Program Reviews

I have absolutely loved my year at the University of Sussex. I have loved the people and culture, I have loved the classes at uni, and I have loved student life. Brighton is such a vibrant student city, nicknamed "London by sea", Brighton offers both bustling city days- whether you're getting lost in the laines, or down by the pier, or vintage shopping; and non-stop nightlife-with student offers in different clubs for every night of the week.
In terms of the university's exchange program, I felt like the study abroad team had really made an effort to make sure that there was lots of events (especially during the first week of term) to encourage the international students to mingle and make friends. There was definitely a balance between integrating into British culture (with quiz nights, food events, city tours, London trips, etc.) and cultivating the diversity of the international student culture through different socials.
I also think the 'buddy scheme', which links new students to current students, is a good way to combat the loneliness that many students face when they first move to uni.
Coming from Australia, there wasn't too much of a cultural shock, although I was slightly taken aback by the rudeness of some of my tutors- I have since been told this is just British culture, and not to take it personally (although I would recommend that some of the uni staff be a little friendlier... especially for those students who are trying to work out what's what).
The only other thing I struggled with was working out how to pick classes, sometimes the systems can be a little more confusing than I think they need to be- but once I got sorted and settled, there were no issues.
All in all, it has been the time of my life :)

It was a great experience to go and live in Brighton. My English has really improved and I have made friends from all over the world during my stay here. All of the teachers, tutors, lecturers etc were nice and wanted the students to learn beyond just the grades on the exams. Some of my days were too long with lectures around 9am and then at 7pm, I lived in private housing in eastern Brighton so I had to stay at campus all day which some days were quite tiring. Overall I am happy with living abroad!

I really liked my study exchange in Brighton. The campus is great and there is something going on all the time. I enjoyed riding bike to the uni and it was fun. The courses are good quality and the teachers I had were helpful. I wish the university would provide cheaper and more convenient accommodation for the exchange students. There are many many international students so the uni is truly multicultural.

I created a web with few tips for future Exchange Students! :)

Review edited for clarity by members of the Go Overseas content team.

Brighton was an amazing place to both live and study. I have met some amazing people on my adventure to the UK and I am so glad I came. The university is filled with tonnes of fun activities and there's never a dull moment!

The teachers at Sussex Uni are supportive and engaging, and are particularly used to having international students in their classes - so you always have someone to talk to and support you.

The contact hours at uni are less than my home university in Adelaide, Australia - which is great for an exchange student as they are able to maximize their time exploring the lanes or spending time with all the lovely people in Sussex. I would suggest choosing subjects that have tutorials or workshops, however, as they can greatly increase your interaction with other students and therefore friendships you make.

After living in the Langford’s Hotel for nearly three months, I can certainly state that students should not be living here. It is simply unacceptable the conditions that we live in. We have worked to try to have our concerns addressed, but nothing has been done. The staff have been rude to us, our rooms are not as described in the housing contract, the heating breaks, items throughout the hotel break all the time, the WiFi doesn’t work in many places, there is mold in many rooms… the list goes on. The following is a list of things that all or many of the residents living here have experienced at the hotel.
Complaints about Langford’s Hotel
· Dishes never get cleaned
· Kitchen is always dirty
· Sinks are always full and gross
· Fridges break/freeze items
· Showers constantly break
· Heating is consistently broken (and “fixed” until it breaks again)
· Staff are rude
o Each time we complain or report a maintenance issue, they are extremely rude and condescending
· Too expensive (especially for a place that constantly has issues
· Rooms not as described in the housing contract
o We were told that every room would have a desk and chair for each person and clothing storage
· Washing machines are too expensive and often break
o Dryer also barely works and clothes come out wet
· Black mold in rooms
o Many in bathrooms/showers and by the windows
I do not believe that this accommodation should be given to students coming abroad. I have enjoyed my time at Sussex and love Brighton, but the housing situation sticks out like a sore thumb. In the future, you should not use Langford’s Hotel as a place to accommodate students. Not only is it unacceptable, but it reflects badly on the university to have students staying in these conditions.

Joining Student Exchange is going to be the best experience ever throughout my Degree studies. I have this golden opportunity and I am so proud of myself that I grab it in the first place. Being someone that has never been staying away from family has definitely enable me to go out from my very comfort zone. Nevertheless, not everyday is rainbow here, some of the modules that I have taken are quite difficult for me and I kind of struggle to arrange time because since I got here, I travel a lot especially in Europe. Despite from that, I love Sussex University especially the environment here. It is very different from my home university that is located in the middle of busy city. I find it calm to study here and the study system is even better. Here in Sussex, I got opportunities to earn some cash while studying by joining research study. I have joined as much study as I could and beyond my expectation, I have earned myself almost £75 which was very worth it. For almost 4 months I have been here, I would say that I really enjoy being here and I would encourage my juniors in my home university to grab this opportunity. This experience has change my perception somehow as it makes me more open minded to travel so that I know what the other side of the world from where I live is like.

I lived off campus with my boyfriend. As an exchange student, it was very difficult for me to make friends with other exchange students because everyone else lived on campus. However, I loved where I lived. I could walk to 2 grocery stores and that made a huge difference. Brighton is a lovely city and I love the people. Coming from America, I have to admit the classes were difficult. I am a straight A student and I got all Cs at Sussex. My degree program is bioinformatics and for some reason I didn’t get accepted into the only class relevant to me, bioinformatics. That was a bit upsetting but I filled some elective credits. I learned a whole lot, but it was frustrating to be in classes of people who were studying that for their degree and I had no prior knowledge.

Over all I'm happy with my experience at the University of Sussex. The modules that I've been taking have all been very interesting and the lecturers engaging. I had some struggles while working on my time table, as many of my lectures clashed. The staff was very helpful in this process and I managed to change some of my modules after arriving on campus. Academically, I feel that this term has been very rewarding.

I found the social scene a bit difficult to get a grip of. I took four modules that were not connected to the same program, which meant that I didn't have any classmates that were in more than one of my classes. This made it more difficult to get to know people, but there are a lot of different societies on campus and that is good for socialising.

What surprised me most is how uni became one of the things I did not have to worry about at all (the coursework was easy and the teachers were nice), but instead I spent all my time worrying about making friends and not being lonely in my very small room. You really need to take the initiative, go out and make friends. My advice: go to as many freshers activities as you can! Go to any club, go discover Brighton with a group, do the campus tour. The people I met that way are the ones I am still in contact with, over a year later! And after freshers week is over try to stay in contact, and of course, JOIN the clubs you tried out in freshers week. What hit me hardest was coming home to an empty room after spending all day with friends or in class, and having to cook for 1, try to enjoy myself, watching another netfilx show. Luckily I ended up making friends with whom I could cook together and who felt the same way!

My exchange has been a great experience! I was quite nervous the first day, but after a few hours I already felt comfortable. I live with 40 other exchange students in a hotel with a big kitchen and living and dining room. It is so much fun, since whenever you want to do something there is always somebody up for it. I can recommend everyone this experience! Even when you've already travelled and met a lot of different people from different countries, this experience will still be new and exciting because you now live with these people in everyday 'normal' circumstances instead of traveling. Brighton is also a very fun city with a huge amount of cute (vegan) cafes, pubs and clubs. There really is something for everybody! You'll love it here!