Overview of Edinburgh Napier University

Created in 1992, Napier University is located on eight campuses around the city of Edinburgh. It has become one of the larger institutions of higher education in Scotland, with 1500 staff and more than 11,000 students, the majority of whom come from the local area.

Originally, Napier College of Science and Technology, which was founded in 1964, the college was named after John Napier (1550 - 1617), the mathematician, whose castle at Merchiston forms the core of one of its campuses. Following amalgamation with Edinburgh College of Commerce (1974), Napier College became a central government-funded educational institution (1985) and was renamed Napier Polytechnic (1988). After gaining university status, further mergers took place with Lothian College of Health Studies and the Scottish Borders College of Nursing (1996).

In addition to Merchiston, the other main campuses are at Craighouse, Craiglockhart, the home of the administrative offices of the University, and Sighthill. Renamed Edinburgh Napier University in 2009, the University is noted for its Business School, engineering, communication arts, nursing and midwifery.