University of Sussex

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Coordinates: 50°51′55″N, 0°05′08″W

University of Sussex

Motto	Be Still and Know
Established	1961
Chancellor	Lord Attenborough
Vice-Chancellor	Prof Alasdair Smith
Staff	2236
Students	12,205 [1]
Undergraduates	8,935 [1]
Postgraduates	3,207 [1]
Location	Falmer, East Sussex, UK
Affiliations	1994 Group
Website	www.sussex.ac.uk

The University of Sussex is an English campus university located near the East Sussex village of Falmer, near Brighton and Hove. It is the only university in England to be entirely located in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, that of the South Downs, and to run entirely on electricity from renewable energy sources.

The University of Sussex was the first of the new wave of British universities founded in the 1960s (see also Plate Glass Universities), receiving its Royal Charter in August 1961, and came to be identified not only with postwar social change, but a groundbreaking interdisciplinary approach, and later social engagement.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Establishment and campus 1.2 Chancellors and Vice-Chancellors 1.3 Recent history 2 Academic reputation 2.1 Rankings 2.2 Research 2.3 International reputation 2.4 Recognition of academics 2.5 Distinguished faculty 2.6 Notable current and former staff 3 Expansion and budget issues 4 Organisation of the University 4.1 Innovative previous organisation 4.2 Current academic departments (within the schools) 4.3 Centres of excellence 5 Courses offered 6 University Scarf 7 Student Life 7.1 Students' Union 7.2 Campus media 7.3 Halls of residence 8 Sport and clubs 9 Societies at Sussex 10 Educational partners 11 The Gardner Arts Centre 12 Alumni 12.1 Politicians 12.2 Writers, journalists and broadcasters 12.3 Scientists 12.4 Others 13 See also 14 External links 15 References

[edit] History

[edit] Establishment and campus

The University was established in 1961 during government attempts to expand access to higher education, symbolising the changes British society had undergone since World War II. Designed in the main by Sir Basil Spence, its modernist campus architecture and layout included Falmer House (originally called "College House"), which won one of the coveted medals of the Royal Institute of British Architects in the year it opened (1962), and the striking circular Meeting House, based on the design of a traditional oast house, which won a Civic Trust award in 1969. Falmer House was one of only two educational buildings in the UK to be given Grade 1 status as being of "exceptional interest", and was briefly the only completed building on campus, used for teaching, dining and recreation; administration at that time was mostly housed at nearby Stanmer House. In 1993, the other buildings which make up the core of Sir Basil Spence's original design were also given listed building status.

From its founding, Sussex broke the British higher education mould in a number of respects. Notwithstanding its new academic methods and physical conception, it was the first British campus to allow a sharing of staff and student social facilities. By the end of its first decade the university was also strongly identified with social engagement, and a campus life known for its colour and activism.

The University was founded upon humanistic principles, with a stipulation that no room on the campus should be used for solely religious purposes – hence instead of a "chapel" there is "The Meeting House", which was designed to accept religious symbols from various religions (for example a Christian crucifix), but also be a complete room with no such insignia installed. However, the University motto, "Be still and know" is a truncation of Psalm 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God".

[edit] Chancellors and Vice-Chancellors

The present Chancellor of the university is The Lord Attenborough, who was elected as the university's fourth Chancellor on March 20, 1998.

1. The Viscount Monckton of Brenchley (1961 - 1965)
2. Lord Shawcross (1965 - 1985)
3. The Duke of Richmond and Gordon (1985 - 1989)
4. Lord Attenborough (1998 - present)

The university has had six Vice-Chancellors:

1. John Fulton (1961 - 1967)
2. Professor Asa Briggs (1967 - 1976)
3. Sir Denys Wilkinson (1976 - 1987)
4. Sir Leslie Fielding (1987 - 1992)
5. Professor Gordon Conway (1992 - 1998)
6. Professor Alasdair Smith (1998 - present)

[edit] Recent history

In 2004, the university replaced its original coat of arms with a new corporate-style logo.[1]

[edit] Academic reputation

[edit] Rankings

The World University Rankings, compiled by researchers for the Times Higher Education Supplement (THES) and published in October 2005, put Sussex 13th in the UK, 36th in Europe and 100th in the world. The Guardian University Rankings 2005 place Sussex 16th in the UK. The latest Sunday Times ranking puts Sussex 20th in the UK, a move up of 7 places from the year before. The 2007 Times "Good University Guide" places Sussex in 27th position^[2].

[edit] Research

Sussex is a leading research university, as reflected in the 2001 national Research Assessment Exercise. All subjects at Sussex were rated as either grade 4 or 5, recognising research of national and international standard respectively. Over 90% of staff are researching at this high level, the majority in areas of international excellence.

In respect of teaching quality, 13 of the 15 subjects assessed under the current teaching quality assessment scheme have scored 21 or more points (out of 24), with Philosophy and Sociology achieving the maximum score. Under the previous assessment scheme, Music, English and Social Anthropology were judged Excellent.

[edit] International reputation

Sussex has an international reputation for its innovative styles of teaching and for the quality and range of its research work. Academic links with every continent, over 2,300 international students from 100 countries, and teaching staff from 40 nations give the University a strongly international feel. Additionally, one in seven of all Sussex undergraduates spend a year of their degree outside the UK.

[edit] Recognition of academics

Sussex has counted two Nobel Prize winners, 12 Fellows of the Royal Society, six fellows of the British Academy and a winner of the prestigious Crafoord Prize in its faculty.

[edit] Distinguished faculty

In the sciences Sussex counts among its faculty two Nobel Prize winners, Sir John Cornforth and Professor Harry Kroto. Sir Harry, the first Briton to win the chemistry prize in over ten years, received the prize in 1996 for the discovery of a new class of carbon compounds known as the fullerenes. The University has 15 Fellows of the Royal Society - the highest number per science student of any British university other than Cambridge. In the arts, there are six members of faculty - an unusually high proportion - who have the distinction of being Fellows of the British Academy. Faculty publish around 3,000 papers, journal articles and books each year, as well as being involved in consultative work across the world.

[edit] Notable current and former staff

• John D. Barrow, Physicist
• Brian Bates, Psychologist and author specialising in Anglo-Saxon shamanism^[3]
• Quentin Bell, Art Historian
• Homi Bhabha, Literary Theorist and Critic
• Tony Binns, Human Geography specialising in African affairs and education.^[4]
• Margaret Boden, Philosopher and Cognitive scientist^[5]
• John Cornforth, Nobel laureate in Chemistry
• Paul Feyerabend, Philosopher
• John Gribbin, visiting Fellow in Astronomy, and science writer
• Gabriel Josipovici, Essayist, novelist, playwright & short story writer.
• Harry Kroto, Nobel laureate in Chemistry^[6]
• Anthony Leggett, Nobel laureate in Physics
• Mike Ramsey, Environmental Science
• Martin Rees, President of the Royal Society, Astronomer Royal, Master of Trinity College, Cambridge
• John C. G. Röhl, Historian
• Tim Roper, Biologist^[7]
• Hans Singer, Development Economist
• John Maynard Smith, Biologist
• Larry Trask, authority on the Basque language and historical linguist

[edit] Expansion and budget issues

The university is currently facing a tough financial position. At present, the university finds itself in £3.8 million deficit, which the vice-chancellor has blamed on departmental overspending, despite major cuts. Regular complaints of a lack of funding by academic staff, support staff and students are common.

A new car park in an area of outstanding natural beauty caused further unrest in 2005.

Work is starting imminently on the first phase of a complex and large-scale project to replace the University’s ageing heating network with a new, energy-efficient system.

This first phase of work, from May to October 2006, involves extensive trenching across campus and the laying of 7 km of insulated pipes to replace the 1960s pipework.

Boiler House car park, and the upper terrace that links to it, will be closed from 30 May. Once trenching work has taken place the Boiler House car park will become the site area for construction of a new student residence opposite Bramber House, so it is likely to remain closed until September 2007 at the earliest.

[edit] Organisation of the University

The university is organized into seven schools following traditional departmental lines:

• Humanities
• Life Sciences
• Social Sciences and Cultural Studies
• Science and Technology
• The Sussex Institute (postgraduate studies in law, education, social work, and other areas)
• SPRU - Science and Technology Policy Research
• The Brighton & Sussex Medical School, a joint school with the University of Brighton

This organization was introduced as part of a major restructuring on August 1, 2003, which was controversial at the time of its proposal.

[edit] Innovative previous organisation

The University was founded with the unusual structure of "Schools of Study" (ubiquitously abbreviated to "schools") rather than traditional university departments within arts and science faculties. The Schools were intended to promote high-quality teaching and research.

In the early 1990s, the University promoted the system by claiming, "Clusters of faculty [come] together within schools to pursue new areas of intellectual enquiry. The schools also foster broader intellectual links. Physics with Management Studies, Science and Engineering with European Studies, Economics with Mathematics all reach beyond conventional Arts/Science divisions."^[8] By this time, the original schools had been developed somewhat and were:

• African and Asian Studies (abbreviated to AFRAS)
• Biological Sciences (BIOLS)
• Chemistry and Molecular Sciences (MOLS)
• Cognitive and Computing Sciences (COGS)
• Cultural and Community Studies (CCS)
• Engineering and Applied Sciences (ENGG)
• English and American Studies (ENGAM or EAM)
• European Studies (EURO)
• Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MAPS)
• Social Sciences (SOC)

[edit] Current academic departments (within the schools)

• American Studies
• Anthropology
• Art History
• Biochemistry
• Biology and Environmental Science
• Business and Management Studies
• Centre for Continuing Education (CCE)
• Chemistry
• Computing (Informatics)
• Cultural Studies
• Development Studies
• Economics
• Education
• Engineering and Design
• English
• European Humanities
• European Languages
• Gender Studies
• Geography
• Graduate Centre in the School of Humanities
• History
• Informatics
• International Relations
• Law
• Linguistics and English Language
• Mathematics
• Media and Film
• Music
• Philosophy
• Physics and Astronomy
• Politics and Contemporary European Studies
• Psychology
• Social and Political Thought
• Social Work and Social Care
• Sociology
• Sussex European Institute
• Sussex Language Institute

[edit] Centres of excellence

In addition to the seven current schools, the university houses several centres of excellence including the Centre for the Study of Evolution (which had John Maynard Smith as a member), the Centre for Computational Neuroscience and Robotics, and the Genome Damage and Stability Centre.

The university is also noted for its work in molecular sciences, with a faculty that once included Sir Harry Kroto, and for its work in computing and cognitive science, particularly Artificial Intelligence and human-computer interaction.

The university library is home to the Mass-Observation project and archives.

[edit] Courses offered

Information on undergraduate courses offered by the University can be found here, and postgraduate courses here.

[edit] University Scarf

The University Scarf consists of five equally sized stripes in the colours blue-red-blue-red-blue.

[edit] Student Life

Sussex is the only university in England which is entirely located in a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Situated on the edge of the Sussex Downs, the University campus is like a large, self-contained village, with lecture theatres, seminar rooms, libraries, labs, accommodation, restaurants, bars, shops and sports facilities all within easy walking distance. Just a few minutes away is the lively, friendly seaside city of Brighton and Hove with its great leisure facilities and its rich, eclectic cultural life.

[edit] Students' Union

Based in Falmer House, the first of the campus buildings, the Students' Union provides a wide range of student support and entertainment services.

See also: University of Sussex Students' Union

[edit] Campus media

• The Badger is the Union’s regular news publication and is written and designed entirely by Sussex students. It aims to represent the views and interests of students and communicate the work of the Union, as well as informing members about local, national and international issues that effect them as students.

• University Radio Falmer was one of the first student radio stations in the country. It broadcasts locally on 1431AM and to the world via the Internet [www.urfonline.com]. The station has a packed daytime schedule and during the evening offers a diverse range of genre programming, all from Sussex students. The station broadcasts live from Falmer Bar during the afternoon.

• The Pulse, Sussex’s termly magazine, complements the Badger by providing in-depth feature articles, interviews with local and national stars, and analysis of the latest happenings in Brighton. The elegant and experimental design gives the magazine an edgy feel, and makes it the perfect publication for those interested in design and visual arts to work for.

[edit] Halls of residence

The early campus included five Park Houses (Essex, Kent, Lancaster, Norwich, and York, named for other 1960s universities) and Park Village. The "houses", of which all but Kent were based on a courtyard design, feature several long corridors with kitchens and bathrooms at the end and a social space on the ground floor, very much in the manner of a tradtional hall of residence. Park Village, by contrast, consists of individual houses with just a few bedrooms per floor, arranged in "streets" with a social centre building (including a bar) towards the campus end of the area. Essex House also featured a self-contained flat which was given over to the Nightline confidential listening and advice service in 1992. During the late 1990s, Essex House and its flat were redeveloped into a postgraduate teaching facility. Kent House includes the Kulukundis House wing, developed with easy access for residents with special needs.

Accommodation on campus was expanded in the 1970s with the construction of the unusual split-level flats of East Slope. This development also has a social building with a bar.

In the 1990s, as student numbers rose, further developments were constructed in the corner of campus between East Slope and Park Village. Brighthelm and Lewes Court were constructed in public-private partnership funding arrangements with the Bradford & Northern and Kelsey Housing Associations. The name "Brighthelm" owes its etymology to part of the former name of Brighton, Brighthelmstone, whilst Lewes Court is named after the county town of Lewes.

In addition to these properties, the University has, over the years, managed properties for students wishing to live off-campus, such as Holland House, actually an interconnected row of terraced townhouses, in Holland Road, Hove.

[edit] Sport and clubs

The university competes in the following sports:

Team sports

Basketball (men and women), cricket (men and women), football (men, 1st, 2nd and 3rd; women), (field) hockey (men and women, 1st and 2nd), netball (women, 1st and 2nd), rugby (men and women, 1st and 2nd), ultimate frisbee and volleyball (men and women).

Racquet sports

Badminton (men and women) and squash (men and women).

Individual sports

Archery, fencing and trampolining

Outdoor pursuits

sailing[2], mountain bike, mountaineering, Ski & Snowboard, sub aqua, surfing and windsurfing.

Martial arts

Karate Jutsu, kickboxing, Shaolin Kung Fu, aikido and sport aikido.

[edit] Societies at Sussex

See also: Societies at the University of Sussex

[edit] Educational partners

• Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) is a partnership between the University of Brighton and the University of Sussex.It is one of the new medical schools in the UK. BSMS benefits from the universities' distinctive traditions and shared strengths in biomedical sciences, healthcare and professional education. The school, which is the first medical school in the South East outside London, gained its license in 2002 and opened in 2003. It admits 136 students per year with all of them being based for the first two years on the split campus at Falmer. Some life-science degrees in the University of Sussex involving a medical aspect include classes taught in the BSMS.

• The Institute of Development Studies is one of the world's leading organisations for research, teaching and communications on international development. IDS was founded in 1966 as an independent research institute based at the University of Sussex. IDS has close links with the University, but is financially and constitutionally independent. It exists as Charitable Company limited by guarantee, and registered in England.

• CENTRIM is the Centre for Research in Innovation Management. It is a research-based school at the University of Brighton, established in 1990. It is located in the Freeman Centre building on the University of Sussex campus at Falmer, near Brighton, England.

• The Sussex Innovation Centre (SInC) is one of the premier business incubators in the UK. Opened in 1996 it provides support for the creation and growth of technology and knowledge based companies in the South East. The Centre provides excellent facilities and is a thriving business environment for over 40 high growth companies working within the IT, Biotech, Media and Engineering sectors.

[edit] The Gardner Arts Centre

Housed at the edge of the campus in an eccentric Grade II listed building by Sir Basil Spence, the Gardner Arts Centre was opened in 1969 as the first university campus arts centre. It has a 480 seat purpose built theatre, a visual art gallery and studio space and is regularly used for theatre and dance as well as showing a range of films on a modern cinema screen.

[edit] Alumni

[edit] Politicians

• Hilary Benn, Member of Parliament, Secretary of State for International Development
• Roger Berry, Member of Parliament
• Ben Bradshaw, Member of Parliament, DEFRA Minister
• Simon Busuttil, Maltese Member of the European Parliament
• David Lee Camp, U.S. Republican member of the House of Representatives
• Michael Fabricant, Member of Parliament for Lichfield
• Andrew George, Liberal Democrat MP and shadow Secretary of State for International Development
• Peter Hain, Member of Parliament. Secretary of State for Wales, Leader of the House of Commons
• David Hallam, Member of the European Parliament, author
• Musa Hitam, Malaysian politician
• Thabo Mbeki, President of South Africa
• Martin Salter, Labour Member of Parliament
• Lyn Walsh, Socialist Party politician
• Alan Woods, politician and writer

[edit] Writers, journalists and broadcasters

• Tommy Boyd, broadcaster
• Edward Kamau Brathwaite, Barbadian writer
• Peter Brimelow, journalist and author
• Lord Richard Cecil, journalist and adventurer (died 1978)
• Simon Fanshawe, writer, broadcaster
• Philippa Gregory, novelist
• Tobias Hill, novelist and poet
• Merfyn Jones professor, historian, broadcaster, governor of the BBC and vice-chancellor of the University of Wales, Bangor
• Robin Lustig, broadcaster
• Sarra Manning, writer
• Ian McEwan, novelist
• Bob Mortimer, comedian
• Dermot Murnaghan, television presenter and jounalist
• Clive Myrie, BBC journalist
• Kim Newman, journalist and writer
• Chris Paling, author
• Nigel Planer, actor, novelist, playwright
• Alexandra Shulman, magazine editor
• Julia Somerville, broadcaster
• Shirley Thomas, professor, broadcaster
• Srđa Trifković, Serbian historian and journalist

[edit] Scientists

• David Clary FRS (President, Magdalen College, Oxford)
• Dimitri Nanopoulos, quantum physicist
• Professor Sir Peter Knight FRS Principal of the Faculty of Natural Sciences Imperial College London

[edit] Others

• Shamshad Akhtar, Governor State Bank of Pakistan
• Michael Attenborough, director
• Jamie Shea, Spokesman and Deputy Assistant Secretary General for External Relations of NATO
• Tony Banks, keyboard player with Genesis (did not graduate)
• Daniel Catán, composer
• Cheung Kam Ching, philosopher
• Paul Forrest, musician
• Brendan Foster, former distance runner, and founder of the Great North Run
• Michael Fuller, Chief Constable of Kent Police
• Paul Gilroy, Professor and cultural critic
• A. C. Grayling, philosopher
• Jemma Griffiths, singer-songwriter (known as Jem)
• Paul Hirst, professor
• Billy Idol, musician (did not graduate)
• Calestous Juma, professor
• Steve Knightley, singer-songwriter
• Savenaca Siwatibau, Fijian academic leader, civil service administrator
• Jesoni Vitusagavulu, Fijian diplomat and Ambassador to the United States
• Virginia Wade, Wimbledon Ladies' Singles Champion, 1977

[edit] See also

• Brighton and Sussex Medical School

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: University of Sussex

• University of Sussex website
• University of Sussex Student Union
• History of the University from the Encyclopaedia of Brighton
• Article containing list of Vice-Chancellors (reference)
• Article containing details of THES 2004 placing (reference)
• The Times Good University Guide
• Centre for Computational Neuroscience and Robotics
• Report: Investing in excellence at Sussex
• The Gardner Arts Centre
• sussex.ac.uk/media - Sussex in the news
• University of Sussex information from HERO, the official gateway to UK universities, colleges and research organisations.

[edit] References

Universities in South East England
Brighton | Buckingham | Chichester | Canterbury | Kent | Oxford | Oxford Brookes | Portsmouth | Reading | Southampton | Southampton Solent | Surrey | Sussex | Thames Valley | Winchester

	The 1994 Group (of smaller British research universities)
	Bath | Birkbeck | Durham | East Anglia | Essex | Exeter | Goldsmiths College | Lancaster | Leicester | Loughborough | Queen Mary | Reading | Royal Holloway | School of Oriental and African Studies | St Andrews | Surrey | Sussex | Warwick* | York
	* Also a member of the Russell Group