of modern society should be central to the curriculum." North Staffordshire was seen as an ideal site since it "presented many typical problems thrown up by modern industrial conglomerations, such as those posed by technical innovation in the pottery and mining industries." The college could become a "social laboratory" for industries and the local communities they catered for.<ref>{{Cite book|title=British Labour and Higher Education: Ideologies, Policies and Practice|last=Talor|first=Richard|publisher=Continuum|year=2011|isbn=978-0-8264-4094-5|location=London, UK|page=50}}</ref>
[[File:Keele University Clock House.jpg|alt=Keele University Clock House|thumb|left|Keele University Clock House]]
Normal practice was for new colleges (such as Southampton, Exeter and Nottingham) to be launched without degree-awarding powers. Students would instead matriculate with and take [[external degree]]s from the [[University of London]]. Lindsay wanted to "get rid of the London external degree" and instead found a college with degree-awarding authority, as well as the power to set its own syllabus, perhaps acting under the sponsorship of an established university. This would allow the college to start afresh in the setting of its curriculum. Lindsay wrote to the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, tentatively requesting such sponsorship.<ref name="Kolbert19" />

An exploratory committee was established by Stoke-on-Trent City Council, and, having secured public funding from the UGC in January 1948,<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|pages=22, 30}}</ref> the committee acquired [[Keele Hall]] on the outskirts of Newcastle-under-Lyme from its owner, Ralph Sneyd.<ref name="Kolbert37">{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=37}}</ref> The Hall was purchased together with the bulk of the Sneyd estate and a number of prefabricated structures erected by the Army during the [[Second World War]] for £31,000.<ref name="Kolbert37" />

In August 1949 the university college was granted the right to award its own degrees.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=39}}</ref> The first graduate was [[George Eason]], who had studied mathematics at [[Birmingham University]] and gained a BSc in 1951. He received his MSc in 1952 from Keele.<ref>Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh; obituaries 1999</ref> In 1954 the first graduate studying fully at Keele was Margaret Boulds, who received a dual honours degree in philosophy and English.

====Receiving university status====
[[File:Keele Drive.jpg|thumb|Keele drive during autumn|alt=]]
{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = University of Keele Act 1962
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = United Kingdom
| long_title            = An Act to dissolve the University College of North Staffordshire and to transfer all the property and liabilities of that college to the University of Keele; and for other purposes.
| year                  = 1962
| citation              = 10 & 11 Eliz 2 c xv
| royal_assent          = 24 May 1962
| status                = current
| use_new_UK-LEG        = yes
| UK-LEG_title          = University of Keele Act 1962
| collapsed             = yes
}}
Growing steadily to 1,200 students,<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=119}}</ref> the [[university college]] was granted university status in 1962, receiving a new [[royal charter]] in January that year,<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=108}}</ref> and adopting the name "University of Keele". Alternatives were considered, including "The University of Stoke" or "Stoke-on-Trent", but both were rejected because the estate is situated in the borough of [[Newcastle-under-Lyme]]. "[[Staffordshire University]]" was also discussed (this is now the name of the former North Staffordshire Polytechnic).<ref name="historyinkeelebuildings">{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/historyinkeelebuildings/ |title=History in Keele Buildings |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref> The university is a short distance west of the civil parish of Keele, and it was decided to name it after the village. It is the only establishment of higher education in the UK to be named after a village, and this has long attracted questions as to its location. Together with [[University of Reading|Reading]], [[University of Nottingham|Nottingham]], [[University of Southampton|Southampton]], [[University of Hull|Hull]], [[University of Exeter|Exeter]] and [[University of Leicester|Leicester]], all university colleges founded a short time before or after the First World War, Keele was identified as one of the "younger civic universities" by the [[Robbins Report]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Derek Gillard |url=http://www.educationengland.org.uk/documents/robbins/robbins1963.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131030011903/http://www.educationengland.org.uk/documents/robbins/robbins1963.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 October 2013 |title=Robbins Report 1963&nbsp;– full text |website=Educationengland.org.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref>

In 1968 the Royal Commission on Medical Education (1965–68) issued the Todd Report,<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.bmj.com/content/1/5643/569 |title=The Todd Report—Views of Royal College of Physicians |journal=The BMJ |date=1969-03-01 |volume=1 |issue=5643 |page=569 |doi=10.1136/bmj.1.5643.569 |pmid=20791578 |pmc=1982242 |s2cid=45940444 |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref> which examined the possibility of a medical school being established at Keele. It was considered that North Staffordshire would be a good site, having a large local population and several hospitals. However, a minimum intake of 150 students each year would be necessary to make a medical school economically and educationally viable, and the university was at that time too small to support a medical school of this size.

Keele's International Relations Department was founded in 1974 by Alan James and was one of the first institutions to offer a full degree in the subject.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/spire/internationalrelations/|title=International Relations|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016|archive-date=13 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161013220909/http://www.keele.ac.uk/spire/internationalrelations/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Keele World Affairs Group, closely associated, followed suit in 1980.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/keeleworldaffairs/|title=Keele World Affairs|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref> Keele's first female professor was appointed to the Chair of Social Work in 1976.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=177}}</ref> In 1978, Keele Department of Postgraduate Medicine was created, although it did not cater for undergraduate medical students.

===Government funding cuts===
[[File:Keele University Western Entrance.jpg|thumb|left|Keele University western entrance]]
In late 1985, after a series of cuts in university funding, Keele briefly considered merging with North Staffordshire Polytechnic, but negotiations collapsed.<ref>Walker, David 'Proposals Would Merge Britain's University of Keele with nearby Polytechnic of North Staffordshire'; Chronicle of Higher Education, 31, 10 (6 November 1985),39, 42</ref> In September 1983, the Secretary of State, via the UGC, had encouraged the idea, asserting that the most radical way of increasing the size of departments and diminishing their number is by the merger of institutions. At the time, Keele had a population of 2,700 students, compared to 6,000 at the less academically exclusive Polytechnic. [[Edwina Currie]], then Conservative MP for South Derbyshire, remarked, "A university which is now below 3,000 students has got problems. It simply isn't big enough".<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=221}}</ref> [[Keele University Science & Business Park]] Ltd (KUSP Ltd) opened in 1987, partly to generate and diversify alternative sources of income.

In 1994, the Oswestry and North Staffordshire School of Physiotherapy (ONSSP), which had been a separate institution based at the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in [[Oswestry]], [[Shropshire]], merged with Keele University, becoming Keele's Department of Physiotherapy Studies (now School of [[School of Health and Rehabilitation (Keele University)|Health & Rehabilitation]]). It moved to the Keele University campus. In August 1995, Keele University merged with North Staffordshire College of Nursing and Midwifery, forming the new School of Nursing and Midwifery. In 1998 and 1999 there was some controversy when the university decided to sell the Turner Collection, a valuable collection of printed mathematical books, including some which had belonged to and had been heavily annotated by [[Isaac Newton]], in order to fund major improvements to the university library. Senior university officials authorised the sale of the collection to a private buyer, with no guarantee that it would remain intact or within the UK. Although the sale was legal, it was unpopular among the academic community, and the controversy was fuelled by prolonged negative press coverage suggesting that the £1m sale price was too low and that the collection was certain to be broken up.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/1998/dec/23/ameliagentleman|title=Fears grow that books from Newton's library may go abroad|last=Gentleman|first=Amelia|date=23 December 1998|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref>

===21st century developments===
====New Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing and Midwifery====
[[Sir David Weatherall]] was named as Chancellor in 2000. In 2001, Keele was awarded an undergraduate medical school in partnership with [[Manchester University]]. Initially, some students from [[School of Medicine, University of Manchester|Manchester Medical School]] began being taught at Keele. Finally [[Keele University Medical School|Keele's own medical school]] opened in 2007 with the first of cohort of students graduating in 2012. In 2009, the university was awarded a [[Queen's Anniversary Prize]] for Higher and Further Education, for 'pioneering work with the NHS in early intervention and primary care in the treatment of chronic pain and arthritis, linking research to delivery to patients through GP networks and user groups'.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/6595247/University-and-college-awards-the-winners.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/6595247/University-and-college-awards-the-winners.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=University and college awards: the winners|last=Paton|first=Graeme|date=19 November 2009|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In 2006 the School of Pharmacy was created with the launch of [[Master of Pharmacy|MPharm]] degree programmes.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/pharmacy/undergraduate/|title=Undergraduate|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref>
[[File:Electric Car Charging Point.jpg|thumb|Home Farm electric vehicle charging point|alt=]]
In early 2001, to cut costs, the faculties of Humanities and Social Sciences merged. Due to declining popularity and funding, the [[German language|German]] department closed in December 2004<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.theguardian.com/education/2004/dec/29/highereducation.uk1|title=Keele closes German department|last=MacLeod|first=Donald|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=29 December 2004|access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref> with the university retaining its physics degree despite the subject facing similar pressures.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2004/dec/09/highereducation.science|title=Keele plans to drop physics|author1=Taylor, Matthew  |author2=Macleod, Donald|date=9 December 2004|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref> Although degrees ceased to be offered in modern languages, a Language Learning Unit was created to provide Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Russian and Spanish teaching for Keele students and staff. This can lead to an enhanced degree title given sufficient electives taken.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/llu/modernlanguages/|title=Modern Languages|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref>

The foundation year was eliminated in 1998 but re-introduced in 2012 with new programmes of study, the international foundation year and the accelerated international foundation year which add to the existing offer, as well as the humanities, science, social science, health, general foundation years and foundation year for people who are visually impaired.

====Environmental agenda and energy projects====
Starting in 2012, Keele has placed environmental sustainability at the heart of its strategy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/estates/energyenvironment/|title=Energy & Environment|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref> In 2016, Keele was finalist in the [[Green Gown Awards]] for its "significant reduction in carbon emissions and to a dedicated programme of carbon reduction projects supported by an excellent energy management system".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sustainabilityexchange.ac.uk/green_gown_awards_2016_carbon_reduction_keele_u|title=Green Gown Awards 2016&nbsp;– Carbon Reduction&nbsp;– Keele University&nbsp;– Finalist |website=Sustainabilityexchange.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref> In [[the People & Planet Green League]] 2015 assessments for environmental and ethical performance, Keele ranked 48 of 151 educational establishments.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://peopleandplanet.org/university-league/2015/tables|title=People & Planet University League 2015&nbsp;– The Tables|website=Peopleandplanet.org|date=18 October 2016|access-date=6 November 2016|archive-date=10 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161110072603/http://peopleandplanet.org/university-league/2015/tables|url-status=dead}}</ref> The creation of a SMART energy centre due for completion in 2021 will allow the campus to become energy self-sufficient via waste recycling and alternative energy sources.<ref name="Energy">{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-stoke-staffordshire-26562757 | title=Staffordshire £32m energy scheme 'to create 20,000 jobs' | publisher=[[BBC News]] | date=13 March 2014 | access-date=1 October 2014}}</ref>
[[File:New Keele Management School.jpg|thumb|left| New Keele Management School]]

====Business School relocation and STEM expansion====
In 2017, Keele School of Management (KMS), which was at the time housed in the Darwin Building, decided to expand its offering at undergraduate level with new single honours programmes. The new science park Mercia Centre for Innovation and Leadership (MCIL) initiative, due for completion in 2019 serve as a relocation for the school.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://moderngov.staffordshire.gov.uk/documents/s90089/Innovation%20Centre%20No%206%20Keele%20University.pdf |title=Cabinet Meeting |date=18 January 2017 |website=Moderngov.staffordshire.gov.uk |access-date=2017-07-24 |archive-date=4 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904152125/http://moderngov.staffordshire.gov.uk/documents/s90089/Innovation%20Centre%20No%206%20Keele%20University.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> KMS also elected to work more closely with regional business actors e.g. Michelin Tyre PLC in Stoke-on-Trent by offering first year students the opportunity to work on live projects.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/kms/newsandevents/2017/kmsstudentsworkingwithmichelintyreplc.html |title=2017 |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904155346/https://www.keele.ac.uk/kms/newsandevents/2017/kmsstudentsworkingwithmichelintyreplc.html |archive-date=4 September 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Additionally, Keele has embarked on a major expansion of [[STEM]] subjects with a £45m investment.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/pressreleases/2017/keeleuniversityinvests45minstemfacilities.php |title=2017&nbsp;– Keele University invests £45m in STEM facilities |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref>

====Veterinary School====
'''Harper and Keele Veterinary School''' opened in 2020 as a joint venture with [[Harper Adams University]]. It offers a five-year BVetMS degree. A new building offering teaching facilities, clinics and staff and student facilities on campus opened in October 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.harperkeelevetschool.ac.uk/news/687/vet-school-students-move-into-state-of-the-art-new-building-at-keele-university/|title=Vet School students move into state-of-the-art new building at Keele University|website=Harper and Keele Veterinary School|access-date=27 April 2023}}</ref>

===Symbols===
[[File:Keele University Shield.jpg|thumb|right|150px|University Shield]]
====Heraldry====

The heraldic grant of arms features the scythe of the Sneyd family, who owned the Keele park estate from 1540 to 1949, and includes the Sneyd family's motto "Thanke God for All". The shield features the colours red and yellow to represent the County of [[Staffordshire]] as well as the Staffordshire chevron. The [[Stafford knot]] for [[Stafford]], the [[Fleur-de-Lys]] for [[Burton upon Trent]] and the Fret depict the historical association with the industry of [[Stoke-on-Trent]]. An open book joins [[Rodin]]'s ''[[Le Penseur]]'', which is represented amid a wreath of laurel vert. Variations on this have appeared in various corporate logos and shield but this remains the formal grant of arms in official documents.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/keeleheraldrycoloursandscarves/ |title=Keele Heraldry, Colours and Scarves |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref>

====Corporate logo====

Prior to 1986, the university shield was principally utilized on marketing (e.g. university prospectus) and communications material (corporate letterheads etc.). With the opening of the Science park, brand identity evolved with a new, modern corporate word marque featuring 'Congress' and 'Proteus' typefaces. In 1995, the corporate logo changed again with an intertwined ribbon motif representing the overlapping of educational disciplines.  In 2011, the university shield returned relying heavily on the armorial bearings but with a modern twist for the digital age.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Keele Heraldry, Colours and Scarves|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/keeleheraldrycoloursandscarves/|website=Keele University}}</ref>

<gallery>
File:
</gallery>

====Academic dress====
The academic gowns reflect the colours of the County of Staffordshire and emphasise red and yellow.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/graduationceremonies/ |title=Graduation Ceremonies |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref> Higher Doctorates utilise purple, whilst the College of Fellows uses red and gold.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/graduation/beforetheday/|title=Before the Day|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}{{Dead link|date=October 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref>

==Campus==
[[File:Keele University Observatory.jpg|thumb|Keele University Observatory|alt=]]

The campus occupies a {{convert|625|acre|ha|adj=on|abbr=off}} rural setting close to the village of [[Keele]], North Staffordshire with woodland, lakes, 19th-century architecture such as [[Keele Hall]] and red-brick buildings of the modern university.<ref name="what">{{cite web|url= https://www.theguardian.com/education/2004/jan/20/highereducation.news|title= What's it like to work at... ... the University of Keele|last=Wignall|first=Alice|date=20 January 2004|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref> The estate was originally given by King [[Henry II of England]] to the [[Knights Templars]] in 1180. When the Templars were condemned and dissolved by the [[Council of Vienne]] in 1311, their possessions were annexed by the [[Knights Hospitallers]] until their dissolution by [[Henry VIII]].<ref>Ward, John 'The Borough of Stoke-upon-Trent, in the Commencement of the Reign of the Reign of her Most Gracious Majesty, Queen Victoria', 1843, W Lewis & Son, London</ref> The estate was purchased from the Crown by the Sneyd family and remained their property until acquisition by the [[Stoke-on-Trent Corporation]] in 1948.

Apart from academic and residential buildings, other facilities include an [[astronomy|astronomical observatory]], arts and cultural programme, [[arboretum]], Islamic centre, shops, cafés and places to eat and drink. The campus has science, business enterprise parks and conference centres.  It is home to the Earth Science Education Unit ([[ESEU]]).<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.earthscienceeducation.com/|title= ESEU|work= earthscienceeducation.com/|access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref> The university operates a Science Park under a wholly owned subsidiary company, [[Keele University Science & Business Park]] Limited.<ref>{{cite web|title=Statement of Accounts 12/13|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/media/keeleuniversity/fait/finance/general/Year-end%20Accounts%20July%202013.pdf|publisher=Keele University|page=6|access-date=27 July 2017|archive-date=16 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200316031817/https://www.keele.ac.uk/media/keeleuniversity/fait/finance/general/Year-end%20Accounts%20July%202013.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The chapel is located in the centre of the campus, close to the university library and student union. From the onset, Christian worship was central to university life. Lindsay, first principal of the University College, was an ardent Christian preaching every Sunday in the Library Reading room of Keele Hall.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000}}{{page needed|date=February 2023}}</ref> A permanent chapel was built in 1965 from [[Staffordshire blue brick]], today the chapel accommodates different Christian traditions.

[[File:New Barnes Hall of Residence.jpg|thumb|New Barnes Hall Student Units]]

===Halls of residence===
There are five halls of residence on the main campus: Horwood, Lindsay, Barnes, Holly Cross and The Oaks. (Hawthorns Hall was located off site in Keele village just outside the main entrance. However, the site has been sold for redevelopment, and the halls demolished.) These halls provide accommodation for 70% of all full-time students.<ref name="AboutKU">{{cite web| url = http://www.keele.ac.uk/university/aboutku.htm| title = About Keele University| access-date =8 March 2007| date = 9 August 2006 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060909195114/http://www.keele.ac.uk/university/aboutku.htm |archive-date = 9 September 2006}}</ref> Three of the oldest halls, Horwood (1957), Lindsay (1964) and Barnes (1970) are named after the founding fathers of the university.<ref>Pevsner, Nikolaus, ''Staffordshire: The Buildings of England''; Penguin UK, 1999, p161 & 162</ref> The Oaks (1992), west of Lindsay Hall, is named after four oak trees that were felled to pave the way for the university residence and Holly Cross (1993).<ref>Tringham, J Nigel: ''A History of the Country of Stafford: Audley, Keele and Trentham'';Boydell & Brewer, 2013, p140</ref> The Hawthorns (1957), remnants of the Sneyd property in Keele Village, was originally a large house, two paddocks and gardens totalling 13 acres.<ref>''North Staffordshire Journal of Field Studies'', Volume 22, University of Keele, 1982, p160</ref>

Following student demand for accommodation on-campus, in 2018, Barnes hall of residence will be re-developed with new residential units added to cater for an additional 453 bedrooms, funded from the proceeds of the sale of the Hawthorns.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/barnesdevelopment/aboutthenewbarnesdevelopment/|title=About the new Barnes development|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref>

===Library===
{{Infobox library
| library_name = Keele University Library
| name_en = 
| library_logo = 
| image = Keele University Library.jpg
| caption = 
| country = United Kingdom
| type = [[Academic library]]
| scope = 
| established = {{Start date|1962}}
| ref_legal_mandate = 
| location = Keele University, [[Newcastle Under Lyme]]
| coordinates = 
| branch_of = 
| num_branches = 
| items_collected = [[book]]s, [[academic journal|journal]]s, [[newspaper]]s, [[magazine]]s, [[map]]s, [[Printmaking|prints]], [[drawing]]s and [[manuscript]]s
| collection_size = 590,000 volumes<ref name=Size>{{Cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/library/specialcollections/exhibitions/library50thanniversary/|title=Library 50th anniversary|website=Keele University|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204184848/https://www.keele.ac.uk/library/specialcollections/exhibitions/library50thanniversary/|url-status=dead}}</ref><br />300,000 ebooks<ref name=Size/>
| criteria = 
| legal_deposit = Included in the [[Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003]]
| req_to_access = 
| annual_circulation = 
| pop_served = 
| members = Students and staff of Keele University
| budget = 
| director = Dan Perry
| num_employees = 
| website = {{URL|https://www.keele.ac.uk/library}}
| phone_num = 
}}

When the university was founded in 1948, the Librarian's office was located above a public house in [[Stoke-on-Trent|Stoke]], near the Town Hall.<ref name="autogenerated42"/> In 1952, the old Sneyd Library was used with 20,000 items which increased to 70,000 by 1954.<ref name="keele1">{{cite web |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/library/specarc/exhibitions/library50thanniversary/ |title=Library 50th Anniversary |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24 |archive-date=26 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170126220344/https://www.keele.ac.uk/library/specarc/exhibitions/library50thanniversary/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> By 1955, 155,000 volumes were accounted for and necessitating 12 full-time staff.<ref name="autogenerated42">{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|pages=42-43}}</ref> Later, the Senate Room in [[Keele Hall]] was used to house the material. Construction of the new library campus began in 1961 with additional expansion completed in 1966. By the early 1970s, the library was able to accommodate 750 readers and 600,000 books.<ref name="autogenerated42"/>

====Material acquisition====
The university purchased the collection of deceased Belgian Professor [[Charles Saroléa]], consisting of between 150,000 and 300,000 items.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=43}}</ref> A viewing was organized and an agreement reached with the trustees to the acquisition of 120,000 books at a cost of £1348. However, the books were stocked in Edinburgh and removing the items without delay was one of the conditions of the agreement. A price per ton was fixed and the books arrived, first in a Methodist church school where each item was sorted and cataloged. The books were transferred to the new campus building in 1961.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=44}}</ref>

====Later developments====
The library catalogue and circulation system was automated in 1990.<ref name="keele1"/> In 1993, the Computer Centre merged with the library, renamed Keele Information Services (KIS).<ref name="keele1"/> The library allowed for new PC labs and an IT Helpdesk to assist students.<ref name="keele1"/> With further modernisation in 2006, a self-service digitised counter was opened and refurbishment of different library wings.<ref name="keele1"/> In 2005, following students' requests, a group study area was incorporated in the Short-Loan library. The library is now opened 24/7 during each semester.<ref name="keele1"/>

====Health Library====
Since the founding of the [[Keele University School of Medicine]], a Health Library is available to both Keele students and [[National Health Service]] (NHS) staff at the [[Royal Stoke University Hospital]]. An IT suite complements the material with 60 workstations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/healthlibrary/usingthehealthlibrary/joiningthelibrary/ |title=Joining the Library |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref>

==Organisation and administration==
[[File:Keele University Chancellor's Building.jpg|thumb|Keele University Chancellor's Building]]

===Liberal arts college ethos===

The university's curriculum required every student to study two principal subjects to [[Bachelor's degree#Honours Degrees and academic distinctions|honours]] level, as well as further subsidiary subjects, with an additional requirement that students should study at least one subject from each of the subject groupings of Arts, Sciences and Social Sciences.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=48}}</ref> The cross-disciplinary requirement was reinforced by the Foundation Year, an innovation which meant that for the first year of the four-year programmes, all students would study a common course of [[interdisciplinarity|interdisciplinary]] "foundation studies". This key particularity of the Keele curriculum led Michael Brawne to remark in 1966 that the university was "the nearest thing in Britain to the small liberal arts college in the US".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Michael|first=Brawne|date=September 1966|title=Robbins and After: A Critical Survey|journal=The Journal of the Royal Architecture Institute of Canada|volume=43|issue=10|pages=67}}</ref>

[[File:Keele University Forest of Light.jpg|thumb|Keele University Forest of Light|alt=]]

Standard three-year degrees were introduced in 1973<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=141}}</ref> and the numbers of students following the Foundation Year course have steadily dwindled since. The Foundation Year has never been formally discontinued, however, and remains an option for prospective students who qualify for entry into higher education, but lack subject-specific qualifications for specific degree programmes.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.keele.ac.uk/undergraduate/prospectus/2007/courses/fyintro.htm| title = Foundation Years| access-date =8 March 2007| work = Undergraduate Prospectus 2006|publisher=Keele University}}</ref> By contrast, almost 90 per cent of current undergraduates read dual honours. Able to combine any two available subjects, students have a choice of over 500 degree courses in all. The university also offers a study abroad semester to most of its students.{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}

As an experimental community, Keele was initially founded as a "wholly residential" institution.<ref name="AimsOfTheCollege">"Aims of the College", from the Programme for the official opening of UCNS, 17 April 1951. Reproduced in {{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=70–72}}</ref> Of the initial intake of 159 students in October 1950, 149 were resident on campus,<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=64}}</ref> and it was required of the first professors appointed that they should also be in residence.<ref>{{harvp|Kolbert|2000|page=41}}</ref> With the expansion of the university, total residency has long since been abandoned, but the proportion of full-time students resident on campus remains above average at 62% in 2011.{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}

=== Faculties, Schools, and academic disciplines ===
Keele's academic activities are organised into 3 faculties, divided into the following schools and disciplines:
{|class=wikitable
|-
!Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences<ref>{{Cite web|title=Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/hss/|access-date=2023-12-06|website=Keele University|date=17 November 2023 |language=en}}</ref>!!Faculty of Natural Sciences<ref>{{Cite web|title=Faculty of Natural Sciences|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/natsci/|access-date=2023-12-06|website=Keele University|language=en}}</ref>!!Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences<ref>{{Cite web|title=Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/health/|access-date=2023-12-06|website=Keele University|date=4 December 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
|-
|
*School of Humanities
*Keele Business School
*School of Law
*School of Social Sciences
*Institute of Liberal Arts and Sciences
*Foundation Years
|
*School of Computer Science & Mathematics
*School of Life Sciences
*School of Chemical & Physical Sciences
*School of Psychology
*School of Veterinary Sciences

|
*[[School of Health and Rehabilitation (Keele University)|School of Allied Health Professions]]
*School of Medicine
*School of Nursing & Midwifery
*School of Allied Health Professions and Pharmacy
|}

All undergraduate courses, with the exception of Medicine and Pharmacy, are modular, with the academic year divided into two semesters, with breaks at Christmas and Easter. There are approximately 14 students to every member of staff.

==Governance==
The statutes of the university are laid out in its Royal Charter granted in 1962. These describe the organisational structure and powers that allow the university to function and govern its affairs. The Chancellor is appointed by an elected council every 5 years or until resignation and supplemented by a Pro-Chancellor and Deputy Pro-Chancellors. The Vice-Chancellor, also appointed by the council, requires approval from the senate and is the principal academic and administrative officer of the university. All are officers of the university.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/sas/academicservices/governance/actcharterstatutesordinancesandregulations/universitycharter/|title=University Charter|website=Keele University|access-date=14 September 2018}}</ref>
[[File:Jonathon Porritt 2009b.jpg|thumb|[[Jonathon Porritt|Sir Jonathon Porritt]], [[CBE]]]]
{| 
|+ '''University Officers'''
|-  style="vertical-align:top; font-size:100%;"
|
;Principals and Vice-Chancellors
* [[Alexander Dunlop Lindsay, 1st Baron Lindsay of Birker|Alexander Lindsay, 1st Baron Lindsay of Birker]] (1949–52)
* [[John Lennard-Jones|Sir John Lennard-Jones]] (1953–54)
* [[George Barnes (BBC)|Sir George Barnes]] (1956–60)
* [[Harold McCarter Taylor]] (1961–67)
* [[W. A. Campbell Stewart]] (1967–79)
* [[Sir David Harrison]] (1979–84)
* [[Brian Fender|Sir Brian Fender]] (1985–95)
* [[Janet Finch|Dame Janet Finch]] (1995–2010)
* [[Nick Foskett]] (2010–15)
* [[Trevor McMillan]] (2015–2025)
* [[Kevin Shakesheff]] (2025–)
|
;Presidents and Chancellors
* [[John Herbert Dudley Ryder, 5th Earl of Harrowby|John Ryder, 5th Earl of Harrowby]] (1949–55)
* [[HRH]] [[Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon]] (1956–86)
* [[Claus Moser, Baron Moser]] (1986–2002)
* [[David Weatherall|Sir David Weatherall]] (2002–12)
* [[Jonathon Porritt|Sir Jonathon Porritt]] (2012–22)
* [[James Timpson|James Timpson, Baron Timpson]] (2022–24)<ref>{{Cite web |last=McInnes |first=Kathie |date= 13 April 2022|title=Timpson retail giant boss joins Keele University |url=https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/news/stoke-on-trent-news/timpson-retail-giant-boss-joins-6944165 |website=Stoke Sentinel}}</ref>
|}
[[File:Keele Lodge, Keele.jpg|thumb|Keele University Lodge, Keele]]

===University partnerships & overseas exchange programmes===

The university operates several collaborative arrangements with educational establishments in the UK and abroad. In 2016, in the UK and regionally, Keele held joint contracts/awards with [[Liverpool University]] (Marie Curie Palliative Care Institution), [[University of Salford]] and [[Staffordshire University]]. Keele also has multiple franchise agreements, represented in South East Asia with SEGo College, KDU University College and the Sri Lankan Institute of Information Technology.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/finance/accounts/UniversityandGroup_Accounts_31July%202016.pdf|title=Statement of Accounts 2015/16|date=July 2016|website=Keele University|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904154843/https://www.keele.ac.uk/finance/accounts/UniversityandGroup_Accounts_31July%202016.pdf|archive-date=2017-09-04|url-status=dead}}</ref> Early overseas exchange programmes in the 1950s debuted in the US with [[Swarthmore College]], Pennsylvania and [[Reed College]], Oregon whilst, in continental Europe, with [[Nancy-Université|Université de Nancy]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The first International Exchanges at Keele |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/earlyoverseasexchangesatkeele/ |website=keele.ac.uk|access-date=1 January 2021}}</ref> Today, Keele has exchange agreements with over 80 academic institutions worldwide.<ref>{{cite web |title=Our Partner Universities |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/study/studyabroad/ourpartneruniversities/ |website=keele.ac.uk |access-date=1 January 2021}}</ref>

===Finance===
According to the university's Statement of Accounts for 2015/16, total income for the year ending 31 July 2016 was just over £148.5 million with a total expenditure of £140.5 million. This amounted to a consolidated surplus of £8 million and a slight increase of £3.6 million on a yearly basis.<ref name="keele2">{{cite web |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/finance/accounts/UniversityandGroup_Accounts_31July%202016.pdf |title=Statement of accounts 2015/16 |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904154843/https://www.keele.ac.uk/finance/accounts/UniversityandGroup_Accounts_31July%202016.pdf |archive-date=4 September 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref> For 2015/16, income was primarily derived from academic fees raking £71.3 million with home and European Union students the largest group accounting for £50.3 million followed by international students with £13.6 million.<ref name="keele2"/> Tuition fees and education contracts account for 48% of total income received before donations and endowments.<ref name="keele2"/> The university has continued to invest in capital projects with the refurbishments of the Walter Moberley and Huxley buildings, an upgrade to the Sports Centre facilities and a new HR/payroll system.<ref name="keele2"/>

===Keele College of Fellows===
In 2011, Keele established a college of fellows to promote the activities of the university outside the traditional realm of academia. Current members includes alumni who have demarcated themselves in the field of industry, media and/or public service as well as key stakeholders from in and around Staffordshire.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/supportkeele/collegeoffellows/ |title=College of Fellows |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24 |archive-date=16 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116172703/https://www.keele.ac.uk/supportkeele/collegeoffellows/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Academic profile and reputation==

{{Infobox UK university rankings
| ARWU_N = 
| ARWU_W = 
| QS_N = 
| QS_W = 801–850
| THE_N =
| THE_W = 501–600
| Complete = 68
| The_Guardian = 43
| Times/Sunday_Times = 43
}}
{| class="wikitable floatright" style="font-size:85%; text-align:center;"
|+ UCAS Admission Statistics
!
!2018
!2017
!2016
!2015
!2014
!2013
|-
|'''Applications'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ucas.com/data-and-analysis/undergraduate-statistics-and-reports/ucas-undergraduate-end-cycle-data-resources/applicants-and-acceptances-universities-and-colleges-2018|title=End of Cycle 2018 Data Resources DR4_001_03 Applications by provider|date=2018|website=UCAS|access-date=31 January 2019}}</ref>
|16,110
|14,510
|17,650
|17,895
|18,475
|18,340
|-
|'''Offer Rate (%)'''<ref>{{cite web|title=Sex, area background and ethnic group: K12 The University of Keele|url=https://www.ucas.com/file/209121/download?token=XmP84CjJ|date=2018|website=UCAS|access-date=31 January 2019}}</ref>
|82.4
|81.6
|71.9
|75.1
|74.7
|69.2
|-
|'''Enrols'''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ucas.com/data-and-analysis/undergraduate-statistics-and-reports/ucas-undergraduate-end-cycle-data-resources/applicants-and-acceptances-universities-and-colleges-2018|title=End of Cycle 2018 Data Resources DR4_001_02 Main scheme acceptances by provider|date=2018|website=UCAS|access-date=31 January 2019}}</ref>
|2,010
|1,880
|1,915
|2,040
|2,005
|1,715
|-
|[[Yield (college admissions)|'''Yield (%)''']]
|15.1
|15.9
|15.0
|15.1
|14.5
|13.5
|-
|'''Applicant/Enrolled Ratio'''
|8.01
|7.72
|9.22
|8.77
|9.21
|10.69
|-
|'''[[UCAS Tariff|Average Entry Tariff]]'''<ref name="Complete League Table 2019">{{cite web|url=https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings|title=Top UK University League Table and Rankings|publisher=Complete University Guide}}</ref>{{efn|New [[UCAS Tariff]] system from 2016}}
|n/a
|127
|128
|340
|350
|358
|}
Keele has a graduation rate of over 90%,<ref name="TP" /> with 68.4% achieving 1sts or 2:1s.<ref name="TP2">{{cite news|url= http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/sunday_times_university_guide/article4772141.ece|title=Profile: Keele University|date=13 September 2009|work=[[The Sunday Times]]| access-date=26 November 2010}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> 90% of undergraduates are state-educated, and over 25% of students are from working-class backgrounds.<ref name="TP" /> In recent years Keele has attempted to boost this number by reaching out to local schools and hosting a summer school.<ref name="TP" /> In February 2011, a Sutton Trust report revealed that 3·4% of students had received [[free school meal]]s, whilst 7·9% had attended [[Private schools in the United Kingdom|private schools]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-12416006|title=Full list of university access|date=10 February 2011|publisher= [[BBC News]]|access-date=10 February 2011}}</ref> This compares the national figures for England of 14% eligible for free school meals,<ref>{{cite journal| last=Nelson| first=Michael |author2=Bradbury, Jane |author3=Poulter, Jenny |author4=McGee, Alice |author5=Msebele, Siphosami|author6=Jarvis, Lindsay| year=2004 |title= School Meals in Secondary Schools in England| journal=National Centre for Social Research|publisher=[[King's College London]]| location= London| page=1| url=http://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/RR557%20PDF.pdf| archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130401151715/http://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/RR557%20PDF.pdf| url-status=dead| archive-date=2013-04-01}}1 {{Listed invalid ISBN|1 84478 276 X}}</ref> and 7% independently educated.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.isc.co.uk/TeachingZone_SectorStatistics.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070512021421/http://www.isc.co.uk/TeachingZone_SectorStatistics.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=12 May 2007|title=Sector Statistics|work=isc.co.uk|access-date=10 February 2011}}</ref>

===Admissions===
New students entering Keele in 2016 had an average of 128 UCAS points or ABB at A'Level.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/keele/|website=Complete University Guide|title=University League Table 2018|access-date=25 April 2017}}</ref> Typically three-year degree courses ask for A'Level grades (or equivalent) of between AAB and BBC with the exception of Medicine.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/keele/|title=Keele University|website=Thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref> Keele has made it a priority to attract applicants with ABB grades and above at A'Level. The university also aspires to enter the top 30 across league tables by 2020.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite web |url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/vco/vice-chancellorsaddress/VC%20Address%208th%20October%202015%20.pdf |title=Vice-Chancellor's Address |date=8 October 2015 |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009185945/https://www.keele.ac.uk/vco/vice-chancellorsaddress/VC%20Address%208th%20October%202015%20.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In May 2012 Keele was listed by the ''[[Times Higher Education]]'' (THE) magazine as among the world's top 100 new (50 years old or less) universities.<ref name="THE0512">[http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/Journals/THE/THE/31_May_2012/attachments/THE_100_Under_50_.pdf ''THE (Times Higher Education)''] 31 May 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2012</ref> In September 2016, Keele was awarded 'University of the Year for Student Experience' (The Times and The Sunday Times annual University of the Year awards, 2017).<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/keele-university-wins-national-award/story-29745592-detail/story.html|title=Keele University wins national award|date=23 September 2016|newspaper=[[Stoke Sentinel]]|access-date=6 November 2016}}{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

====UCAS clearing====
Keele has traditionally participated in the [[UCAS]] clearing process and it has become customary for the university to lower its requirements to fill outstanding places. In August 2023, the university reduced its academic demands to 64 UCAS points or higher equivalent to 2 A'Levels at grades C in dual and single honours degree programmes with vacancies remaining.<ref name="http://www.keele.ac.uk/clearing">{{cite web|url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/clearing/ |title=Clearing and Adjustment |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2018-09-01}}</ref>

===Teaching===
According to the [[National Student Survey]] (NSS) and excluding private or specialist institutions, the university ranked first for Student Satisfaction in 2014, 2015 and 2016 (jointly with the [[University of St Andrews]]) amongst broad-based educational establishments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/aboutus/factsandfigures/|title=Facts and Figures|website=Keele.ac.uk|access-date=6 November 2016}}</ref> The NSS is aimed at final year undergraduates, gathering opinions about their experience of their courses and the institution. It is conducted independently and a key quality indicator of higher education in the UK.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thestudentsurvey.com/about.php|title=The National Student Survey 2016|website=Thestudentsurvey.com|access-date=6 November 2016|archive-date=4 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161104083235/http://www.thestudentsurvey.com/about.php|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2015, disciplines that scored highest included Education, Geology, Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing, Physiotherapy, Biochemistry, English and Mathematics.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> In June 2017, Keele was awarded Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) which measures excellence in three areas: teaching quality, the learning environment and the educational and professional outcomes achieved by students.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.staffordshirenewsletter.co.uk/keele-university-wins-gold-and-staffordshire-silver-in-university-league-table/story-30409429-detail/story.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170626092047/http://www.staffordshirenewsletter.co.uk/keele-university-wins-gold-and-staffordshire-silver-in-university-league-table/story-30409429-detail/story.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2017-06-26 |title=Keele University wins gold and Staffordshire silver in university league table &#124; Staff Newsletter |website=Staffordshirenewsletter.co.uk |date=2017-06-26 |access-date=2017-07-24 }}</ref> In the 2023 TEF assessment, the university maintained its overall Gold rating.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tef2023.officeforstudents.org.uk|publisher=Office for Students|access-date=28 September 2023|title=Teaching Excellence Framework 2023 Outcomes}}</ref>

==Research==
Keele submitted 60% of its staff to the 2014 [[Research Assessment Exercise]] (RAE) and ranked 57 of 128 institutions by grade point average (GPA)<ref name="timeshighereducation.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/sites/default/files/Attachments/2014/12/17/k/a/s/over-14-01.pdf |title=Research Excellence Framework 2014 : Overall Ranking of Institutions |website=Timeshighereducation.com |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref> The university scored particularly well in public health, health services and primary care.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/sites/default/files/Attachments/2014/12/17/g/o/l/sub-14-01.pdf |title=Research Excellence Framework 2014 : Institutions Ranked By Subject |website=Timeshighereducation.com |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref> Medical research includes detecting [[Parkinson's disease]] early,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/4622407/Intense-light-could-detect-Parkinsons.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130421101218/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/4622407/Intense-light-could-detect-Parkinsons.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 April 2013|title=Intense light 'could detect Parkinson's'|date=14 February 2009|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}</ref> and using [[stem cell]] research to aid the healing process.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/5115049/Patients-own-stem-cells-to-be-used-to-patch-up-holes-in-bones.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411073115/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/5115049/Patients-own-stem-cells-to-be-used-to-patch-up-holes-in-bones.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 April 2009|title=Patients' own stem cells to be used to patch up holes in bones|last= Devlin|first=Kate|date=6 April 2009|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}</ref> The [[cochlear implant]] was developed in the Department of Communication and Neuroscience at Keele. Other notable medical pursuits includes attempts to explain the evolution of the human brain,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3343912/Study-traces-the-evolution-of-the-human-brain.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101014112659/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3343912/Study-traces-the-evolution-of-the-human-brain.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 October 2010|title=Study traces the evolution of the human brain|last=Highfield|first=Roger|date=9 June 2008|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}</ref> looking into links between [[cannabis (drug)|cannabis]] and mental illness (cited in the [[Cannabis classification in the United Kingdom|2009 reclassification debate]]),<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1934309/Cannabis-U-turn-Q-and-A.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1934309/Cannabis-U-turn-Q-and-A.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Cannabis U-turn: Q and A|last=Hope|first=Christopher|date=7 May 2008|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |access-date=9 November 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1583730/Cannabis-should-remain-Class-C-says-Advisory-Council.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1583730/Cannabis-should-remain-Class-C-says-Advisory-Council.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Cannabis should remain Class C, says Advisory Council|last=Banerjee|first=Subhajit|date=3 April 2008|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |access-date=9 November 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref> as well as [[Tumor|tumour]] and [[cancer]] research.<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1562120/Deodorants-may-be-linked-to-breast-cancer.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1562120/Deodorants-may-be-linked-to-breast-cancer.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Deodorants 'may be linked to breast cancer'|last=Clout|first=Laura|date=4 September 2007|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3340147/Nanomagnet-system-could-target-tumours.html|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110526195230/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3340147/Nanomagnet-system-could-target-tumours.html|url-status= dead|archive-date= 26 May 2011|title=Nanomagnet system could target tumours|last=Highfield|first=Roger|date=18 April 2008|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}</ref> In August 2009, university astronomers, led by David Anderson, discovered the first planet that orbits in the opposite direction to the spin of its star.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3312400/Alien-worlds-suggest-Earth-like-planets.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091128111310/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3312400/Alien-worlds-suggest-Earth-like-planets.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 November 2009|title=Alien worlds suggest Earth-like planets|last=Highfield|first=Roger|date=31 October 2007|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}</ref> The planet was named [[WASP-17b]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8197683.stm|title=New exoplanet orbits 'backwards' |last=Rincorn|first=Paul|date=12 August 2009|access-date=14 August 2009 | publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> In 2010 Richard Stephens, John Atkins, and Andrew Kingston won the [[Ig Nobel prize]] for confirming the widely held belief that swearing relieves pain.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/8034881/Annual-Ig-Nobel-awards-presented-for-the-most-improbable-research.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101002110419/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/8034881/Annual-Ig-Nobel-awards-presented-for-the-most-improbable-research.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2 October 2010|title=Annual Ig Nobel awards presented for the most 'improbable' research|last=Alleyne|first=Richard|date=1 October 2010|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=9 November 2010}}</ref> In 2010 a medical centre in [[Newport, Shropshire]] was completed, for students to learn in real medical situations and to research medical sciences.
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Keele_University_Concourse.jpg|Keele University Concourse on a winter morning
File:Keele University Walter Moberly Building.jpg|Keele University Walter Moberly Building
File:Keele University Tawney Building Facade.jpg|Keele University Tawney Building
File:Keele University Colin Reeves Building.jpg|Keele University Colin Reeves Building
File:Keele University William Smith Building.jpg|Keele University William Smith Building (home of 'The Two Magnificent Ralfs')
</gallery>

==Student life==
[[File:Keele University Student Union.jpg|thumb|Keele University Students' Union]]

===Students' Union===
Keele University Students' Union organises social activities throughout the year. The principal Students' Union building was designed by [[Stillman & Eastwick-Field Partnership|Stillman & Eastwick-Field]]<ref name=Union>{{cite web | url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/alumni/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/historyinkeelebuildings/ | title=Students' Union Building | publisher=Keele University | work=History in Keele Buildings | access-date=1 October 2014}}</ref> (now part of the [[Thomas Bennett (architect)|T. P. Bennett]] practice), with some guidance from the university's architect, J. A. Pickavance. It opened in 1962 and was completed in 1963, extended in the 1970s and the ground-floor interior remodelled in 2011–2012.<ref name=Union/> Its magazine, ''[[Concourse (newspaper)|Concourse]]'', was founded in 1964 and is issued monthly during term time.<ref name="Early">{{cite web | url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/earlystudentpublications/ | title=Early student publications | publisher=Keele University | work=The Keele Oral History Project | access-date=6 March 2016}}</ref> ''Concourse''  is editorially independent of both the university and the students' union. Princess Margaret, as Chancellor of the university, with her husband, attended the student union Christmas Ball on Monday December 7, 1964.<ref>''Staffordshire Sentinel'' Friday 11 December 1964, page 20</ref> Princess Margaret danced with the President of the student union, and her husband danced with the Vice-President, attending until 3am.

===Student activity===
The Keele team won the 1968 series of ''[[University Challenge]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blanchflower.org/uc/winners_teams.html|title=University Challenge Series Champions|work=blanchflower.org|access-date=21 November 2010}}</ref> The same team also made runner up to [[Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge]] (1979) in the 2002 special ''University Challenge: Reunited''.

===Student sports===
Keele sports range from [[Rugby union|rugby]] to [[lacrosse]] and [[dodgeball]]. Sports teams and issues raised are managed by the Athletic Union.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/aa/postgraduate/environment.htm|title= Environment and Facilities|access-date= 14 June 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070516223851/http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/aa/postgraduate/environment.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 16 May 2007}}</ref> The centre has two national standard sports halls, a single court gymnasium, a fitness centre, dance studio and climbing wall. Outside there is an all weather floodlit [[AstroTurf]] pitch, tennis courts and extensive playing fields. It is also the first university centre in the UK to offer a full "Kinesis" gym facility.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/uso/pr/publications/AnnualReview2005.pdf#page=16|title=Keele University Annual Review 2005|access-date=15 June 2007|year=2006|page=16 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070926121646/http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/uso/pr/publications/AnnualReview2005.pdf#page=16 <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 26 September 2007}}</ref>
[[File:Keele University all weather football pitch.jpg|thumb|Keele University all weather football pitch|alt=]]

Keele University Sports Centre hosts the matches of [[Newcastle (Staffs) Volleyball Club]], providing around 110 tiered seats with the perfect view of some of the best matches in English [[Volleyball]]. In 2012, Keele University took part in the first official inter-university [[Muggle Quidditch]] match, winning and thus becoming the top ranked team in the country. The sport has since expanded and Keele has remained one of the forerunners, finishing in second place at the [[British Quidditch Cup]] in November 2013. The university also hosted eight teams for the Northern Cup in March 2014.

====Varsity====
Keele University's Athletic Union plays an annual multi-sports series against the neighbouring Staffordshire University. The event was founded as a charity football match in 2001.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.keele.ac.uk/thekeeleoralhistoryproject/theathleticunionbell/ |title=The Athletic Union Bell |website=Keele.ac.uk |access-date=2017-07-24}}</ref> Since 2007, Keele University's Athletic Union has played an annual multi-sports varsity series against local rivals [[Staffordshire University]]. The varsity match occurs at both universities sports facilities, alternating between the venues each year. Sports included in the contest include football, cricket, rugby, badminton, lacrosse, swimming, volleyball, netball, hockey, fencing, tennis, basketball and frisbee. Team Keele and Team Staffs went head to head across a record 23 sports in 2017. Keele has won the varsity trophy in 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2024 & 2025. Staffordshire University won in 2007, 2009 and 2023.

==Notable people==
{{main|List of University of Keele people}}

==In popular culture==
Keele University featured prominently in ''[[Marvellous]]'', the biographical film about honorary graduate [[Neil Baldwin (Keele University)|Neil Baldwin]] broadcast on [[BBC Two]] in September 2014. The BBC filmed parts of its surreal comedy ''[[A Very Peculiar Practice]]'' (1986–1988) at the Keele University campus and students played extra parts.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Corble |first=Nick |title=Diagonal Walking: Slicing Through the Heart of England |publisher=Troubador Publishing Limited |year=2019 |isbn=9781789018356 |publication-date=9 April 2019 |pages=82 |language=English}}</ref>

==References==
{{notelist}}
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
*{{cite web| url = https://www.joomag.com/magazine/keele-university-prospectus-undergraduate-2017/0263644001456310128| title = Undergraduate Prospectus 2017| publisher = Keele University| work = Undergraduate Prospectus}}
*{{cite web| url = https://www.joomag.com/magazine/mag/0168571001476697364/p1| title = Keele University Accommodation Enhancement and Expansion| publisher = Keele University}}
*{{cite book| last = Kolbert| first = John Murray| title = Keele: the first fifty years&nbsp;– a Portrait of the University 1950–2000| date = 19 November 2000| publisher = Melandrium Books| location = Keele, Staffordshire| isbn = 1-85856-238-4}}
*Whyte, William (16 March 2015), ''Redbrick: A Social and Architectural History of Britain's Civic Universities.'' Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|978-0198716129}}

==External links==
*{{commons-inline}}
*[https://www.keele.ac.uk/  Keele University]
*[https://keelesu.com Keele University Students Union]

{{Keele University|state=expanded}}
{{Universities in the United Kingdom}}
{{Universities and colleges in the West Midlands}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Keele University| ]]
[[Category:1949 establishments in England]]
[[Category:Education in Staffordshire|Keele University]]
[[Category:Universities and colleges established in 1949]]
[[Category:Universities UK]]
[[Category:Midlands Innovation]]