The list, which has been compiled by Universities UK (UUK), aims to celebrate significant inventions, discoveries and social initiatives made by academics over the years.

The repellent coatings for mobiles, which were developed at Durham University, have helped ensure that millions of handsets are resistant to water damage.

The invention of the television, which was developed at the Royal Technical College – a precursor to the University of Strathclyde, was also heavily praised.

University of Bath researchers were lauded for their work developing a new scrummage binding technique to reduce rugby injuries.

Also featuring on the list was the development of the first computer to run a program electronically that was stored in its memory. Pioneering research at the University of Manchester led to the breakthrough in 1948.

The university went on to attract the great computer scientist and code-breaker Alan Turing, who developed the Manchester Mark 1 computer, which later became the Ferranti Mark 1, the world’s first commercially manufactured computer.

Researchers at the University of Dundee in the 1970s and 1980s laid the foundations for the now ubiquitous LCD screen.

The technology was developed by Professors Walter Spear and Peter LeComber along with students at the university. It is also used in mobile phones and other electronic devices.

The University of Leicester’s submission was its development of genetic fingerprinting. Alec Jeffreys, an academic in the university’s Department of Genetics from 1977 until his retirement in 2012, discovered the technique, which revolutionised forensic science and law enforcement.

The list covers developments in health, technology, environment, family, community, culture and sport.

Other entries include the world’s first full-body MRI scanner, specially-designed bras for women having radiotherapy, technology that turns urine into electricity and the portable defibrillator.

The campaign is being supported by actor James Nesbitt, who is chancellor of Ulster University, and two-time Olympic swimming champion Rebecca Adlington.

She said: “Even though I didn’t go to university myself, my life wouldn’t have been the same without the amazing things that happen at UK universities.

“It’s the reason we have ultrasounds, which told me my baby daughter was healthy; full-body MRI scans like the ones that helped diagnose my sister’s encephalitis, helping to save her life.

“For many people, universities are just places where people study, but I want to shine a light on the transformational impact they have on people’s lives.”

The list, which has been compiled by Universities UK (UUK), aims to celebrate significant inventions, discoveries and social initiatives made by academics over the years.

The repellent coatings for mobiles, which were developed at Durham University, have helped ensure that millions of handsets are resistant to water damage.

The invention of the television, which was developed at the Royal Technical College – a precursor to the University of Strathclyde, was also heavily praised.

University of Bath researchers were lauded for their work developing a new scrummage binding technique to reduce rugby injuries.

Also featuring on the list was the development of the first computer to run a program electronically that was stored in its memory. Pioneering research at the University of Manchester led to the breakthrough in 1948.

The university went on to attract the great computer scientist and code-breaker Alan Turing, who developed the Manchester Mark 1 computer, which later became the Ferranti Mark 1, the world’s first commercially manufactured computer.

Researchers at the University of Dundee in the 1970s and 1980s laid the foundations for the now ubiquitous LCD screen.

The technology was developed by Professors Walter Spear and Peter LeComber along with students at the university. It is also used in mobile phones and other electronic devices.

The University of Leicester’s submission was its development of genetic fingerprinting. Alec Jeffreys, an academic in the university’s Department of Genetics from 1977 until his retirement in 2012, discovered the technique, which revolutionised forensic science and law enforcement.

The list covers developments in health, technology, environment, family, community, culture and sport.

Other entries include the world’s first full-body MRI scanner, specially-designed bras for women having radiotherapy, technology that turns urine into electricity and the portable defibrillator.

The campaign is being supported by actor James Nesbitt, who is chancellor of Ulster University, and two-time Olympic swimming champion Rebecca Adlington.

She said: “Even though I didn’t go to university myself, my life wouldn’t have been the same without the amazing things that happen at UK universities.

“It’s the reason we have ultrasounds, which told me my baby daughter was healthy; full-body MRI scans like the ones that helped diagnose my sister’s encephalitis, helping to save her life.

“For many people, universities are just places where people study, but I want to shine a light on the transformational impact they have on people’s lives.”