The university conducts research on small satellites[clarification needed] and has a high number of staff who are members of learned societies. The university has recently expanded into China by launching the Surrey International Institute with Dongbei University of Finance and Economics.
The university's main campus is located on Stag Hill close to the centre of Guildford and adjacent to Guildford Cathedral. A second campus, at Manor Park, is located a short distance away and has been developed to expand upon existing accommodation, academic buildings and sporting facilities.
The university is a major centre for satellite and mobile communications research. In March 2014, the British Prime Minister David Cameron announced a partnership between the University of Surrey, King's College London and the University of Dresden for the development of 5G technology. The university is a member of the Association of MBAs, the European University Association and Association of Commonwealth Universities. The University is ranked high consistently by The Times, the Guardian and the Sunday Times. According to the figures revealed by the Higher Education Statistics Agency in 2014, the University of Surrey has the highest graduate employment rates recorded at 96.9%, higher than the University of Oxford (92.6%), the University of Cambridge (95.2%) and King's College London (94.6%).
The university has 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.
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Battersea Polytechnic Institute
1.2 Battersea College of Technology
1.3 University
1.4 Governance
2 Campus
2.1 Surrey Sports Park
3 Organisation
4 Academic profile
4.1 Research
4.2 Centre for Communication Systems Research
4.3 Awards
4.4 Rankings
4.5 Educational links
4.6 International partners
5 Notable academics and alumni
5.1 Notable alumni
5.2 Notable academics
6 Student life
6.1 Students' Union
7 References
8 External links
History[edit]
Battersea Polytechnic Institute[edit]
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. The Institute awarded University of London external degrees.
Battersea College of Technology[edit]
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.
In 1965, the university-designate acquired a greenfield site in Guildford from Guildford Cathedral, Guildford Borough Council and the Onslow Village Trust.
One notorious alumni was Lord Haw-Haw
University[edit]
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.
Early visitors to the new campus were Led Zeppelin, who performed their very first gig at the university on 15 October 1968.
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 ad 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 and by a Service of Thanksgiving in Guildford Cathedral attended by HM The Queen in March 1992.
The university celebrated its 35th anniversary year 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.
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 in a bid to merge with London medical institute St George's, University of London.
From September 2009, the Guildford School of Acting became a subsidiary of the university and relocated from Guildford town centre to the university campus.
Governance[edit]
On 1 July 2005, Christopher Snowden became Surrey's fourth Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive. Like his predecessors Dowling and Kelly, Snowden is a fellow of the Royal Society.
Campus[edit]
The main Stag Hill Campus
The university moved in 1968 to a new 30 ha (74-acre) site on Stag Hill in Guildford, adjacent to Guildford Cathedral. A further 90 ha (222 acres) allocated to the university remained undeveloped until 2005. The new Manor Park campus, designed as a car-free village, is 1.6 kilometres (1 mi) 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.
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 November 2007, the university was given planning permission to build the Surrey Multifaith Centre. This will be the first building in Britain to have a Synagogue, Muslim Prayer Hall, Gurdwara and Chapel built separately under one roof.
On 8 July 2009, a temporary Amigo convenience store opened in the BB Building on the campus, replacing the previous One Stop store which was situated near the library. The new store is operated by the Compass Group, and will see the University enjoy 'guaranteed rental income and share of turnover'. The project is part of wider work which saw a new building, housing a larger shop and library extension, which opened on the One Stop site in April 2011.
In September 2009, the Guildford School of Acting 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 has been converted into the Ivy Arts Centre, a performing arts facility housing a 200-seat theatre and studio and workshop space.
A £35 million research centre for the development of the first worldwide 5G network is scheduled to open on February 2015.
Surrey Sports Park[edit]
Indoor arena
In April 2010, a £35 million new sports centre named the Surrey Sports Park opened.
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.
The 1,000 seat indoor arena is home to Guildford Heat 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.
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.
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