By working together the institutions that make up White Rose can exceed the capabilities offered by either Oxford or Cambridge.

Leeds University

The University of Leeds is acclaimed world-wide for the quality of its teaching and research. With 31,500 students attached to 700 different first-degree programmes and 330 postgraduate degree programmes, Leeds is one of the largest universities in the UK and is among the top ten universities for research in the UK. It is internationally acknowledged as a centre of excellence in a wide range of academic and professional disciplines and its first-rate infrastructure means that no fewer than 35 departments are rated internationally or nationally 'excellent'.

Sheffield University

The University of Sheffield is a world-class centre for research across an unusually wide range of subjects in the sciences, engineering, medicine, social sciences and humanities. They are one of the UK’s leading universities and teaching quality assessments rate their teaching very highly over a wide range of subjects with 35 departments ranked in the top two grades, 5 and 5*. With more than 23,000 students, from more than 120 countries, and 5,500 staff, the University of Sheffield is a popular choice with applicants for university places.

York University

The University of York was founded in 1963 with 200 students. Since then its collegiate system has expanded to nearly 10,000 students with over 30 academic departments and research centres. From its inception, the University has concentrated on strong viable departments and teaching and research of the highest quality. York is rated 6th out of 172 Higher Education institutions for research, with 18 of its 23 departments rated 5 or 5*.