About us

We’re known as the friendly University – we welcome students from all corners of the globe and have a number of events and activities to help you make new friends and settle in. Don't just take our word for it – we were ranked 16th (out of 131 universities) in the ‘University of the Year’ category of the Whatuni Student Choice Awards (WUSC) 2019, and 9th in the 'Student Support' category. The WUSC are the only national awards voted for by students.

Our Students’ Union offers a buddies scheme and a peer support scheme so if you want make some new friends, we can connect you with other students to help and guide you through your first weeks and months of university life.

There are also over 50 Sports Clubs and Societies for you to join, covering everything from feminism, football, games, and hockey, to snow sports, debating and rugby. Whatever your interests, we’ll help you find friends and have a happy and fulfilling student experience.

With endless sands and miles of beautiful coastline, Sunderland’s Seaburn and Roker beaches and their long promenades are ideal for summer walks and taking in the raw beauty of the North East.

Both beaches have been awarded the prestigious Blue Flag status for their cleanliness and facilities and were named among the best beaches at the 2017 Seaside Awards.

Thrill seekers are well catered for as well – Adventure Sunderland is based on the Roker seafront and offers a range of activities from kayaking and canoeing to abseiling and surfing.
Sunderland has the perfect combination of city and seaside living and is a friendly, diverse and affordable place for you to live and study. It's the second most affordable city in the UK, according to a 2018 ‘Graduate salaries in the UK’ survey conducted by Prospects Luminate.

In the 2018 Liveability Index, Sunderland was named as the best place to live for the under 30s due to low living costs, high job satisfaction, and general happiness and wellbeing.

There’s something to suit all tastes and budgets in Sunderland. You’ll find high street favourites in The Bridges Shopping Centre, the beautiful Mowbray Park, an international-class airshow, the award-winning National Glass Centre, the Northern Centre for Contemporary Art and achingly-cool independent venues such as Frankie and the Heartstrings’ Pop Recs – a record shop, art space and live music venue.

Sunderland is establishing itself as a national centre for arts, heritage and culture, building on momentum from the bid for UK City of Culture 2021. The city, once known as the largest shipbuilding town in the world, also hosted the world famous Tall Ship Races in July 2018.

A 2019 report by financial firm Paymentsense singled out Sunderland as one of the best places in the UK to start a new business. They ranked towns and cities around the country after looking into the local labour market, business demography and the cost of living for the past five years. Sunderland is ranked as the third best city in the UK for start-ups.

Read more about the City of Sunderland and the North East on the Visit North East England website.

Safety on campus

Sunderland is one of the safest cities in the UK – in 2018 we were ranked 7th in the ‘The UK’s safest places to live’ survey by Compare the Market.

The University has a number of support services to help you study and socialise in a safe environment. Our free campus bus provides safe and reliable transport between the two campuses and all student housing, and a night service provides safe travel to popular social spots.

A Crime Prevention team with a dedicated Campus Police Officer run drop-in sessions to help you stay safe and also provides UV pens and an engraving tool for marking property.

The University of Sunderland does not tolerate any form of hate crime on or off campus, and we have strong links with ARCH, an organisation that supports the victims of racism, homophobia, transphobia, religious hate incidents or disability hate incidents.