University Of Sussex

mediocre uni - mediocre administration - manipulative supervisors and academics have a love affair with back stabbing students

Claims to be a top 25 university but the Wi-Fi is far from top anything, you must connect through an over complicated and convoluted website that's so frustrating you end up just buying data. Paying 11 grand a year with non working Wi-Fi is a waste of money, this is not 1999 anymore it's 2017, get with the times or get left behind.

The teaching staff are great. The admin staff are terrible and do not care about the students at all!

The university is not as great as it claims to be. Yes, there are some great teachers there and really nice staff within the university's professional services department, but overall, is not great. I have both studied and worked there. The library is great and staff very useful. Coffee shops and catering facilities on campus are also good, however, some staff (both academic and not academic) are very unapproachable. During my time at this uni, I've met teachers who did not want to listen to my arguments regarding my opinions in my assignment (essays). It almost seemed as my coursework needed to represent their values and opinions on a particular matter.

Also, I am still deeply shocked by the case of Dr Lee Salter and the University's HR inappropriate action when they failed to protect the female student (and other students).

From an ex-employee's view, I can only say that the University's HR department wasn't as supportive and professional as it should be.

So unprofessional a Ph.D. programme as not to be believed! Acres of information, referees and all are required. Then what you will get is a form rejection email for all of one's hard work if you are not successful in convincing their nameless staff of the validity of your thesis proposal. No reasons given nor even more importantly guidance in how to correct any deficiencies in one's proposal, whatsoever.

The English department at this university takes in MA applicants with zero background in cultural theory, philosophy, politics. I had no idea what the material we were assigned to read meant as it was all gibberish to me having never studied theory, postmodernism and such. In the application form for the MA course I was not asked to send in any papers unlike King's college where for the same course you have to submit a written paper to illustrate your knowledge; I was just accepted for the Sussex course the next day without them requiring any information of my previous knowledge in the area of cultural theory or philosophy. During the course the books and essays we were given to read and discuss in the class were obscure and unfathomable to me as they were to others who had not studied this before. Heavy on pure theory and no breaking it down or explaining it in a clear way. It is like admitting someone to medical school when they don't know the first thing about medicine. Nothing was broken down and explained as the tutor just quoted bits from the text and expected everyone to have that level of knowledge already and when some of us asked basic questions his answers were quotes from the text as if we were all PhD students. Clearly this is a waste of time to admit those without previous education and knowledge of this subject matter but it seems Sussex University is only operating like a money making company and doesn't care about educating people.

I've finished my first year here and I love it, a friendly and beautiful campus, a great night life close to campus. The campus has a great gym at the top of a woody hill. Of course there's also the fact that it pretty much borders the South Downs National Park. I can't speak for all departments, but I've found the physics department to be excellent, and to have a positive and relaxed atmosphere.