Group of students walking on fallen tree trunk in wintery woods at Devils Dyke

Nature walk and social at Devil’s Dyke

To take a break from studies this February, 40 students and staff from Geography, Environment and Ecology courses decided to get out of the city for a casual social event. The chosen location was Devil’s Dyke. With its deep ice-cut valley, its wildlife, its folk legends and its panoramic views across the South Downs, this was the perfect place to roam around on a Saturday afternoon! And being just 20 minutes from the city by bus, it’s easy to travel to any time.

Continue reading “Nature walk and social at Devil’s Dyke”
Headshot of Bamidele Farinre smiling looking off camera with a colourful background

Award-winning and trailblazing Biomedical Scientist

Meet Bamidele Farinre, a biomedical science graduate who has risen impressively to the top of her profession, including a “Biomedical Scientist of the Year” Award.

The Brighton Effect is that ripple of energy that starts during your time with us at Brighton, which you take with you for the rest of your life and career. There is no greater example than Bamidele, whose passion for science only grew during her time at the University of Brighton and has now gone on to the top of her field with multiple award-nominations and accolades and contributing pioneering work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Continue reading “Award-winning and trailblazing Biomedical Scientist”
Town planning graduates and lecturers group shot at graduation

Town Planning MSc and Chartered Apprenticeship graduates 2024

It was a proud moment for the MSc Town Planning and MSc Town Planning (Chartered Apprenticeship) course team when its students graduated in February this year.

We were delighted that so many could attend the Graduation Ceremony at the Brighton Centre. This year the majority of graduates were from the MSc Town Planning (Chartered Apprenticeship), a growing number since the route was first offered in September 2019, following its national Trailblazer status.

Continue reading “Town Planning MSc and Chartered Apprenticeship graduates 2024”
Dr Crooks and Dr Zeisset next to award logo

Award winning teaching and learning practices

Congratulations to LearnSci Teaching Innovation Awards winners, Dr Neil Crooks and Dr Inga Zeisset.

The awards recognise innovative, impactful practices in teaching and learning. Dr Crooks and Dr Zeisset’s were recognised for Advanced interactive assessments reduce marking burden and build confidence in a large cohort of students.

The judges commented: I really like the way this is not just a unique dataset for each student but the way they collectively contribute to class data and therefore the ‘live’ element to this.

Find out more about Dr Crooks and Dr Zeisset’s award as well as other award winners and finalists.

School students wearing lab coats learning in a science lab

Sciences Saturday Club

We have an exciting opportunity for secondary school students to take part in a science based project led by University of Brighton staff and students at our Moulsecoomb campus. For anyone interested in science this is a fantastic way to explore the universities labs with hands on experiments.

Students in years 10 and 11 will experience a series of practical workshops delivered in the labs which will explore how science plays a key role in our daily lives. The sessions will cover ‘the Earth from above’ (flying drones), ‘Do fruits have DNA?’, ‘The entangled life of fungi: the good, the bad and the ugly’ and ‘The secrets of the genes’. 

Dates: 3 Feb, 10 Feb, 24 Feb, 2 Mar (no session on 17 Feb due to half term)
Time: 09:30 – 12:30

The Saturday clubs will run over four Saturdays and are free to participants, priority is given to student who are from a widening participation background.

For more information email outreach@brighton.ac.uk

Urban model with building and roads

Fellowship for Senior Lecturer


Andrew Coleman, Senior Lecturer on the MSc Town Planning and Chartered Apprenticeship Degree, has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Town Planning Institute.

The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) is a leading membership organisation and a Chartered Institute responsible for maintaining professional standards and accrediting world class planning courses nationally and internationally. The organisation champions the power of planning in creating prosperous places and vibrant communities. Fellowship is one of the highest professional attainments available to a planner and Fellows must have made a major personal contribution to the planning profession for the benefit of the public.

Andrew Coleman headshot

Andrew Coleman’s research reflects a deep specialism in environmentalism and how to manage the risk of flooding through the planning system. He has contributed to government, government agency and research organisation projects and gained a wide range of experience, from working in private and public sectors, including in academia, as well as practising internationally, in Trinidad and Tobago. He is co-author of guidance on delivering better water management through the planning system and also a board member of the University of Brighton’s Centre for Earth Observation Science.

Speaking about the Fellowship Andrew Coleman said, “I am very honoured to be elected as Fellow of the RTPI. Ever since joining the RTPI, I have retained a profound belief that planning can deliver a better present and future for people and the environment.

“Pursuing this objective is becoming even more urgent given the climate and biodiversity crises facing the world. In my current teaching, research, RTPI and environmental activist roles, I am dedicated to equipping current and future planners with the tools to meet these challenges and my election as a Fellow demonstrates the importance that the RTPI places on addressing these issues.”

Ruth Smith profile photo

Graduate stories: Ruth Smith

Ruth graduated from Geography BA(Hons) in 2018. Read about her time studying here and how her career is progressing.

Why I chose the University of Brighton and this course

I love Brighton as a city, the sea, the vibrancy and all the good things happening there so it was an obvious choice! Combined with this, I noticed that the course had the choice to opt in and out of a range of topics to adapt the course to my preferences and interests! I chose to go down the more social geography route rather than environmental but loved the choice of both.

Continue reading “Graduate stories: Ruth Smith”
Group of students in the woods on a bat hunt

Third year bat surveys at Woods Mill

As part of the Ecological Impact Assessment module, students met Ryan Greaves, from the Bat Conservation Trust and we had the fantastic opportunity to take part in bat box checks.

The mild weather in late September meant that bats were still active and around! After an in-depth lecture on bat species and their ecology, an intro to bat boxes and the different survey tools at hand, we were ready to go an check some boxes. This year was a really good one and we found some common pipistrelle in a couple of boxes.

As part of the standard bat survey, measurements were taken, we had our smallest male with 4.5g. Pipistrelle weigh the same as a £1 coin! We concluded our training day with a bat walk, using bat detectors and listening to the clapping of the bats feeding above our heads!

This was a great start of term!

Graduate stories: Harry McKenzie

I chose the University of Brighton because I’ve always enjoyed Brighton as a place and I chose the Geography BA(Hons) course because I’ve always enjoyed learning about the world and its inhabitants.

The course was a good mix of everything, and I really enjoyed the media modules in my final year. I didn’t enjoy my work placement much, but I learned a lot and the experience drove me to up my game in final year and really get stuck into the course. Some of the best times of my life were spent studying (and partying) in Brighton – no doubt. The highlights of my course were the field trip to Morocco, the final year media crossover module and the study of discourse and power.

Continue reading “Graduate stories: Harry McKenzie”
Three males in a line smiling at the camera

Prize award for Geography student

Congratulations to final year Geography BSc student Dom Jarvis who has been awarded the inaugural Richard Reed Prize sponsored by Friends of the South Downs.

The Richard Reed prize, named after one of the co-founders of the Friends of the South Downs, is an award of £500 for the most improved performance by a BSc/BA student within our Geography, the Earth and Environment subject area. It is based on their academic results over their first and second years.

Dom (centre) was presented with the award by Paul Wilkinson (right) Membership & Marketing Committee Chair for Friends of the South Downs and Dr Matthew Brolly (left), Principal Lecturer in geography and environmental sciences courses at the University of Brighton.