History
On 1 August 1967, the University of Dundee came into formal existence by virtue of a Royal Charter. A longstanding relationship with St Andrews had come to an end. Dundee was now free to develop in the ways it wanted to. Free, that is, subject to the same constraints of government policies, funding regimes and student choices which all universities in the UK faced then and still face now.
In Dundee in 1881, Miss Mary Ann Baxter and her cousin, John Boyd Baxter - two of the famous Baxter family, who made their money from the Jute mills of the city - donated £140,000 to the creation of a college in Dundee. This was the beginning of the University of Dundee.
With 18,000 students from 145 countries and 3,000 staff from 72 countries Dundee is a truly global institution.
We have links across the world with businesses, governments and world class institutions. We are passionate about transforming lives locally and globally through the creation, sharing and application of knowledge.
Our international strategy
Internationalisation is at the heart of what we do, our strategy sets out a clear direction over the next 5 years.
Bring the world to Dundee.
- Recruit quality international students;
- Provide an outstanding campus experience for international students and staff;
- Develop our students’ skills to enable them to thrive in a global environment
- Attract top-level international research to Dundee
- Draw outstanding teaching and research staff from around the world
Take Dundee to the world.
- Establish Dundee as a world centre for research, teaching and innovation;
- Expand our portfolio of distance and blended learning programmes.
- Deepen the connections between our research staff and the global research community
- Grow our international alumni and business networks.
Our accolades, awards, and league table rankings in university guides.
National Student Survey (NSS) 2024
In the National Student Survey 2024, the biggest annual survey of students across the United Kingdom, our overall satisfaction rose to 82.4%
Complete University Guide 2025
The University of Dundee has been named as the best in the UK for studying Dentistry, according to new rankings.
Daily Mail University Guide 2024
The University of Dundee placed 26th in the UK in the 2024 Daily Mail University Guide.
Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024
Dundee ranked 33rd in The Times and Sunday Times league tables in their Good University Guide 2024.
Gateways to Growth Entrepreneurial Impact Report 2023
The University of Dundee has been named top university in the UK for developing spinout businesses by Octopus Ventures.
The Herald Higher Education Awards 2023
The University of Dundee has been named Scotland’s top university at The Herald Higher Education Awards.
Research Excellence Framework 2021
84% of our research was assessed as 'world leading' or 'internationally excellent' in the Research Excellence Framework 2021
Leiden Rankings 2022
The University of Dundee is 34th in the world for the highest proportion of highly cited publications in the 2022 CWTS Leiden Rankings.
