The University of Surrey is a

public research university A public university or public college is a university or college that is in state ownership, owned by the state or receives significant government spending, public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private unive ...

Guildford, Surrey Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

, England. The university received its

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

in 1966, along with a number of other institutions following recommendations in the

Robbins Report The Robbins Report (the report of the Committee on Higher Education, chaired by Lord Robbins) was commissioned by the British government and published in 1963. The committee met from 1961 to 1963. After the report's publication, its conclusions we ...

. The institution was previously known as Battersea College of Technology and was located in

Battersea Park Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea and was opened in 1858. The park occupies marshland rec ...

, London. Its roots however, go back to Battersea Polytechnic Institute, founded in 1891 to provide

further Further or Furthur may refer to: * ''Furthur'' (bus), the Merry Pranksters' psychedelic bus *Further (band), a 1990s American indie rock band *Furthur (band) Furthur was a rock band founded in 2009 by former Grateful Dead members Bob Weir and ...

and

higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after compl ...

in London, including its poorer inhabitants. The university's research output and global partnerships have led to it being regarded as one of the UK's leading research universities. The university is a member of the

Association of MBAs The Association of MBAs (AMBA) is a global organisation founded in 1967 which focuses primarily on international business school accreditation and membership. Roles Based in London, AMBA is one of the three main global accreditation bodies in ...

and is one of four universities in the

University Global Partnership Network The University Global Partnership Network (UGPN) is an international network of universities, established as a "foundation for international collaboration enabling academics and students from some of the world’s top universities to work together ...

. It is also part of the SETsquared partnership along with the

University of Bath (Virgil, Georgics II) , mottoeng = Learn the culture proper to each after its kind , established = 1886 (Merchant Venturers Technical College) 1960 (Bristol College of Science and Technology) 1966 (Bath University of Technology) 1971 (univ ...

, the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a Red brick university, red brick Russell Group research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Society of Merchant Venturers, Merchant Venturers' sc ...

, the

University of Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

and the

University of Exeter , mottoeng = "We Follow the Light" , established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter) , type = Public , ...

. The university's main campus is on Stag Hill, close to the centre of Guildford and adjacent to

Guildford Cathedral The Cathedral Church of the Holy Spirit, Guildford, commonly known as Guildford Cathedral, is the Anglican cathedral at Guildford, Surrey, England. Richard Onslow donated the first of land on which the cathedral stands, with Viscount Bennett ...

. Surrey Sports Park is situated at the nearby Manor Park, the university's secondary campus. Among

British universities Universities in the United Kingdom have generally been instituted by royal charter, papal bull, Act of Parliament, or an instrument of government under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 or the Higher Education and Research Act 2017. ...

, the University of Surrey had the 14th highest average

UCAS Tariff The UCAS Tariff (formerly called UCAS Points System) is used to allocate points to post-16 qualifications (Level 3 qualifications on the Regulated Qualifications Framework). Universities and colleges may use it when making offers to applicants. A p ...

for new entrants in 2015. A major centre for satellite and

mobile communications Mobile telephony is the provision of telephone services to phones which may move around freely rather than stay fixed in one location. Telephony is supposed to specifically point to a voice-only service or connection, though sometimes the li ...

research, the university is in partnership with King's College London and the

Dresden University of Technology TU Dresden (for german: Technische Universität Dresden, abbreviated as TUD and often wrongly translated as "Dresden University of Technology") is a public research university, the largest institute of higher education in the city of Dresden, th ...

to develop 5G technology worldwide. It also holds a number of formal links with institutions worldwide, including the Surrey International Institute, launched in partnership with the

Dongbei University of Finance and Economics Dongbei University of Finance & Economics (DUFE; ; ''Dongbei'' means Northeast) is a public university in Dalian, Liaoning province, Northeast China. Home to over 20,000 students, it is one of the oldest and largest modern universities in Dalian ...

. The university owns the Surrey Research Park, providing facilities for over 110 companies engaged in research. Surrey has been awarded three

Queen's Anniversary Prize The Queen's Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education are a biennially awarded series of prizes awarded to universities and colleges in the further and higher education sectors within the United Kingdom. Uniquely it forms part of the Bri ...

s for its research, with the 2021 Research Excellence Framework seeing the university rise 12 places to 33rd in the UK for overall research quality and 41% of the university's research outputs classified as "world leading". It was named as ''The Sunday Times'' University of the Year in 2016, was nominated again for the same accolade in 2023, and was ''The Sunday Times'' University of the Year for Graduate Employment in 2022. The

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the university is

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, (Edward George Nicholas Paul Patrick; born 9 October 1935) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Edward were first cousins through their fathers, King George VI, and Prince George, Duke ...

. Current and emeritus academics at the university include ten

Fellows of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemati ...

, twenty-one Fellows of the

Royal Academy of Engineering The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) is the United Kingdom's national academy of engineering. The Academy was founded in June 1976 as the Fellowship of Engineering with support from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who became the first senior ...

, one Fellow of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars span ...

and six Fellows of the

Academy of Social Sciences The Academy of Social Sciences is a representative body for social sciences in the United Kingdom. The Academy promotes social science through its sponsorship of the Campaign for Social Science, its links with Government on a variety of matters, ...

. Surrey has educated many notable alumni, including Olympic gold medallists, several senior politicians, as well as a number of notable persons in various fields including the arts, sports and academia. Graduates typically abbreviate the University of Surrey to ''Sur'' when using post-nominal letters after their degree.

History

Foundation and early period

The University of Surrey was preceded by the Battersea Polytechnic Institute which was founded in 1891 and admitted its first students in 1894. Its aim was to provide greater access to further and

for Londoners, including some of the city's "poorer inhabitants". In 1901, evening classes provided instruction in subjects such as Mechanical Engineering and Building, Electrical Engineering, Chemical and other trades, Physics and Natural Science, Maths, Languages, Commercial subjects, Music and special classes for women including Domestic Economy subjects. Day classes consisted of Art, Science, Women's Subjects and Gymnastics, and classes were also offered in preparation for university and professional examinations. The institute focused on science and technology subjects, and from about 1920 taught

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degre ...

students, awarding University of London external degrees. In 1956, the institute was among the first to receive the designation "College of Advanced Technology" and was renamed Battersea College of Technology. By the beginning of the sixties, the college had virtually outgrown its building in Battersea and had decided to move to Guildford. In addition to this, the

of 1963 proposed that the Colleges of Advanced Technology, including Battersea, should expand and become degree-awarding universities. In 1965, the university-designate acquired a greenfield site in Guildford from Guildford Cathedral, Guildford Borough Council and the Onslow Village Trust.

University status

On 9 September 1966 the University of Surrey was established by

Royal Charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

and by 1970 the move from Battersea to Guildford was complete. On the day before the installation ceremony of the first Chancellor of the university, the

Aberfan disaster The Aberfan disaster was the catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip on 21 October 1966. The tip had been created on a mountain slope above the Welsh village of Aberfan, near Merthyr Tydfil, and overlaid a natural spring. Heavy rain led t ...

occurred.

Alfred Robens, Baron Robens of Woldingham Alfred Robens, Baron Robens of Woldingham, PC (18 December 1910 – 27 June 1999) was an English trade unionist, Labour politician and industrialist. His political ambitions, including an aspiration to become Prime Minister, were frustrated ...

who was appointed the first Chancellor, was also the chairman of the

National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "v ...

, and as such was expected to visit the site of the disaster. Robens decided instead to continue with the ceremony in Guildford to become Chancellor. During this transient period, visitors to the Battersea campus on 25 October 1968 saw

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are c ...

perform their very first gig, advertised as being at the university's

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

"Great Hall, Battersea Park Road". The university's Battersea Court consists of

halls of residence A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university ...

which were named in honour of the university's Battersea origins. Between 1982 and 2008, the university became the trustee of the building of the Guildford Institute, using parts of the building for its adult education programme and providing a university presence in the heart of Guildford. The

Assessment and Qualifications Alliance AQA, formerly the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, is an awarding body in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It compiles specifications and holds examinations in various subjects at GCSE, AS and A Level and offers vocational qu ...

(formerly Associated Examining Board) moved from

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alde ...

to its own headquarters building on the Stag Hill campus in 1985. The university marked its Silver Jubilee in 1991, an event celebrated by the publishing of ''Surrey – The Rise of a Modern University'' by

Roy Douglas Richard Roy Douglas (12 December 1907 – 23 March 2015) was an English composer, pianist and arranger. He worked as musical assistant to Ralph Vaughan Williams, William Walton, and Richard Addinsell, made well-known orchestrations of works suc ...

and by a Service of Thanksgiving in Guildford Cathedral attended by HM

The Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

in March 1992. In 1998, due to the ongoing development in the relationship between the university and the nearby Roehampton Institute, it was decided to form an academic federation. In November 1999, the Privy Council approved the necessary changes to the university's Charter and Statutes and the Roehampton Institute became the University of Surrey Roehampton at the beginning of 2000. Between 2000 and 2004, the university and Roehampton worked together as the Federal University of Surrey. In June 2004, the Privy Council granted Roehampton an independent university title, and it became

Roehampton University The University of Roehampton, London, formerly Roehampton Institute of Higher Education, is a public university in the United Kingdom, situated on three major sites in Roehampton, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. Roehampton was formerly an e ...

from 1 August 2004, ending the federal partnership between the institutions. The university celebrated its 35th anniversary in May 2002 with a major event in Guildford Cathedral. It was also marked by the unveiling of ''The Surrey Scholar'' sculpture (by Allan Sly FBS) to mark the

Golden Jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু ...

of Her Majesty The Queen and as a gift to the people of Guildford. ''The Surrey Scholar'' is at the bottom of Guildford High Street. ''Understanding the Real World'', a visual history of the university, by Christopher Pick, was published to coincide with this anniversary. In 2007, the university saw a major increase in overall applications by 39% compared with the previous year. This was followed by a further increase in applications of 12% in 2008. In October 2008, the university lost out to

Royal Holloway Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public university, public research university and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It has six schools, ...

in a bid to merge with London medical institute

St George's, University of London St George's, University of London (legally St George's Hospital Medical School, informally St George's or SGUL), is a University located in Tooting in South London and is a constituent college of the University of London. St George's has its o ...

. From September 2009, the

Guildford School of Acting Guildford School of Acting (GSA) is a drama school in Guildford, Surrey, England. It is an academic school in the University of Surrey The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, Surrey, England. The university ...

became a subsidiary of the university and relocated from Guildford town centre to the university campus. In March 2019 the university announced it would have to make £15m worth of cuts owing to the effects of

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAE ...

and anticipated cuts in tuition fees, and was offering redundancy to all staff. Following the announcement, ''

The Stag A stag is an adult male deer. Stag, Stags or STAG may also refer to: Arts and entertainment *Stag (Amy Ray album), ''Stag'' (Amy Ray album) (2001) *Stag (Melvins album), ''Stag'' (Melvins album) (1996) *Danny Stag, stage name of American hard ro ...

'', published an article titled 'Paygate: The Problem with Surrey's Vice-Chancellor', in which it compared Vice-Chancellor Max Lu's "performance-related bonuses" to the university's actual performance. Soon after, in May 2019, staff and students held a

no confidence vote A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

against the university management, with coverage largely focused on Lu's leadership. Of all the unionised staff who voted, 96% gave a vote of no confidence in "the Vice-Chancellor and Executive Board". The all-staff vote was approved by all three trade unions represented at the university, in a meeting held with the largest member attendance seen. Concerns raised by staff specifically include "Lu's language which suggests staff are a cost rather than an asset", according to the

University and College Union The University and College Union (UCU) is a British trade union in further and higher education representing over 120,000 academics and support staff. UCU is a vertical union representing casualised researchers and teaching staff, "permanent" ...

, while the Students' Union was specifically concerned about the closure of many arts courses at the university despite a "healthy" number of applications for them. Students who wanted a "no" vote hoped this result would make the university management "engage with staff and students and discuss changes".

Buildings and sites

Surrey Sports Park.jpg, Surrey Sports Park, opened in 2010 to replace the former university sport facilities. UniSSoM.jpg, The School of Management Building with the statue of

Alan Turing Alan Mathison Turing (; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist. Turing was highly influential in the development of theoretical c ...

in the middle distance. UniSManorPark.jpg, Student accommodation has been developed at Manor Park. Universität Surrey.jpg,

overlooks Stag Hill campus.

Main sites

The university began moving in 1968 to a new site on Stag Hill in Guildford, adjacent to Guildford Cathedral. Students continued to alternate between the original

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batte ...

campus and the new Guildford campus until 1970. A further allocated to the university remained undeveloped until 2005. The BBC's local radio station for Surrey and North-East Hampshire, BBC Surrey, has its studios on the campus. In addition the university has a student-run medium wave radio station, '' Stag Radio''. In September 2009, the

moved into a new purpose-built facility on the main Stag Hill campus as part of a strategic merger between the two organisations. The old Sports Centre was converted into the Ivy Arts Centre, a performing arts facility housing a 200-seat theatre and studio and workshop space. In October 2015, the £45m School of Veterinary Medicine was opened by the Queen accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh. The new Manor Park campus, designed as a car-free village, is from the Stag Hill campus and on the other side of the A3 trunk road. It combines residences for students and staff, buildings for research and teaching, and sporting facilities.

Sports facilities

In April 2010, a £36 million sports centre named the Surrey Sports Park opened to replace the former UniSport facilities on the Stag Hill Campus. Surrey Sports Park is situated close to the main University campus, on its Manor Park site. It houses a 50-metre swimming pool, three multi-sports halls, six squash courts, a modern gym, three artificial floodlit pitches, outdoor tennis courts, a climbing centre and a coffee shop, bar and restaurant. The 1,000 seat indoor arena is home to Surrey Scorchers basketball team (formerly Guildford Heat, Surrey Heat and Surrey United), who have been using the venue since 2010 following a move from their previous home at

Guildford Spectrum Guildford Spectrum is a leisure complex in Guildford, Surrey, England. Owned by Guildford Borough Council, it was opened on 23 February 1993 at a cost of £28 million. It is the home of ice hockey teams the Guildford Flames and the Guildford P ...

. Surrey Scorchers are one of the leading teams and former winners of the

British Basketball League The British Basketball League (BBL) is a men's professional basketball league in Great Britain and represents the highest level of play in the countries. The league is contested by 10 teams from England and Scotland. There are no clubs howev ...

, the country's top division. It also plays host to

Surrey Storm Surrey Storm is an English netball team based at the University of Surrey. Their senior team plays in the Netball Superleague. Between 2001 and 2005 they played in the Super Cup as London Hurricanes. After forming a partnership with Brunel Un ...

netball (formerly Brunel Hurricanes), who also made the move to the Sports Park from Guildford Spectrum in 2010. Surrey Storm are two-time Netball Superleague champions, securing their last title with a 55–53 win over

Manchester Thunder Manchester Thunder are an English netball team based in Manchester. Their senior team plays in the Netball Superleague. In 2005–06, Thunder were founding members of the league. They were Superleague champions in 2012, 2014, 2019 and 2022. B ...

at London's

Copper Box Arena The Copper Box Arena is a multi-sport venue built for the 2012 Summer Olympics, located in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, England. Previously known as the Handball Arena, it was renamed because, aside from handball, it hosted mo ...

in the 2016 Grand Final. It played host to all but four matches of the

2010 Women's Rugby World Cup The 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup was the sixth edition of the Women's Rugby World Cup and was held in England. The International Rugby Board Executive Committee selected the host union following a recommendation from the Rugby World Cup Limite ...

(the semi finals, third place play off and final were held at the Twickenham Stoop). It is also the official training facility for Harlequins rugby club, playing host to their Men's and Women's first teams plus Academy fixtures, and was used as a training base for the

2015 Rugby World Cup The 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was onl ...

, hosting a number of teams including South Africa, Scotland and Italy. 2012 saw Surrey Sports Park host a number of Olympic and Paralympic teams in preparation for the

London 2012 Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, including delegations from across the globe for swimming, table tennis, basketball and triathlon camps. In 2013, Surrey Sports Park hosted the annual Danone Nations Cup junior football tournament, with fixtures being played on the outdoor pitches through to the finals at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

. In 2017, Surrey Sports Park hosted the

Women's Lacrosse World Cup The World Lacrosse Women's World Championship (WLWWC), formerly known as the Women's Lacrosse World Cup (WLWC), the international championship of women's lacrosse, is held every four years. From its inception in 1982, it was sponsored by the go ...

, with over 25 nations competing for the world title in Guildford. All matches took place at the venue, including the finals, with a temporary outdoor stadium erected for the 10-day event.

Organisation

Structure

The academic activities of the university are divided into the following three faculties: ;Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences * School of Economics * School of Hospitality and Tourism Management * School of Law * School of Literature and Languages * Department of Music and Media * Department of Politics * Department of Sociology * Surrey Business School * Guildford School of Acting ;Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences * Department of Chemistry * Department of Chemical and Process Engineering * Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering * Department of Computer Science * Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering * Department of Mathematics * Department of Mechanical Engineering Sciences * Department of Physics * Centre for Environment and Sustainability ;Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences * School of Biosciences and Medicine * School of Health Sciences * School of Psychology * School of Veterinary Medicine

Governance

was installed as

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

, a ceremonial non-residential post, in 1977. The university is led at the executive level by the President and Vice-Chancellor, Max Lu. The key bodies in the university governance structure are the council, Senate and executive board. The council is the governing body of the university, responsible for the overall planning and management of the university and to ensure processes are in place to monitor financial and operational controls, and the university's performance against its strategy. The council is composed of no fewer than eleven external members, up to seven ex-officio members and up to three members elected by Senate. The Senate is the statutory body responsible for governing the university's academic matters, including teaching and research, and the regulation and direction of the education and conduct of students. The composition of the Senate is drawn from the academic staff of the university, together with a number of ex-officio, elected and co-opted members. The Chair of the Senate is the President and Vice-Chancellor of the university. The executive board is the senior advisory body that assists the President and Vice-Chancellor in discharging his executive authority to manage the operations and affairs of the university. It is responsible for advising on all matters relating to the university's strategy and for making recommendations to Council for approval. The above Bodies are supported by a series of Committees that oversee the activities of distinctive administrative and academic areas of the university. On 3 December 2015 it was announced that Max Lu would become the university's fifth President and Vice-Chancellor, taking up his appointment in April 2016. He succeeded Sir Christopher Snowden who moved to take up the Vice-Chancellorship at the

in September 2015. Sir Christopher joined Surrey on 1 July 2005. His predecessors are

Patrick J. Dowling Patrick Joseph A. Dowling, CBE FRS (born 1939) is an Irish engineer and educationalist. Early life He was born in Sandymount, Dublin and educated at University College Dublin, graduating in 1960 with a degree in civil engineering. Career ...

(1994–2005), Anthony Kelly (1975–1994) and Peter Leggett, the last Principal of Battersea College of Technology and the university's first Vice-Chancellor.

Educational links

Since its foundation, the university has fostered links with other educational bodies in the local community and region. The university currently validates undergraduate courses at Farnborough College of Technology and postgraduate research programmes at

St Mary's University, Twickenham , mottoeng = Show Thyself to be a Mother , established = 1850 (as St Mary's College)2014 (gained university status) , type = Public university , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic , endowment ...

for students entering prior to August 2014. In 2007, the university and

Dalian Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on ...

, China, launched the Surrey International Institute, DUFE. The SII at DUFE offers Surrey degrees and dual-degree programmes in China. A placement year link with

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universi ...

was initiated in 2009, where each institution places students from the other with companies located nearby, in the South East of England and the Carolinas, respectively. The university holds a number of formal links with institutions from around the world to share teaching and research and facilitate staff and student exchanges. *

University of São Paulo The University of São Paulo ( pt, Universidade de São Paulo, USP) is a public university in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is the largest Brazilian public university and the country's most prestigious educational institution, the best ...

, Brazil *

Seoul National University Seoul National University (SNU; ) is a national public research university located in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1946, Seoul National University is largely considered the most prestigious university in South Korea; it is one of the thr ...

, South Korea *

University of Central Florida The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university whose main campus is in unincorporated Orange County, Florida. UCF also has nine smaller regional campuses throughout central Florida. It is part of the State University ...

, USA *

University of Punjab The University of the Punjab (Urdu, pnb, ), also referred to as Punjab University, is a public, research, coeducational higher education institution located in Lahore, Pakistan. Punjab University is the oldest public university in Pakistan. ...

, USA * The

DUFE—Surrey International Institute The Surrey international Institute () is an academic partnership between the Dongbei University of Finance and Economics (DUFE) in Dalian, and the University of Surrey in the United Kingdom. The University of Surrey, Guildford, is one of the UK's ...

(东北财经大学萨里国际学院) is an academic partnership with the

, China *

University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public university, public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest Higher education in Hong Kong, tertia ...

Nanyang Technological University The Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is a national research university in Singapore. It is the second oldest autonomous university in the country and is considered as one of the most prestigious universities in the world by various in ...

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigge ...

Modul University Vienna Modul University Vienna (short ''MU Vienna'') is a private university established in 2007 in Vienna, Austria, that focuses on social and economic development. In particular, it focuses on the areas of tourism, new media information technology, s ...

, Austria

Academic profile

Research

The university conducts extensive research on small satellites, with its Surrey Space Centre and spin-off commercial company,

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd, or SSTL, is a company involved in the manufacture and operation of small satellites. A spin-off company of the University of Surrey, it is presently wholly owned by Airbus Defence and Space. The company began ou ...

. In the 2001

Research Assessment Exercise The Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) was an exercise undertaken approximately every five years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils ( HEFCE, SHEFC, HEFCW, DELNI) to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British h ...

, the University of Surrey received a 5* rating in the categories of "

Sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...

", "Other Studies and Professions Allied to Medicine", and "Electrical and

Electronic Engineering Electronics engineering is a sub-discipline of electrical engineering which emerged in the early 20th century and is distinguished by the additional use of active components such as semiconductor devices to amplify and control electric current ...

" and a 5* rating in the categories of "

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

", "

Physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which rel ...

", "Applied Mathematics", "Statistics and Operational Research", "European Studies" and "Russian, Slavonic and East European Languages". The 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey opened in September 2015, for the purpose of research for the development of the first worldwide 5G network. It has gained over £40m support from international telecommunications companies including

Aeroflex Aeroflex Inc. was an American company which produced test equipment, RF and microwave integrated circuits, components and systems used for wireless communications. Its headquarters were located in Plainview, New York. In May 2014, Aeroflex was ...

, MYCOM OSI,

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

BT Group BT Group plc ( trading as BT and formerly British Telecom) is a British multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered in London, England. It has operations in around 180 countries and is the largest provider of fixed-line, bro ...

EE (telecommunications company) EE is a British national mobile network operator and internet service provider, which is a brand within the BT Group. EE is the second-largest mobile network operator in the United Kingdom, with 26.1 million subscribers as of September ...

Fujitsu is a Japanese multinational information and communications technology equipment and services corporation, established in 1935 and headquartered in Tokyo. Fujitsu is the world's sixth-largest IT services provider by annual revenue, and the la ...

Laboratories of Europe,

Huawei Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. ( ; ) is a Chinese multinational technology corporation headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. It designs, develops, produces and sells telecommunications equipment, consumer electronics and various smart ...

Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...

Rohde & Schwarz Rohde & Schwarz GmbH & Co KG (, ) is an international electronics group specializing in the fields of electronic test equipment, broadcast & media, cybersecurity, radiomonitoring and radiolocation, and radiocommunication. The company provides p ...

Samsung The Samsung Group (or simply Samsung) ( ko, 삼성 ) is a South Korean multinational manufacturing conglomerate headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous affiliated businesses, most of them united under the ...

, Telefonica and

Vodafone Vodafone Group Public limited company, plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Telephone company, telecommunications company. Its registered office and Headquarters, global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It ...

– and a further £11.6m from the

Higher Education Funding Council for England The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was responsible for the distribution of funding for higher education to universities and further education colleges in Engl ...

(HEFCE). In addition, the Surrey Research Park is a low density development which is owned and developed by the university, providing large landscaped areas with water features and facilities for over 110 companies engaged in a broad spectrum of research, development and design activities. The university generates the third highest endowment income out of all UK universities "reflecting its commercially-orientated heritage."

Admissions

New students entering the university in 2015 had the 14th highest UCAS Points in the UK at 438 points (the equivalent of AAB at A Level and BB at AS Level). According to the 2017 ''Times'' and ''Sunday Times'' Good University Guide, approximately 8% of Surrey's undergraduates come from independent schools. For the 2016–17 academic year, the university has a higher proportion of female than male students with a male to female ratio of 45:55 in the population. The undergraduate student body is composed of 73% from the UK, 11% from the EU and 16% from outside of the EU. More students graduate from Surrey with a First Class Honours degree (44.4%) than with a 2:1 degree (40.9%), placing it second amongst mainstream British universities by the proportion of First Class degrees awarded.

Reputation and rankings

The university has consistently been in the top 60 of the three main ranking compilations of

universities in the United Kingdom Universities in the United Kingdom have generally been instituted by royal charter, papal bull, Act of Parliament, or an instrument of government under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 or the Higher Education and Research Act 2017. Deg ...

, placing it 39th in ''The Times and Sunday Times'', 34th in ''The Good University Guide'' and the ''Complete University Guide'', and 54th in ''The Guardian University Guide'' for 2021. International rankings have seen a steady improvement over the past five years. Subjects ranked in the top 20 include Hospitality & Leisure Management and Petroleum engineering. The university was ranked seventh in the ''Times Higher Education'' Student Experience Survey 2018. In 2019, Surrey was ranked 161-170th in the QS World Employability Rankings, and first in the UK and 12th in the world for research partnerships with employers . In 1991 the university was granted the Queen's Award for Export Achievement, and in 1996 was awarded a

for Higher & Further Education in recognition of the university's outstanding achievement in satellite engineering and communications, teaching and research by the Centre for Satellite Engineering Research and associated companies. In 1998,

was awarded the Queen's Award for Technological Achievement, presented in person by the Queen on her second visit to the university, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh and the

Duke of Kent Duke of Kent is a title that has been created several times in the peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, most recently as a royal dukedom for the fourth son of King George V. Since 1942, the title has been held by Prince Edw ...

, chancellor of the university. The university was awarded a 2002

for Higher & Further Education for its research and development on

optoelectronic devices Optoelectronics (or optronics) is the study and application of electronic devices and systems that find, detect and control light, usually considered a sub-field of photonics. In this context, ''light'' often includes invisible forms of radiatio ...

and

ion beam An ion beam is a type of charged particle beam consisting of ions. Ion beams have many uses in electronics manufacturing (principally ion implantation) and other industries. A variety of ion beam sources exists, some derived from the mercu ...

applications. In July 2007, the university was awarded Fairtrade University status by the

Fairtrade Foundation A fair trade certification is a product certification within the market-based movement fair trade. The most widely used fair trade certification is FLO International's, the International Fairtrade Certification Mark, used in Europe, Africa, ...

. The university won a 2011

for Higher & Further Education for its research into the fields of safe water and sanitation. In 2013, the

Department of the university won the 2013 Elektra Award University Department of the Year, and judged to be the most innovative and successful in Europe. In 2016 the university won ''The Sunday Times'' University of the Year award. The university won a 2017 Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher & Further Education for "Leading research and teaching in food and nutrition informing public policy on diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis and other dietary related issues".

Notable academics and alumni

Notable alumni

File:Prof Jim Al-Khalili - EdSciFest 2014 (10).JPG, Theoretical physicist

Jim Al-Khalili Jameel Sadik "Jim" Al-Khalili ( ar, جميل صادق الخليلي; born 20 September 1962) is an Iraqi-British theoretical physicist, author and broadcaster. He is professor of theoretical physics and chair in the public engagement in scien ...

(BSc; PhD) File:AmeenahGurib1.jpg, President of Mauritius Ameenah Gurib (BSc) File:Liz McInnes MP.jpg, Former Labour Member of Parliament

Liz McInnes Elizabeth Anne McInnes (born 30 March 1959) is a British politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Heywood and Middleton from 2014 to 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she was a Shadow Minister for Foreign and Commonwealth Aff ...

(MSc) File:Official portrait of Lord O'Neill of Gatley crop 2.jpg, Conservative peer

Jim O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Gatley Terence James O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Gatley (born 17 March 1957) is a British economist best known for coining BRICs, the acronym that stands for Brazil, Russia, India, and China—the four once rapidly developing countries that were thought ...

(PhD, 1982) File:Linda Papadopoulos.jpg, Psychologist Linda Papadopoulos (MSc) File:John A Pickett.jpg, Wolf Prize in Agriculture laureate John Pickett (BSc, 1967; PhD, 1971) File:Swinburne,_Kay-2652.jpg, Former Conservative Member of the European Parliament

Kay Swinburne Jacqueline Kay Swinburne (''née'' Jones) (born 8 June 1967) is a Welsh Conservative politician who was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Wales between 2009 and 2019. Background Born and raised in West Wales and a fluent Welsh-speak ...

(MBA) File:Marion Williams (cropped).jpg, Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados

Marion Vernese Williams Marion Vernese Williams GCM, is a Barbadian economist, banker, accountant and diplomat. She is a recipient of the Gold Crown of Merit. Early life and education Williams was born Marion Mottley, the daughter of two Barbadian teachers, Rudolph ...

(PhD) File:Arief Yahya CEO Telkom.JPG, Indonesian Cabinet Minister Arief Yahya File:George_Young_Minister.jpg, Conservative peer

George Young, Baron Young of Cookham George Samuel Knatchbull Young, Baron Young of Cookham, (born 16 July 1941), known as Sir George Young, 6th Baronet, from 1960 to 2015, is a British Conservative Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1974 to 2015, ha ...

(MPhil)

Notable academics

Academics to work at the university include

Alf Adams Alfred ("Alf") Rodney Adams, FRS (born 1939) is a British physicist who invented the strained-layer quantum-well laser. Most modern homes will have several of these devices in their homes in all types of electronic equipment. He served as a D ...

, pioneer of the

strained quantum-well laser A strained quantum well laser is a type of quantum-well laser, which was invented by Professor Alf Adams at the University of Surrey in 1986. The laser is distinctive for producing a more concentrated beam than other quantum well lasers, making it ...

;

, the nuclear physicist, author and broadcaster; Aleks Krotoski, the technology journalist and broadcaster; Sir Martin Sweeting, founder of

;

Nigel Gilbert Geoffrey Nigel Gilbert (born 21 March 1950) is a British sociologist and a pioneer in the use of agent-based models in the social sciences. He is the founder and director of the ''Centre for Research in Social Simulation'' (University of Surre ...

, the sociologist pioneer in the use of

agent-based model An agent-based model (ABM) is a computational model for simulating the actions and interactions of autonomous agents (both individual or collective entities such as organizations or groups) in order to understand the behavior of a system and what ...

s in the social sciences;, Joao Santos Silva, who has made fundamental contributions to the

gravity model of trade The gravity model of international trade in international economics is a model that, in its traditional form, predicts bilateral trade flows based on the economic sizes and distance between two units. Research shows that there is "overwhelming ev ...

, and Martyn Barrett, who led the development of the Council of Europe's Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture and is a lead expert for the Council of Europe's Education Policy Advisers Network. The current Director of the university's Advanced Technology Institute, Ravi Silva, is known for his work in

Nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...

. In 2003, he was awarded the

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theor ...

Silver Medal and the Javed Husain Prize by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

for contributions to electronic devices. The 2011

Clifford Paterson Lecture The Clifford Paterson Lecture is a prize lecture of the Royal Society now given biennially on an engineering topic. A £500 gift is given to the lecturer. The lectures, which honour Clifford Copland Paterson, founder-director of the GEC Wembley Res ...

was given by Silva because of his outstanding contributions to basic science and engineering in the field of carbon nanoscience and nanotechnology. The lecture is given annually on any aspect of engineering. The

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...

Company Limited endowed the lecture in 1975 in honour of Clifford Paterson who undertook the creation of the GEC Research Laboratories in 1919. Other notable academics who have delivered the lecture include

Frank Kelly Francis Kelly (28 December 1938 – 28 February 2016) was an Irish actor, singer and writer, whose career covered television, radio, theatre, music, screenwriting and film. He is best remembered for playing Father Jack Hackett in the Channel 4 ...

and

Richard Friend Sir Richard Henry Friend (born 18 January 1953) is a British physicist who was the Cavendish Professor of Physics at the University of Cambridge from 1995 until 2020 and is Tan Chin Tuan Centennial Professor at the National University of Singap ...

, both from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. Surrey's ''Centre for Environment and Sustainability'' (established by Roland Clift in 1992 as the ''Centre for Environmental Strategy'') gained attention with the publication of ''

Prosperity Without Growth ''Prosperity Without Growth'' is a book by author and economist Tim Jackson. It was originally released as a report by the Sustainable Development Commission. The study rapidly became the most downloaded report in the Commission's nine-year ...

'' in 2009 by University of Surrey academic Tim Jackson, Professor of Sustainable Development and Director of the ESRC Research Group on Lifestyles, Values and Environment.Tim Jackson
at the ''University of Surrey'' , last visited: 19 February 2013 In October 2018 the University of Surrey reported that writer and filmmaker

Iain Sinclair Iain Sinclair FRSL (born 11 June 1943) is a writer and filmmaker. Much of his work is rooted in London, recently within the influences of psychogeography. Biography Education Sinclair was born in Cardiff in 1943. From 1956 to 1961, he was educa ...

had been appointed Distinguished Writer in Residence with their School of Literature and Languages. On 20 May 2009, Andreas Mogensen, a researcher at the Surrey Space Centre, was announced as a new member of the

European Astronaut Corps The European Astronaut Corps is a unit of the European Space Agency (ESA) that selects, trains, and provides astronauts as crew members on U.S. and Russian space missions. The corps has 13 active members, able to serve on the International Space St ...

, part of the

European Space Agency , owners = , headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France , coordinates = , spaceport = Guiana Space Centre , seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png , seal_size = 130px , image = Views in the Main Control Room (120 ...

, thereby becoming the first

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

. In February 2011, terrorism and Northern Ireland expert Marie Breen Smyth, joined the politics department, as chair in International Relations. In March 2005, she had given evidence to the House of Commons Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Inquiry into dealing with Northern Ireland's past. Another notable academic was the late translation studies scholar Peter Newmark.

Student life

Students' Union

The University of Surrey Students' Union is the sole representative body of Surrey students. They represent students on academic and welfare issues, as well as administering sports clubs and societies. The Union was incorporated as a non-profit charity in July 2011, so any takings from the Union's four commercial outlets are invested in supporting the membership side of the business. Four zones exist within the organisation representing Support, Voice, Community and Activity, with a sabbatical officer managing each one, as well as a president who is a member of the University Council. The Students' Union also organise events on a weekly basis which are held at their venues including Rubix and The Basement for students to take part in. In 2017 the university was specifically identified in the report by the Free Speech University Rankings as having "unfamiliar" restrictions on free speech because of a collection of its union byelaws regarding university mascot Steve the Stag: the mascot is not allowed to be depicted by students to be drinking, smoking or, as the report and subsequent articles directly quote, "involved in lewd acts". Subsequent editions of the Students' Union Byelaws contained a further explanatory note for this.

Media

StagTV is the television station run by students at the University of Surrey. It is primarily run from offices on the main Stag Hill campus and it also creates content for the Students' Union, through which it is a constituted group, but has editorial independence. Other student media on campus include Stag Radio and ''

''.

References

External links

*
University of Surrey Students' Union
– official website
Guildford School of Acting
– official website
Brief History
a brief history of the University of Surrey. {{DEFAULTSORT:Surrey, University Of Educational institutions established in 1891 1891 establishments in England Universities UK