University of Sussex

History

• The university was the first of the new wave of universities founded in the 1960s, receiving its Royal Charter in August 1961. The University will be celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2011–12 with a year of events to mark the occasion.
• Over the past 50 years, the university has built a strong reputation for research excellence, internationalism and interdisciplinarity.
• In 1993, the buildings that make up the core of Sir Basil Spence's original design were given listed building status.

Location and transport

• Set in the rolling countryside of the Sussex Downs, the campus is surrounded by the South Downs National Park and is only minutes from Brighton & Hove, one of the most vibrant and exciting cities in the UK.
• Frequent bus services run between campus and Brighton. The train journey to Brighton from nearby Falmer station is eight minutes.
• Brighton is within easy reach of London and major international airports (Gatwick and Heathrow).

Entry standards

• Standard A level offers are between AAA and BBB, depending on degree programme.
• The university has a tradition of welcoming mature students, and takes a flexible approach when extending offers to such students.

Student mix

• 55% of students are female, 45% male; 75% are home students, 25% are from overseas; 2,500 international students from over 120 countries.
• 16% of our undergraduate students are mature students (over 21 on entry).
• Applications to places ratio was just over 6:1 in 2011.

Course flexibility

• Sussex degrees are designed flexibly so that students can explore subjects in ways that interest them.
• Students on most single honours programmes choose several courses from outside their discipline. Joint degrees allow different combinations.
• Many programmes offer study-abroad opportunities, and 20% of first degree students spend a term/year abroad.

Teaching standards

• Staff have received National Teaching Fellowship Scheme awards annually for the past four years – a record matched by only a handful of other universities.
• In the 2011 National Student Survey rankings, okver 90% of Sussex students were satisfied or very satisfied with the teaching on their course, putting Sussex in the top 10 universities across the UK for teaching satisfaction.

Research standards

• In the 2008 RAE, 100% of departments at Sussex have world-leading, internationally excellent or internationally recognised research, confirming the University among the leading 30 research universities in the UK.

Academic strengths

• Our distinguished faculty has included three Nobel Prize winners, 13 Fellows of the Royal Society and six Fellows of the British Academy, and a winner of the prestigious Crafoord Prize.

Student facilities, including library and computing

• The newly refurbished library – which is open 24-hours during term time – contains more than 750,000 volumes and has electronic access to more than 20,000 journals.
• The library's archives include original manuscripts by Virginia Woolf and Rudyard Kipling, and the Mass Observation Archive, a unique social history resource.
• IT Services provide 750 PCs on campus, many with 24-hour access. Campus is wi-fi connected, with free email and internet access.

Students' Union

• The union runs two lively bars, providing food and entertainments, as well as two shops. It also supports more than 160 societies, teams and clubs.
• The union's advice centre provides support for students on a range of issues.

Sport

• There are excellent facilities for tennis, rugby, soccer, cricket and hockey, and well as two sport halls with well-equipped fitness rooms.
• A well-rounded sports programme offers 30 classes/courses a week in activities such as yoga, trapeze, sports conditioning, boxercise, circuit training, salsa, swing, ballet and capoeira.
• Sports bursaries are offered annually to Sussex sports men and women who are of an international, national or high county standard.
• Sussex's ultimate frisbee team won the 2010–11 BUCS National Indoor and Outdoor Championships, and includes many members of the GB team.
• There is a therapy room offering a sports-injury clinic, sports massage, relaxation massage, reiki, reflexology and hot stone massage.

Recent/prospective new builds

• Further expansion of new accommodation at Northfield which opened in autumn 2011 with 777 bed space ensuite accommodation, and a further 200 beds to be added for 2012.
• Opening of major new (£30-m) academic building for the growing Schools of Business, Management and Economics and the School of Law, Politics and Sociology. This will also provide a new 500+ seat lecture theatre and café.
• Major new Co-op supermarket opened in the refurbished Bramber House.
• All catering outlets overhauled with a new Bar Centre, Café Central and Restaurant Centre – in Bramber House at the centre of the campus.
• Expected to open in 2012–13 is a major new teaching and research centre for the arts – Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts based in the refurbished former Gardner Arts Centre – which will provide a research and teaching base to support creative arts including film, media and drama. Named after Sussex's former Chancellor, Lord Attenborough.

Availability of part-time work

• The Careers and Employability Centre advertises part-time, finalist and graduation vacancies.
• The centre can also help with CV preparation and job hunts, and hosts careers events, skills workshops and fairs.
• The centre promotes over 3,000 temporary and part-time jobs each year.
• Students in Brighton have the highest wages in the UK during term time (on average £128 per week according to the NatWest annual poll, 2009).

Notable alumni

• Jamie Shea – Deputy Assistant Secretary General, Emerging Security Challenges, NATO.
• Helen Boaden – Director of BBC News.
• Rt Hon Tony Baldry, Rt Hon Hilary Benn, Rt Hon Ben Bradshaw – three of our seven alumni who are
  currently Members of Parliament.
• Jeremy Deller – Turner Prize winner and Tate Trustee.
• Ian McEwan – novelist.
• Dermot Murnaghan – Sky News presenter.
• Julia Somerville – news presenter and Chair of the Advisory Committee of the Government Art Collection.
• Bob Mortimer – comedian.
• Alexandra Shulman OBE – Editor of UK Vogue.
• Dame Gail Rebuck DBE – Chair and CEO of Random House Group.

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