利兹大学是英国白玫瑰大学联盟，N8大学联盟，英联邦大学联盟（Association of Commonwealth Universities），欧洲大学联盟（European University Association），红砖大学（Red Brick University）和罗素大学集团(Russell Group）成员，每年获得的研究经费额度为英国各大学的前十名。利兹大学也是2012年伦敦奥运会中国代表队的训练基地之一。
诺贝尔奖获得者：
1. Sir William Henry Bragg,OM,KBE,PRS - For their services in the analysis of crystal structure by means of X-rays.
2. Archer John Porter Martin - For the invention of partition chromatography.
3.Lord George Porter of Luddenham,OM,FRS - For studies of extremely fast chemical reactions.
4. Wole Soyinka - Who in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones fashions the drama of existence and the first African to be honoured.
5. Richard Laurence Millington Synge - For the invention of partition chromatography；
6. ChristopherFay,CBE,chairman of the advisory committee on business and the environment,chairman of Expro International and a director with BAA and Anglo American,andchairman and chief executive of Shell UK from 1993–1998.
利兹大学其他著名校友：
蒙古国总统恩赫巴雅尔；纳米比亚总统哈格； 香港艺人张国荣；NASA宇航员Piers Sellers；《指环王》作者J.R.R. TOLKIEN CBE教授，等。
利兹大学商学院著名校友：
道琼斯指数公司Dow Jones & Company首席财务执行官兼执行副主席 Stephen Daintith；联合利华Unilever主席 Ralph Kugler；德勒Deloitte会计事务所前主席，Martin SciclunaFCA；英国翠丰集团Kingfisher plc(LSE:KGF) CEO 兼主席 Peter Jackson；英国国家快运公司National Express Group plc(LSE:NEX) 前主席 Phil White；英国最大手机零售商，手机仓库公司Carphone Warehouse Group PLC(LSE:CPW) 首席执行官CEO Andrew Harrison；联合房产The UNITE Group plc(LSE:UTG）主席；Subir Raha ，印度石油公司Indian Oil Corporation和石油天然气公司Oil and Natural Gas Corporation前主席，董事长；迪拜工业城Dubai Industrial City执行主席，Rashed Al Ansari；Sarah Jones，Learn Direct首席执行官CEO；John R HirstThe Met Office首席执行官； Jayant Krishna,Tata Consultancy Services总顾问 等
校友
Politics
JohnBattle,Labour Member of Parliament for LeedsWest (English,1976）
AlanCampbell,Labour Member of Parliament for Tynemouthand Government Whip (PGCE)
JonWharam,Communications Director for Tony Blair 1997-2001 (BA (Hons) Politicsand Parliamentary Studies)
NambarynEnkhbayar,President of Mongolia(Exchange student,1986）
Joséángel Gurría,Mexican economist,secretary general of the Organisation for EconomicCo-operation and Development (OECD)
KenHind,barrister and former Conservative Member of Parliament for West Lancashire (Law,1971）
EricIllsley,Labour Member of Parliament for BarnsleyCentral (LLB in Law)
ChristopherLeslie,Labour Member of Parliament for Shipley 1997-2005 (Politics andParliamentary Studies,1994）
ClareShort,Labour Member of Parliament for Birmingham Ladywood and formerInternational Development Secretary (Political Science,1969）
JackStraw,Labour Member of Parliament for Blackburn,current Justice Secretary andformer Home Secretary and Leader of the House of Commons(LLB in Law,1967）
PaulTruswell,Labour Member of Parliament for Pudsey (History,1977）
SimbaMakoni Zimbabwean Politician and Candidate for Zimbabwe Elections 2008
Media
KamalAhmed,executive news editor,The Observer (Political studies,1990）
TimothyAllen,photojournalist (Zoology,1989）
StephenBeard,radio journalist,Londoncorrespondent for Marketplace from American Public Media (Law,1971）
SteveBell,political cartoonist for The Guardian (Fine Art,1974）
MarkByford,deputy Director-General of the BBC (LLB in Law,1979）
BarryCryer,comedian and scriptwriter (English,did not graduate)
PaulDacre,editor of the Daily Mail (English,1970）
GavinEsler,Newsnight anchor (MA Anglo-Irish Literature,1975）
JenniFalconer,television presenter (Student,Spanish and Italian,1990s)
SimonHattenstone,features writer,The Guardian (English,1984）
JohnHolmes,journalist and socialite (Classics,1937）
AndyKershaw,DJ and broadcaster (Politics)
LizKershaw,journalist and radio DJ. (textiles,1978）
PeterMorgan,screenwriter (Fine Art,1980s)
RichardQuest Reporter for CNN (Law,1985）
JayRayner,features writer and restaurant critic,The Observer (Political studies,1987）
GeorgieThompson,Sky Sports News presenter (Broadcast Journalism,1999）
MarkWheat,radio DJ at The Current from Minnesota Public Radio (English,1981）
AndyWilson,rugby league correspondent for The Guardian (Politics)
NicholasWitchell,BBC newsreader and royal and diplomatic correspondent (LLB in Law,1976）
MarkWood,Chairman and CEO of ITN (German,1974）
AlanYentob,BBC Creative Director (graduated LLB in Law,1968）
ThomasHedley,President of Hedley Media Group
AnitaRani,English radio and television presenter and journalist (Broadcasting)
Arts
ShonaAuerbach,award-winning director/cinematograper of Dear Frankie
CorinneBailey Rae,soul singer (English Literature,2000)
NickBrownlee,Crime thriller writer
LeslieCheung,Hong Kong actor and singer (TextileManagement,did not graduate)
JonathanClements,writer (Japanese,1994）
JeremyDyson,screenwriter and member of The League of Gentlemen (Philosophy,1989）
TonyHarrison,poet (Classics with Linguistics,1958）
VictoriaHesketh aka Little Boots,electronica musician[1]
StormJameson,writer (English,1912; MA 1914）
BarryJohn,noted theatre director and teacher,based in India since 1968
MarkKnopfler,OBE,rock musician,guitarist,singer and songwriter (English,1973）
KayMellor,television actress and scriptwriter (attended Bretton Hall,1983）
AlistairMcGowan,actor,comedian and impressionist (English,1986）
ChrisPine,American Hollywood actor,studied as a year abroad student during hisjunior year (English).
ArthurRansome,writer,studied science for two terms in 1901
HerbertRead,poet and literary critic (English)
SimonRix,bass player for Leeds band Kaiser Chiefs(Maths and Geography,2000)
WoleSoyinka,Nigerian writer and first African winner of the Nobel Prize inLiterature in 1986 (English,1957）
GregStekelman,writer and illustrator,author of A Year in the Life ofTheManWhoFellAsleep (English and Spanish,1998）
Ng朁省愀 Thiong’o,Kenyan author (English student,1960s)Science and technology
SirDavid Baulcombe,plant scientist (Botany,1973）
RobertBlackburn,aviation pioneer and founder of Blackburn Aircraft (Engineering,1906）
EmilyCummins,Technology Woman of the Future 2006,British Female Innovator Of theYear 2007
EdmundHappold,founder of Buro Happold and the Construction Industry Council (CivilEngineering,1957）
D.G. Hessayon,world-renowned gardening author (Botany,1949）
V.Craig Jordan,OBE,responsible for pioneering research into breast cancer andthe development of the cancer drug Tamoxifen,(BSc and Ph.D. inpharmacology,1969 and 1972）
JenniferRoss Meiring,architect director with BDP (B.A.,English,1979）
GeorgePorter,chemist,Nobel prize winner and President of the Royal Society(Chemistry,1941）
PiersSellers,NASA astronaut (Biometeorology,1981）
JenniferWilby,Director of the Centre for Systems Studies,University of Hull.
Other
AbdullahYusuf Ali - One of the World‘s most famous translators of the Quran.
MichaelAsher,Desert explorer and author (English 1977）
AlistairBrownlee,Olympian and ITU Triathlon World Champion. (Physiology and Sport2009）.
DanielByles,Guinness World Record holding ocean rower and polar explorer (Economicsand Management Studies 1996）
ClaireCashmore Bronze medalalist in both the 2004 Paralympics and the 2008Paralympics.
ChristopherFay,CBE,chairman of the advisory committee on business and the environment,chairman of Expro International and a director with BAA and Anglo American,andchairman and chief executive of Shell UK from 1993–1998 (BSc and Ph.D. in civilengineering,1967,1970）
KatFletcher,president of the National Union of Students of the United Kingdom,2004-2006 (Sociology)
BekeleGeleta - Secretary General,International Federation of Red Cross and RedCrescent Societies (MA Transport Economics,1974）
PeterHendy - Commissioner,Transport for London(Economics & Geography,1975）
DavidHessayon - gardening author and,according to the Guinness Book of Records,biggest-selling non-fiction author in history (Botany,1950）
RichardHoggart,sociologist and author of The Uses of Literacy (English,1939）
AbdullahO. Nasseef - Saudi geologist,chemist and politician
TomPalmer,Rugby Union player
DavidParry,dialectologist who founded the Survey of Anglo-Welsh Dialects
IvorPorter,Ambassador and Author of Operation Autonomous and King Michael(English,1936）
RichardProfit,polar explorer (Biology and Management Studies 1996）
SirChristopher Rose - former head of the Court of Appeal Criminal Division (LL.B.,1957）
DrHarold Shipman,general practitioner and convicted serial killer (Medicine,1970）
GeorgeMartin Stephen,high master of St Paul’s School,London (Englishand History)
MarilynStowe,divorce lawyer and the first Chief Assessor and Chief Examiner of theLaw Society‘s Family Law Panel (Law,1970s)
CecThompson - rugby league player and co-founder of Student Rugby League
SubirRaha- arguably the most influential business leader in the Indian public sector.Staff
LascellesAbercrombie,poet and literary critic (Professor of English literature,1923-1929）
WilliamAstbury,physicist and molecular biologist who made pioneering X-raydiffraction studies of biological molecules (Textile physics,1928-1961）
ZygmuntBauman,sociologist
SirWilliam Henry Bragg,Nobel Prize winning physicist/chemist (Physics,1909-1915）
AsaBriggs,historian
DameLynne Brindley,Chief Executive of British Library (University Librarian,1997-2000)
AnastasiosChristodoulou,Deputy Secretary of Leeds University and FoundationSecretary of the Open University
DavidCrighton,mathematician (Mathematics,1974-1986）
GeoffreyHill,poet (English,1954-1980）
GeoffHoon,politician (Law,1976-1981）
SirChristopher Ingold,chemist
BenediktIsserlin,Semitist and ancient historian
PercyFry Kendall,Award-winning geologist (Geology 1904-22）
ArnoldKettle,literary critic (English,1947-70）
BethanyKlein,popular music theorist and former Birmingham City University lecturer （2008-present)
OwenLattimore,pioneer in Chinese studies (Professor of Chinese studies,1963-1970）
JohnAnthony McGuckin,former Reader in Patristic and Byzantine Theology
IreneManton,botanist and cell biologist
DavidI. Masson,British science-fiction writer (assistant librarian 1938-1939;curator of the Brotherton Collection 1956-1979）
SirRoy Meadow,paediatrician
RalphMiliband,political theorist
LeonardJames Rogers,mathematician (Mathematics 1889-1919）
WoleSoyinka,Nigerian Nobel Prize winner
J.I. M. Stewart (Michael Innes),writer (English,1930-1935）
E.P. Thompson,historian (Extra Mural,1948-1965）
ProfessorJ. R. R. Tolkien,writer (English,1920-1925）
StephenTurnbull,military historian
ProfessorPhilip Wilby,composer,School of Music until 2006
VernaWright,senior lecturer,rheumatology
G.Wilson Knight,literary critic (English)
