The University of Leeds is based in Leeds, England. It traces its origins to the Leeds School of Medicine, set up in 1831, and the Yorkshire College of Science, founded in 1874. The two merged in 1884 and in 1887 joined Owens College Manchester and University College Liverpool in the federal Victoria University. King Edward VII granted Leeds its own Royal Charter as an independent university in 1904.
The university is organised into seven faculties: Arts, Humanities and Cultures; Biological Sciences; Business; Engineering and Physical Sciences; Environment; Medicine and Health; and Social Sciences. Its 2023/24 annual report puts student numbers at close to 40,000. Leeds is a member of the Russell Group. Professor Shearer West, its 14th Vice-Chancellor and President, joined on 1 November 2024 from the University of Nottingham.