University Campus Milton Keynes

The original University Centre Milton Keynes building at 200 Silbury Boulevard.

The institution began as 'the University Centre Milton Keynes' (UCMK), part of Milton Keynes College and supported by the University of Bedfordshire, the University of Northampton and the Open University. It was opened on 29 September 2008, with start-up funding provided by the Milton Keynes Partnership, which purchased the initial building (a former office block) in Central Milton Keynes.

In October 2009, the University of Bedfordshire (acting as lead academic partner) made a successful bid to the Higher Education Funding Council for England to expand provision at UCMK, one of just six such centres to have achieved this.[2]

In September 2012 the centre ceased to be part of MK College and became a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Bedfordshire.[3] The university announced plans for a new campus in the city, with the new name of the institution being 'University Campus Milton Keynes', and this was opened at Saxon Court on Avebury Boulevard in September 2013.[4][5]

Since March 2017, the brand 'UCMK' is no longer in use and the campus now operates as University of Bedfordshire Milton Keynes Campus.

When it was part of MK College, the campus offered Higher National Certificates, Higher National Diplomas, Foundation Degrees and the Professional Graduate Certificate in Education as programmes of study, as well as various management and professional courses. Whilst Milton Keynes College was the chief operator of UCMK, most higher education courses were accredited by the University of Bedfordshire, with some courses accredited by the University of Northampton, The Open University and Oxford Brookes University.[6]

Today, under the operation of the University of Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes campus offers Foundation degrees, Bachelor's degrees and Master's degrees.[7]

There are two Universities within 5 miles of UCMK: the Open University and Cranfield University. However, the Open University is a national university for learners in their own homes and workplaces, with no dedicated facilities to provide conventional face-to-face teaching for local undergraduate students. Cranfield University is exclusively a post-graduate institution, without any undergraduate students.

From 1982, De Montfort University operated a small campus in Kents Hill, with some teaching via a video link. In 2003, De Montfort University closed the site as part of a general retrenchment.

• University Centre Hastings
• University Centre Peterborough

• University of Bedfordshire Milton Keynes Campus