The University of Brighton is a strong and distinctive institution, founded on well over 100 years of growth and development. It makes major contributions both to the national system of university education and to its local and regional communities.
Since university designation in 1992, the university has experienced a period of steady progress. Student numbers have grown from 11,000 to 22,000, and the number of academic awards made each year has increased from just under 3,000 to over 5,500. Our five campuses in Brighton, Eastbourne and Hastings place us in outstanding locations within easy reach of London and mainland Europe.
External assessments of the quality of teaching and of graduate employment have ranked among the strongest in the country, and the 2008 national assessment of research found more Brighton staff working at international standards of excellence than in any other 'new' university. We pride ourselves on pioneering new approaches with innovative and relevant research that addresses issues and challenges that are facing us in the 21st Century.
The university has an enviable reputation for supporting students as individuals. We have worked hard at improving the quality of our working and learning environment to make facilities that are fit for the future with nearly £100m of capital development that includes: new halls of residence, teaching facilities and libraries on three of our four campuses.
We have cemented productive partnerships with the public service and local authorities, with business and industry, and with academic institutions regionally and internationally.
The strategic plan for 2012–15 builds on the university's current strengths and looks ahead to the future with a commitment to offering high-quality, research-strong higher education that contributes to citizenship and the public good. It has been developed following widespread consultation, inside and outside the university, with our students, staff and partner organisations.
The plan links with a number of detailed strategies, policies and planned developments, the achievement of which will be carefully and transparently monitored. It will guide our efforts to transform the experience of our students with high-quality research that is supported by technology, and extends our contributions to higher education in the United Kingdom and beyond.
