Sussex is in the top 150 in the world rankings published by Times Higher Education/QS, and rates higher still for the arts and social sciences. Its reputation was enhanced by good results in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise, when almost 60 per cent of an unusually large submission was rated as world-leading or internationally excellent. The university was ranked top in the country for American studies and among the leaders in the history of art and politics. The university now generates more than a third of its income from private sources, largely in research contracts.

There has also been dramatic improvement in Sussex’s performance in the National Student Survey over the past two years, propelling the university into the top 30 for satisfaction levels. The results published in 2008 showed 100 per cent satisfaction in physics, with biological subjects, social work, economics and law also doing well. However, previously strong demand for places has stalled in the last two years, with a 4 per cent decline in applications at the start of 2009 following a big drop in 2008.

Student satisfaction

The university is aiming to improve the student experience with the introduction of the Sussex Plus initiative, which will provide recognition for students’ voluntary work and other extra-curricular activities. As part of a focus on flexible learning, the library has introduced 24-hour opening during term time and many lectures are available online for students to download. The interdisciplinary approach that has always been Sussex’s trademark has been re-examined to adapt this 1960s concept for the 21st century. An academic restructuring exercise has produced 12 schools of study to improve students’ access to support.

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Courses

Arts and social science students take the biggest share of places, but the life sciences are not far behind. The newly created School of Business, Management and Economics, opening in 2009, will offer a portfolio of undergraduate and postgraduate business and management programmes.

Access

Sussex is committed to taking candidates with no family tradition of higher education and has much larger numbers of mature students than most of its peer group of institutions. The proportion of working-class students is marginally lower than the national average for the university’s subjects and entry grades, but this is attributed to the university’s south coast location. The projected dropout rate has been improving and, at less than 10 per cent, is below average.

Location

The university is based within the Downs, in a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, four miles from the centre of Brighton. The university is currently completing a £100-million campus development plan, which will refurbishing Sir Basil Spence’s original buildings and adding new ones. Student accommodation has also been upgraded; there are more than 3,000 residential places on campus, including rooms in newly built halls offering en-suite rooms – and there are plans to increase campus accommodation still further. All first-year students are guaranteed a place in university-managed accommodation.

Relations with neighbouring Brighton University are good. The two institutions succeeded in a joint bid for a medical school, which opened in 2003 and has since recorded big increases in applications. The Brighton and Sussex Medical School is split between the Royal Sussex County Hospital and the two universities’ Falmer campuses.

International

Sussex has always attracted overseas students in large numbers and has seen big increases recently, but a high proportion of the remainder are from the London area, where many return at weekends. As a result, the well-appointed campus can be quiet, although there is no shortage of social events, and Brighton has plenty to offer. Sports facilities are good, and the university has launched initiatives in basketball and hockey to entice top performers.

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