Student life

“Royal Holloway has many great qualities including the beautiful greenery of the Egham campus which sends out such a positive vibe. When I came here for an Open Day before beginning my undergraduate degree, I fell in love with the whole campus. It’s so peaceful, yet has so much life. The vast multitude of opportunities on offer is also really impressive, whether it is student engagement, volunteering or societies/ sports clubs. The diversity of the people that study here was also important to me as I’m not just here to get a degree, but to have the full university experience. Royal Holloway offers exactly that with opportunities to meet people in all sorts of roles from many different backgrounds and parts of the world, which is great because such exposure helps grow my perspective and broadens my views of the world.”

Maciej MSc Global Futures: Justice, Development and Sustainability

Chat to a current student

You can find out more about being a student at Royal Holloway by chatting directly to one of our current postgraduate students online. They’ll be happy to talk to you about everything from studying in their academic department and their experience of living in halls to the best places to eat on campus. To start a conversation, visit royalholloway.ac.uk/chat We also run a range of activities and events throughout the year to give you a taste of Royal Holloway life, either face-to-face at our Egham or central London campuses or online. Visit royalholloway.ac.uk/pgevents

Liam English Literature Chat with Liam

Student life

Community We have a vibrant postgraduate community with 1,700 postgraduate taught and over 600 postgraduate research students.

Perfectly placed You get the best of open space and city when you study here. The location of our 135-acre campus means you are surrounded by Surrey’s beautiful countryside. On the other hand, we’re close to Staines-upon-Thames, Windsor and Kingston and just 40 minutes by train from central London.

Active lifestyle & sport There are lots of ways to keep active at Royal Holloway, from gym membership, general fitness and exercise classes and recreational sport through to competitive clubs. For full details visit royalholloway.ac.uk/sports Social scene If you’re looking for a break from study, the campus social scene centres on the Students’ Union (SU) and its many clubs and societies. It runs entertainment seven days a week throughout term-time and regular market days selling fruit and veg, clothes and books. The main SU building has a large function hall, two bars and a coffee bar. The SU also operates a smaller bar on campus, Medicine, as well as The Packhorse, a family-friendly pub offering a wide range of great value food and drink.

Cultural life The whole community benefits from the rich and varied cultural life at Royal Holloway. Public lectures, plays, dance and film, concerts, campus tours and other events are held throughout the year.

The Students’ Union has around 130 sports clubs and societies, which also host their own events. From fashion or film to cheerleading and ultimate frisbee, there’s something for everyone.

Volunteering There are hundreds of different volunteering activities for you to choose from, taking place during the day and evenings, on weekends and in the holidays. Volunteering is a great way to keep up your transferable skills and employability, and to have fun meeting new people – all while making a big difference in the local community. In 2017 our Community Action team was awarded The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service – the highest award given to volunteer groups across the UK. Architectural gems and modern developments The first thing you’ll notice as you set foot on campus is the spectacular Founder’s Building. As well as housing 500 students, a dining hall, and a café, Founder’s is home to the beautiful Chapel and the Picture Gallery, which contains Thomas Holloway’s collection of Victorian paintings. Our state-of-the-art Emily Wilding Davison Building complements Founder’s, which it sits opposite. The building provides an innovative environment including a library, study spaces and our student services centre. Elsewhere on campus you’ll find academic buildings, halls of residence, the Students’ Union and all the facilities you’d expect from a top class university – a shop, cafés, bars, bank, theatres, health centre, sports centre and playing fields.