University of Sussex

Overview

The University of Sussex was founded in 1961 making it a fairly new teaching establishment. However, in that time it’s built a strong reputation and was ranked within the top 50 UK unis in the Complete University Guide’s 2024 league standings.

The uni is located in Falmer which is on the outskirts of Brighton. You’ll find a safe campus community with specialist facilities and various shops, bars and cafes on-site. Regular busses go between the campus and city centre and the journey takes between 20 and 30 minutes depending on traffic. You can also take the train from Falmer Station to Brighton and Lewes.

The city of Brighton is a youthful, student-friendly place with a lot going on throughout the year, located on the south coast. There’s a handful of independent shops, quirky eateries, bars and art houses. You can walk down cobbled streets lined with colourful street art and find street markets, and there’s the beach which is lined with bars and shops. All of this, plus music venues and nightclubs leads to a busy and lively nightlife scene.

It's also a great place to be if you want to get out into nature, as you’ve got access to loads of coastal walks and green spaces within the nearby South Downs national park.

It’s a well-connected city, as you’re able to get to London quickly by train, also giving good access to London Gatwick and Heathrow airports. 

There are hundreds of undergraduate courses to choose from at the University of Sussex, most of which are studied full-time.

Typically, full-time undergraduate degrees at Sussex take three years to study, but a number of courses include placement years, study abroad options or an integrated master’s year. These courses usually take four or five years to complete.

Most degrees include optional modules, as well as core modules, meaning you can study the degree topics you’re most interested in. Also, most single-honours courses offer the chance to do electives, which are modules from a subject area that’s different to your core course. You can also do pathways, which are a combination of electives from a single subject area that’s different from your main subject.

It's also possible to combine two or three subjects within an undergraduate degree in what’s called a combined honours degree. For example, it’s fairly common to study a humanities course, like history, alongside a language, such as French or Spanish.

If you don’t have the required grades for the course you want to do, or you’re not sure what subject to specialise in, you can often do a Foundation Year before your first year.

Most successful Sussex applicants have 3 A-levels (or equivalent). You’ll also be expected to show a broad educational background in numeracy and the English language, which can be demonstrated with a good range of GCSE grades.

As well as A-levels, Sussex accepts qualifications like BTECs, Scottish/Advanced Highers and the International Baccalaureate. You can find each degree programme’s specific entry requirements online on the uni’s course search pages, but we’ve also given you an idea here of what you’ll need to get to study certain subjects at Sussex.

To get onto a course in business, finance or accounting, for instance, you’ll probably be asked for A-levels ranging from AAB–CCC (or equivalent qualification), and to study a degree in arts & design you’ll need ABB–CCC (or equivalent qualification). For a maths or science degree, you’ll likely be asked for A-levels ranging from A*AA–CCC (or equivalent qualification).

It should be noted that entry requirements can change so you should always confirm these with the university before applying. A number of the courses that ask for lower grades involve doing a Foundation Year before first year.

At Sussex there are uni accommodation options both on and off-campus, as well as private rental options should you not wish to stay in halls of residence. New full-time undergraduate students who meet the relevant criteria and apply before the deadline are guaranteed a room in uni accommodation.

Most first-year accommodation is on-campus and you can choose between nine housing options, with both en suite and shared bathroom facilities available. Prices on-campus range between around £116 and £176 per week.

Off-campus accommodations are based in the city of Brighton and other nearby towns. Prices off-campus range from around £128 to £142 per week.

All uni-run accommodation is on a self-catered basis and an increase in investment into new uni accommodation over recent years has ensured the standard of accommodation is high.

All rooms have WiFi and there are laundry facilities that can be used. The university’s housing services team is on hand to give assistance and can also help students find private rented accommodation.

The University of Sussex has a dedicated careers centre that’s there to help you with all things to do with your job prospects, like thinking about what industry to go into, finding job opportunities and even starting your own business. The service is available to you throughout your time at Sussex and for three years after you graduate.

You’ll be able to go to a range of events, workshops and fairs, several of which take place online. The workshops are a great opportunity to learn about different career sectors and work on important employability skills to improve your job prospects. Careers fairs will allow you to meet potential employers and start to build your professional network.

You’ll also be able to book one-to-one appointments with careers advisers. These can be in-person, by telephone or by Zoom. You can use these appointments to go over your CV, talk about interview technique or discuss your general career path, as well as all manner of other career-related things.

The uni’s Career Lab service includes paid internships in the UK or abroad, allowing you to get real work experience and putting you in contact with possible future employers. All undergraduates are able to include a professional or industrial placement into their degree should they wish.

The University of Sussex has a range of additional funding opportunities in the form of scholarships and bursaries. These are to give financial support to students who meet certain criteria. Scholarships are usually awarded based on academic and extra-curricular merit, while bursaries are based more on personal circumstances. Scholarships and bursaries don’t need to be repaid.

Funding for the 2021/22 academic year included the Article 26 Scholarship which provided two scholarships worth a full tuition fee waiver, as well as £11,500 in maintenance per year for migrants who studied a degree at Sussex.

Additionally, the Chancellor’s International Business School Scholarships provided £5,000 per year for international applicants to the uni’s Business School.

The Climate Leaders Scholarship was for environmental influencers who were bringing about real-world behaviour change and was worth £3,000 per year to at least five new students.

Also, the Sussex Bursary was automatically awarded to students from lower-income households for each year of study.

You can find out about all the scholarships and bursaries available, as well as their eligibility criteria, by visiting the uni’s online funding pages.