This is a list of university a cappella musical groups in the UK who have achieved some level of notability or recognition.
University of Aberdeen
Aberpella
Aberpella are the original University of Aberdeen's a cappella ensemble. They were founded in 2011 as the AUSA (Aberdeen University Student Association) A Cappella Society by Nathan Chadwick. They were semi-finalists at the Voice Festival UK 2015, Voice Festival UK 2017 and ICCA 2017.
In 2015, Aberpella and their sister group The Killer Quines recorded their first professional EP - "3000 And Counting". In 2017 Aberpella recorded their first solo EP - "50 Tones of Grey".
The group also performed a week long run of their 2016/17 repertoire at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival under the title "Aberpella Presents: 50 Tones of Grey"
In 2019, Aberpella placed second at the Scottish A Cappella Championships, and were also the only mixed-gender group to place.
The Killer Quines
The Killer Quines are an all-female a cappella group at the University of Aberdeen. Founded in 2013 by Joanna Casson, the name derives from the doric dialect commonly used in Aberdeenshire where 'quine' translates as 'girl'. The group covers songs in a range of musical styles from pop, indie, folk, jazz, soul, gospel, to classical. Since the group's emergence, they have competed in the Scottish A Cappella Championships. In 2015, the group got through to the semi-finals at a Voice Festival UK in Glasgow, and in 2017 to the quarterfinals of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella. The Killer Quines are frequently invited to perform at local events at various venues across Scotland, including an International Women's Day event (2014), a University of Aberdeen LGBTQ event (2015), and Maggie's cancer charity in Glasgow (2016), as well as hosting their own concerts in Aberdeen city.
Chordiac Arrest
Chordiac Arrest were formed in the summer of 2011 by a group of medical students. Although they have performed at some events in Aberdeen, most recently being joint winners of the open Vocal Group class (V21) in the Aberdeenshire Music Festival, they have never entered the Voice Festival UK. They disbanded in the summer of 2012, as final year of medicine spread the group far and wide on rural placements. However a reunion of six members formed GCS-3 (the Gangster Coma Scales - 3) who performed at a Christmas Concert in 2012, with the American group Pentatonix as their inspiration.
In addition to this group something of an a cappella revolution occurred at the medical school and two more groups started towards the end of 2012, namely The Ultrasounds and A Patella, under the guidance of Tim Lewis.
University of Bath
The Alley Barbers
The longest-running vocal group at Bath University, The Alley Barbers sing a wide range of songs in four part harmony, often in the barbershop style. Current conductor and former student member, Tim Greeves, succeeded the director of student music-making, Robin Jackson, on his retirement in 2005. The founder of Bristol University's TUBBS A Cappella was a member of the Alley Barbers from 2000 to 2001.
Aquapella
Aquapella are the University of Bath's first contemporary a cappella group. Founded by Civil Engineering student Andrew Hakes in 2011, they competed in the Voice Festival UK for the first time in 2012. Since then, they have released an EP Lambda in 2016, won the UK ICCA finals in 2017 and VoiceFest UK in 2018. They embarked on their first UK tour, I Wouldn't Be, in 2017/2018.
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham's a cappella society, A Cappella Birmingham, currently has seven groups - two all-female, and seven mixed. One former group at the university - The Sons of Pitches - has since become an external group, and performs professionally.
The Sons of Pitches
The Sons of Pitches is an all-male a cappella group formed in October 2010 by Mark Nathan. In 2011, they took part in the inaugural Birmingham semifinal of the Voice Festival UK. In 2012, they won the Birmingham semifinal of Voice Festival UK, and competed at the final in London. They returned to the London finals again in 2013 where they received more awards than any other group in the competition, being recognised for 'Outstanding Arrangement', 'Outstanding Vocal Percussion', 'Outstanding Choreography/Stagecraft' and 'Outstanding Performance', but ultimately lost overall to Vive from Guildhall. However, just a few weeks later The Sons of Pitches won the 'International Wildcard Round' of the International Championships of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA), and competed in the International Finals at The Town Hall, New York City, on 20 April 2013.