University of Surrey

Battersea Polytechnic Institute

The School of Management Building, with the statue of Alan Turing in the middle distance

Part of the new development of student accommodation at Manor Park

The University of Surrey was preceded by the Battersea Polytechnic Institute which was founded in 1891 and admitted its first students in 1894. Its aims were to provide greater access to further and higher education for some of the "poorer inhabitants" of London.

In 1901, evening classes consisted of some of the following; Mechanical Engineering and Building, Electrical Engineering, Chemical and other Trades, Physics and Natural Science, Maths, Languages, and Commercial subjects, Music. Special classes for Women in Domestic Economy subjects. Day Classes in Art, Science, Women's subjects and Gymnastics. Classes in preparation for University and Professional Examinations. Also. Science day School for Boys and Girls, Commercial School for Girls, Training School for Domestic Economy and Training for Teachers.

The Institute focused on science and technology subjects, and from about 1920 taught some classes for University of London students.^[10] The Institute awarded University of London external degrees.^[11]

Battersea College of Technology

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 Robbins Report of 1963 proposed that the Colleges of Advanced Technology, including Battersea, should expand and become degree-awarding universities.^[10]

In 1965, the university-designate acquired a greenfield site in Guildford from Guildford Cathedral, Guildford Borough Council and the Onslow Village Trust.

University

The Surrey Scholar in Guildford

On 9 September 1966 the University of Surrey was established by Royal Charter and by 1970 the move from Battersea to Guildford was complete.^[10] On the day before the installation ceremony of the first Chancellor of the University of Surrey, the Aberfan disaster occurred. Alfred Robens, Baron Robens of Woldingham who was appointed the first Chancellor, was also the chairman of the National Coal Board, 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.^[12][13]

Early visitors to the new campus were Led Zeppelin, who performed their very first gig at the university on 25 October 1968.^[14]

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 (formerly Associated Examining Board) moved from Aldershot 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^[6] and by a Service of Thanksgiving in Guildford Cathedral attended by HM The Queen in March 1992.

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 of Her Majesty The Queen and as a gift to the people of Guildford. The Surrey Scholar is located 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.^[10]

In 2007, the university saw a major increase in overall applications by 39% compared with the previous year.^[15] This was followed by a further increase in applications of 12% in 2008.^[16]

In October 2008, the university lost out to Royal Holloway in a bid to merge with London medical institute St George's, University of London.^[17]

From September 2009, the Guildford School of Acting became a subsidiary of the university and relocated from Guildford town centre to the university campus.

Surrey Sports Park

Indoor arena

In April 2010, a £35 million new sports centre named the Surrey Sports Park opened.^[24]

The Surrey Sports Park is situated close to the main university campus on its Manor Park site. It houses a 50-metre Olympic-size swimming pool, three multi-sports halls, a squash centre, 700 square metres of fitness facilities, two artificial floodlit pitches, outdoor and indoor tennis courts, four real tennis courts and a climbing centre.^[25]

The 1,000 seat indoor arena is home to Surrey Scorchers basketball team, who have been using the venue since 2010 following a move from their previous home at the Guildford Spectrum. Heat are one of the leading teams and former winners of the British Basketball League, the country's top division.

It played host to all but 4 matches of the 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup (the semi finals, 3rd place play off and final were held at the Twickenham Stoop). It is also the official training facility for Harlequins rugby club, with plans to add a private gym for the club in addition to the already available facilities.

It will also be the home ground of UniS Old Boys F.C., a football team for alumni of the university, which competes in the Surrey County Intermediate League (Western), at the 12th level of the English football league system.^[26]

Surrey University participates in an annual sports festival called the Varsity Games. The university competes against other institutions such as Royal Holloway, University of London and Kingston University. Over the years, there has been stiff competition between Surrey and Kingston for the Varsity Cup, that has made both universities arch-rivals at the Games.^[27]

Governance

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent was installed as Chancellor, a ceremonial non-residential post, in 1977. The university is led at the executive level by the President and Vice-Chancellor, as of 2017 Max Lu. The key bodies in the university governance structure are the Council, Senate and Executive Board.^[28] 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.^[29]

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.^[30]

The Executive Board is the senior advisory body which 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.^[31]

The above Bodies are supported by a series of Committees which oversee the activities of distinctive administrative and academic areas of the University.^[30]

Research

The university conducts extensive research on small satellites, with its Surrey Space Centre and spin-off commercial company, Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. In the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise, the University of Surrey received a 5* rating in the categories of "Sociology", "Other Studies and Professions Allied to Medicine", and "Electrical and Electronic Engineering" and a 5 rating in the categories of "Psychology", "Physics", "Applied Mathematics", "Statistics and Operational Research", "European Studies", and "Russian, Slavonic and East European Languages".^[37]

The new 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey has gained over £40m support from international telecommunications companies including Aeroflex, MYCOM OSI, BBC, BT Group, EE (telecommunications company), Fujitsu Laboratories of Europe, Huawei, Ofcom, Rohde & Schwarz, Samsung, Telefonica and Vodafone – and a further £11.6m from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).

In addition, the Surrey Research Park is a 28 ha (69-acre) 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."^[38]

Awards

In 1991 the university was granted the Queen's Award for Export Achievement,^[10] and in 1996 it was awarded the Queen's Anniversary Prize 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 its associated companies.^[39] In 1998 Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) was awarded the Queen's Award for Technological Achievement. This was presented in person by the Queen on her second visit to the university, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh and The Duke of Kent, Chancellor of the University.^[40]

More recently the university was awarded the 2002 Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher & Further Education, this time for its research and development on optoelectronic devices and ion beam applications.^[39] The university has a high number of staff who are academicians of the learned societies: 10 Fellows of the Royal Society, 21 Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering, one Fellow of the British Academy and 6 Fellows of the Academy of Social Sciences.^[9]

In July 2007, the university was awarded Fairtrade University status by the Fairtrade Foundation.^[41]

In 2011, the university won the 2011 Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher & Further Education, for its research into the fields of safe water and sanitation.^[42]

In 2013, the Electronic Engineering Department of the university won the 2013 Elektra Award University Department of the Year,^[43] and judged to be the most innovative and successful in Europe.^[44]

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).^[49] According to the 2017 Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide, approximately 8% of Surrey's undergraduates come from independent schools.^[50]

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.^[51] 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.^[52]

Reputation and rankings

In The Sunday Times 10-year (1998–2007) average ranking of British universities based on consistent league table performance, Surrey was ranked 35th overall in the UK.^[60] For 2018/19, it places between 19th and 21st in the three main ranking compilations of universities in the United Kingdom. According to the figures revealed by the Higher Education Statistics Agency 2013/14, the University of Surrey has the fourth highest percentage of graduates entering employment and/or further study within six months of graduation at 96.9% (behind Lancaster University, Robert Gordon University and Arts University Bournemouth).^[61]

Subjects ranked in the top 10 include Hospitality & Tourism, Business & Management, Electronic Engineering, Food Science, Sociology, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Animal Science, English Literature, Creative Writing, Modern Languages and Psychology.^[62]

Educational links

Since its foundation, the university has fostered links with other educational bodies in the local community and region. For example, in recent years it has validated courses at and subsequently accredited Saint Mary's College (now an independent institution called St Mary's University College, Twickenham),^[63] Wimbledon School of Art,^[64] and Farnborough College of Technology.^[65] The university currently validates courses at North East Surrey College of Technology (NESCOT), Guildford School of Acting, Guildford College of Further & Higher Education, King Edward VII Hospital Department of Staff Development, The Nuclear Department at HMS Sultan, St John's Seminary, Southern Theological Education & Training Scheme (STETS), the Pre-Retirement Association and SHL (UK) Ltd.^[66]

In 1998, as a result of the continuing 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.^[67] In June 2004, the Privy Council granted Roehampton an independent university title, and it became Roehampton University from 1 August 2004. This move ended the federal partnership between the two institutions, although collaboration between the two is being maintained.^[68]

In 2007, the university and Dongbei University of Finance and Economics in Dalian, China, launched the Surrey International Institute, DUFE.^[69] The SII at DUFE offers Surrey degrees and dual-degree programmes in China.^[7] A placement year link with North Carolina State University is currently being 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.^[70]

International partners

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.^[71]

• University of São Paulo, Brazil
• Seoul National University, South Korea
• University of Central Florida, USA
•  Pakistan University of Punjab
• North Carolina State University, USA
• The DUFE—Surrey International Institute (东北财经大学萨里国际学院) is an academic partnership with the Dongbei University of Finance and Economics in Dalian, China
• University of Hong Kong
• Nanyang Technological University
• National Autonomous University of Mexico
• MODUL University Vienna, Austria^[72]

Notable alumni

• 
  Theoretical physicist Jim Al-Khalili (BSc; PhD)
• 
  President of Mauritius Ameenah Gurib (BSc)
• 
  Labour Member of Parliament Liz McInnes (MSc)
• 
  Conservative peer Jim O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Gatley (PhD, 1982)
• 
  Psychologist Linda Papadopoulos (MSc)
• 
  Wolf Prize in Agriculture laureate John Pickett (BSc, 1967; PhD, 1971)
• 
  Conservative Member of the European Parliament Kay Swinburne (MBA)
• 
  Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados Marion Vernese Williams (PhD)
• 
  Indonesian Cabinet Minister Arief Yahya
• 
  Conservative peer George Young, Baron Young of Cookham (MPhil)

Notable academics

Academics to work at the university include Alf Adams, pioneer of the strained quantum-well laser;^[73] Jim Al-Khalili, the nuclear physicist, author and broadcaster;^[74] Aleks Krotoski, the technology journalist and broadcaster;^[75] Sir Martin Sweeting, founder of Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd;^[73] and Nigel Gilbert, the sociologist pioneer in the use of agent-based models in the social sciences.^[76]

In 1971, Daphne Jackson became the first female UK Professor of Physics.

On 20 May 2009, Andreas Mogensen, a researcher at the Surrey Space Centre, was announced as a new member of the European Astronaut Corps, part of the European Space Agency and in doing so, will become the first Danish astronaut.^[77]

In February 2011, terrorism and Northern Ireland expert Marie Breen Smyth, joined the Politics department, as Chair in International Relations.^[78] In March 2005, Breen-Smyth, (then Smyth) gave evidence to the House of Commons Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Inquiry into Dealing with Northern Ireland's past.^[79] Another notable academic was the late translation studies scholar Peter Newmark.^[80]

One notable academic, who is known for his work in Nanotechnology, is Ravi Silva. Ravi Silva is the current Director of the Advanced Technology Institute at the university. In 2003, he was awarded the Albert Einstein Silver Medal and the Javed Husain Prize by UNESCO for contributions to electronic devices. The 2011 Clifford Paterson Lecture was given by Silva for 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.^[81] The General Electric Company Limited endowed the lecture in 1975 in honour of Clifford Paterson who undertook the creation of the GEC Research Laboratories in 1919.^[82] Other notable academics who have delivered the lecture include Frank Kelly and Richard Friend, both from the University of Cambridge.

Surrey's Centre for Environmental Strategy (established by Roland Clift in 1992) gained a lot of attention with the publication of Prosperity Without Growth by University of Surrey academic Tim Jackson, Professor of Sustainable Development and Director of the ESRC Research Group on Lifestyles, Values and Environment.^[83]

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.

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 constitued group, but has editorial independence. Other student media on campus include Stag Radio and The Stag.^[84]

The Stag is a monthly student magazine. Originally established as a newspaper under the name Bare Facts in 1967. The newspaper was re-branded as The Stag in 2008.