Spirit of Sussex Award

There are many ways to enrich your experience with us – and the Spirit of Sussex Award is our way of recognising your achievements. Find out how you can get involved.

Find out more about the award

The Spirit of Sussex Award celebrates your extra-curricular and voluntary achievements.

By taking part in different activities, such as part-time work or volunteering, you can gain points towards either a Bronze, Silver or Gold Spirit of Sussex Award. These will be awarded at your Graduation ceremony.

The award can help you:

• feel more involved with life at Sussex
• make friends and build a wider network while you're with us
• get a job after your studies by showcasing all your achievements to future employers.

Follow the below guidance to see how you can earn points when you start your degree at Sussex. 

Who can take part?

The Spirit of Sussex Award is open to all undergraduate, Masters and research students at the University of Sussex and Brighton and Sussex Medical School.

You can start collecting points for the award from the start date of your degree and you have the whole length of your course in which to complete it.

Your award continues throughout:

• any foundation year
• placement year
• term or year abroad, included in your degree syllabus
• any repeat year.

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It’s a really good way to encourage you to do more things and to prove to employers: hey I got this award, I can actually do this!” MUSKAAN GUPTA
BSc Computer Science (with a placement year)

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How do I get points?

To get a Spirit of Sussex Award you need to gain points. The more points you earn, the higher the award:

• Bronze – 25 points
• Silver – 50 points
• Gold – 75 points.

The number of points you get for each thing you do depends on your level of participation, recognising the life experiences you’re achieving in addition to your degree. You get:

• 5 points if you Attend & Participate 
• 10 points if you Organise & Support 
• 15 points if you Lead & Represent 
  

To work out how many points your activity is worth, ask yourself if you have:

• attended any events, talks or activities or participated in training of workshops, clubs or societies – if so, that’s 5 points
• organised or supported the delivery of any events, talks or activities or supported – if you have, that’s 10 points
• led any events, talks or activities or represented the voices of other students and peers – if so, that’s 15 points.

Activities that give you points

The Spirit of Sussex Award recognises a range of categories where you can take part in activities and earn points towards a Bronze, Silver or Gold Award. 

• Sport and Recreation

  This category is for logging any sports or recreational activity for example, being a member of a Students’ Union Sports club or participating in Active US sessions. 

• Society Membership

  Any involvement you have had with a Students’ Union Society, for example being part of the Students’ Union or being part of a committee.

• Part-time work

  Any part-time work you are involved in on or off campus.

• Volunteering

  Any internal or external voluntary work, including being a Buddy Scheme Ambassador or a Sussex REDS Volunteer.

• Student Representation

  Any activity relating to student representation within the University, including being an elected course representative or being a member of a working group.

• Culture and Creativity

  This category includes any cultural, creative or sustainability activities for examples participating in Brighton Fringe or Sussex Go Green Week. You can also gain points for playing in bands or orchestras, or for directing shows and productions.

• Training and Development 

  Any training or work experience you have undertaken, include participating in training courses such as the Careers and Employability Centre Leadership Training or the Consent Matters online training.

• Enterprise

  This category includes owning your own business or undertaking business challenges such as Startup Sussex or The Sussex Innovation Centre Social Impact Award.

• Ambassadorship, leadership and mentoring

  This category is for participation in any paid or voluntary work you have undertaken as an ambassador or mentor, for example being a Widening Participation Blue or Yellow Ambassador or being a Sussex Connect Mentor.

• Environment and Sustainability 

   This category is for any sustainable or environment-based activities such as clothes swaps or attending climate activism events.

• Academic and Professional Collaborations and Evaluation

  This category covers participation in academic or professional collaborations including (but not limited to) co-creation or co-delivery of elements of your curriculum or taking part in focus groups.

• Other

  If you think your activitity does not fit into any category, you can list and upload your evidence in the Other category

What happens next?

When you start at Sussex the first thing to do is login to your Sussex emails. The Spirit of Sussex Award team will contact all new students inviting you to sessions throughout Welcome Week. This will give you the opportunity to find out more about how to earn points and how to log your activities on the Spirit of Sussex Award platform.

You can start collecting points for the award from the start date of your degree and you have the whole length of your course in which to complete it. This means you can log points at any point throughout your degree via our Spirit of Sussex Award platform. 

You will receive your Spirit of Sussex Award alongside your degree when you graduate. We look forward to seeing you make your mark at Sussex. 

You might also be interested in:

• Open Days
• what's on campus
• Students' Union
• student accommodation