Swansea Metropolitan University has decided to merge with the University of Wales: Trinity Saint David and the University of Wales. The unified institution will be merged under the 1828 Royal Charter of the University of Wales: Trinity Saint David. This is a historic decision and offers the transformed University the opportunity to continue to serve higher education within a Welsh, UK and international context. It is envisaged that the three institutions will have integrated during 2012/13.

This exciting announcement will not affect your application or studies with us in any way.  Our courses will continue to be delivered from our campuses in Swansea and we will continue to be known as Swansea Metropolitan or "Swansea Met" under the auspices of the new transformed University.

The University has seen a significant evolution in its history over the past 150+ years.

For most of the twentieth century there were three separate educational institutions serving the city of Swansea: the Swansea College of Art (established in 1853); the Swansea College of Education (established in 1872) and Swansea Technical College (established in 1895).

During this time, the College of Art, one of the oldest in the UK, was based on Alexandra Road not far from its present location at the bottom of Mount Pleasant hill opposite Swansea Central Police Station. 

The former College of Education was based in the Townhill area of the city where the University's teaching and humanities courses are still taught.

The Technical College, located in Mount Pleasant, was a well known and respected supplier of vocational qualifications and where many of the University's programmes are still based, including business, computing, engineering and construction.

In 1976, the three institutions came together to form the West Glamorgan Institute of Higher Education and in 1992 the institution was renamed Swansea Institute of Higher Education and became an independent Higher Education Corporation away from local authority control. In 2008, and following a successful two-year inspection, the Privy Council gave permission for the institution to be renamed Swansea Metropolitan University.

Despite these radical changes, the University has stayed close to its roots, with the three founder institutions still reflected in the Faculties that make up the University today. They are:

The Faculty of Art and Design which is based in the redeveloped former Dynevor Grammar School, in the heart of the city centre, and is now known as the Dynevor Centre for Art, Design and Media,

The Faculty of Humanities (which includes the School of Education) remains prominent in the provision of teacher training and now has an extensive range of undergraduate and postgraduate teaching programmes. It has also expanded to include courses in performance and literature, counselling and psychology.

The Faculty of Business and Management which is based on the site of the former College of Technology, has a portfolio of programmes which includes business, leisure and tourism, public services, management and health and social care.

The Faculty of Applied Design and Engineering is true to the traditions of the former College of Technology in that it is a key supplier of skilled workers for a number of different modern-day industries covering engineering, logistics, construction, computing, industrial design, and the creative industries.

There has been a revolutionary change in the make-up of the institution over the past half century, moving from three separate establishments offering few higher education programmes, to a University that has now close to 7,000 students and is an established and respected provider of undergraduate, postgraduate and research qualifications, as well as professional programmes. Yet, at the same time, it has remained true to its 157+ year past, staying a vocationally driven, industry-focused University, serving the local and wider community beyond.

The University is also one of the most financially secure institutions in the UK with a strong record of graduate employment and research success. 

And despite being an institution that focuses on teaching, sixty per cent of the University's research work has been rated as being of 'international significance', and in some cases 'world leading' according to the most recent Research Assessment Exercise, with particular strengths in art and design, teaching and engineering.

At Swansea Metropolitan University, we are committed to building quality into everything we do. This is particularly true of our academic programmes. Every programme is rigorously checked before it is allowed to start, making sure it reaches our exacting academic standards and is relevant to the world of work. Programmes are monitored on an annual basis - with students having an important say - and intensively reviewed at regular intervals to make sure they remain right up-to-date to serve the needs of the student and to meet the demands of the fast changing environment in which we live.

A high quality education product, a marketable qualification and a good student experience are at the heart of all we do.

To maintain the most up-to-date teaching, staff pursue research and consultancy, as well as providing specialist courses for industry. To ensure that they are well-prepared to provide high standards of service and delivery, staff take part in specially-designed training and updating programmes.

All our support facilities, including libraries and information technology services, are of a high standard and are regularly reviewed and upgraded.