The

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, the majority of

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

s at the universities of

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, Durham and

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, as well as newer collegiate universities such as

Lancaster University Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public Collegiate university, collegiate research university in York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thir ...

, and older universities like

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

and St David's College, have members of staff called porters. There is normally a Head Porter, Deputy Head Porter and a team of other porters. Their precise job roles vary from college to college.

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford, Universities of Oxford and University of Cambridge, Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most prestigious universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collect ...

porters are highly sought after jobs. Porters work in a section of the college called the

porters' lodge A porters' lodge or porter's lodge (colloquially, wikt:plodge, plodge) is a place near the entrance of a building where one or more Porter (college), porters can be found to respond to student enquiries as well as enquires from the public and d ...

, at the main entrance. Roles can involve: * Controlling entry to the college * Sorting mail * Providing security to members * Reporting students to the Dean * Maintenance and repairs to college property Porters also exist at

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

in Canada, where each one is generally responsible for a large building or group of smaller buildings. Generally, they provide a single point of contact for any issues relating to the facilities they are responsible for, including security, maintenance requests,

access control In physical security and information security, access control (AC) is the action of deciding whether a subject should be granted or denied access to an object (for example, a place or a resource). The act of ''accessing'' may mean consuming ...

, etc. The character Skullion from

Tom Sharpe Thomas Ridley Sharpe (30 March 1928 – 6 June 2013) was an English satire, satirical novelist, best known for his ''Wilt (novel), Wilt'' series, as well as ''Porterhouse Blue'' and ''Blott on the Landscape,'' all three of which were adapted fo ...

's satirical 1974 novel ''

Porterhouse Blue ''Porterhouse Blue'' is a novel written by Tom Sharpe, first published in 1974. A satirical look at Cambridge life and the struggle between tradition and reform, ''Porterhouse Blue'' tells the story of Skullion, the Head Porter of Porterhouse ...

'' was a fictional head porter reputed to be based on Albert Jaggard, the Head Porter of Corpus Christi during the 1960s and 1970s. At Edinburgh, the position has historically been hereditary.

References

Education and training occupations Terminology of the University of Cambridge Terminology of the University of Oxford Terminology of Durham University Culture of the University of York Oxbridge {{UK-university-stub