Model of a body's internal organs

Why study at Brighton? The Huxley building!

Biological Sciences student Sandra Skubis tells us about one of her favourite spots at uni.

One of my favourite places at Brighton University is Huxley Building located at the Moulsecoomb campus.

Specialist facilities at Brighton

Huxley itself has seven floors, mainly filled with specialised labs but also lecture halls and offices. My favourite floors are the 4th and 5th as this is where I spend most of my time participating in practicals. Whenever I enter the premises of this building, I’m amazed by the amount and variety of equipment available. The most impressive apparatus I’ve seen so far includes an NMR machine, spectrophotometers, 3D printers, DNA sequencing system and X-Ray Photoelectron Spectrometer.

Continue reading “Why study at Brighton? The Huxley building!”

Profile pic of Nadia Terrazzini

Meet Dr Nadia Terrazzini

Nadia trained at the National Institute for the Study and the Cure of Cancer in Milan (Italy) and has since worked on a variety of immunology research projects spanning from cancer gene therapy to DNA vaccines, to immunosenescence. She is a member of the Centre for Stress and Age-Related Disease (STRAND), the Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices  and the Brighton and Sussex Cancer Research Network.

Dr Nadia Terrazzini is the course leader for Biological Sciences BSc(Hons), Biological Sciences MSci and Biological Sciences BSc(Hons) (with integrated foundation year).

The way I like to teach

My professional field of expertise is Immunology and I teach it at undergraduate and postgraduate level. I am very passionate about promoting the understanding of Immunology to students, who often find this subject very complex. Enhancing its accessibility is a priority in my work. To foster engagement, I try to introduce an element of fun in my teaching and I strive to keep my lectures student-centred and highly interactive, including everyday analogies (e.g. comparing the working of the immune system to a football match), story-telling and animated PowerPoint diagrams or animations.

I also use online game-based learning platforms such as Kahoot and Nearpod to make complex immunology mechanisms and concepts more approachable and easier to visualise. Students engage with the teaching using their laptop/tablets, so that I can introduce questions, polls and videos, pace the lecture and create breaks that give students time to reflect on the learning and work with peers in small groups. I also include examples of experimental data in my presentations and I design assessments to test the students’ ability to understand and interpret scientific data presented in literature. This supports students’ professional development as scientists and ultimately their employability.

Continue reading “Meet Dr Nadia Terrazzini”
Kieran Tang

My tips for success

Kieran Tang graduated from Geography BA(Hons) in 2018 – here’s what he has to say about his time here:

Studying Geography BA(Hons) at the University of Brighton opened my eyes to a plethora of course content, numerous routes for future career opportunities, the wonderful area of Brighton, and the occasional field trip.

The best aspect of the course is the wealth of different modules you can study, and how you can start to specialise in certain areas. During the course of my degree, I began to shape my learning on planning, the environment, and sustainable development.

Continue reading “My tips for success”

Dr Matthew Brolly

Dr Matthew Brolly is the course leader for Environmental Sciences BSc(Hons) and Geography with Remote Sensing and GIS BSc(Hons).

Head shot of Matt BrollyTell us about the subject area(s) you teach at undergraduate level?

I lead the teaching of remote sensing across our undergraduate degrees in Geography, Archaeology, Environmental Sciences, and Environmental Management. This subject area is therefore also the main component of the Geography with Remote Sensing and GIS degree. Remote sensing relates to any measurements that are made when not in contact with the object/target, so essentially we are all using remote sensing all the time using primarily our eyes and ears. Using this definition, the subject uses imagery collected by a range of sensors including cameras, lasers, and satellite radars. Continue reading “Dr Matthew Brolly”