Lucknow is the seat of Awadhi culture and is famous the world over for its crafts, food, and nawab temperament. Lucknow is famous for its embroidery work, especially the art of chikankari and zardosi, and in 2008 was granted the Geographical Indication (GI) status for chikankari.

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Being an old established city, the schools here range from those over a century old to the new, modern institutes. The older schools in the city boast an impressive line up including the prestigious Loreto Convent Intermediate College, La Martiniere Boys College, La Martiniere Girls’ College, Colvin Taluqdars' College, St. Francis' College, Cathedral Senior Secondary School, St Agnes’ Day School among others. But equally long is the list of newer institutions including Seth M R Jaipuria School, Vibgyor High, Mount Carmel College, Study Hall, Vidyatree Modern World College, Delhi Public School, Rani Laxmi Bai School, Kunskapsskolan, Millennium School, etc. And of course, the world’s largest school as per the Guinness Book of World Records (2020) spread over 21 branches in the city, the City Montessori School. The sheer number of schools in the city may seem daunting, but given the population of Lucknow, it seems about right to have so many!

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Being the capital city of the most populous state of the country, it’s only logical that Lucknow is also a major hub of higher education for North India. There are a number of institutes of national repute including the highly ranked Indian Institute of Management(IIM), Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI), King George's Medical University (KGMU), Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University (RMNLU), Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, Institute of Hotel Management, Lucknow (IHM) etc. It’s also home to a number of universities including the Lucknow University, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technical University (UPTU), Babu Banarasi Das University, Amity University, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Dr. Shakuntala Misra National Rehabilitation University, Integral University, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti Languages University etc.

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An important management college situated in the city is the Jaipuria Institute of Management.

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Prominent colleges under Lucknow University affiliation include the National P.G College, the Isabella Thoburn (IT) College, Shia P.G. College,Christian College etc. There are also a number of engineering colleges like the Ambalika Institute of Management and Technology, Shri Ramswaroop Memorial College of Engineering and Management etc.

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A couple of hours away from Lucknow is another city counted among the most populous in the country, Kanpur. Situated on the banks of the Ganges, Kanpur is a major commercial and trade centre famous for textiles and leather. Regarded as the Leather City of the World, Kanpur also hosts a number of higher education institutes including the Indian Institute of Technology. It also holds three state universities, offering courses across all disciplines and across Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral programs. These universities include the Chandra Shekhar Azad University of Agriculture and Technology, Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University and the Harcourt Butler Technical University( HBTI). Other educational options include the GSVM Medical College, DAV College, Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR) etc.

Important schools in the city are Seth Anandram Jaipuria School, Delhi Public School Kalyanpur, St Mary’s Convent High School, Sir Padampat Singhania Education Centre etc..