Join US for Universities Week!

The University of Sussex is backing the first Universities Week - What's the Big Idea? (14-20 June 2010) - a nationwide celebration of the key role played by universities in the UK today. During the week, organised by universities representative body Universities UK, Sussex will be hosting fun events on and off campus and featuring in some top television shows. The aim of the week is to raise awareness of the ways in which university knowledge and know-how enrich everyday life - from groundbreaking research and community events to staging opera and exploring the history of comedy. What's the Big Idea will follow on from the University of Sussex open day (Saturday 12 June), during which 5,000 of the next generation of students and their families are expected to visit the campus and the University's new teaching building hear from lecturers about their work in. More than 100 universities and linked organisations across the UK will be involved in What's the Big Idea, highlighting the essential role that universities play in sustaining our society, culture and economy. University of Sussex Chancellor, the writer and actor Sanjeev Bhaskar, has sent a message of support to the campaign. He says: "I believe that my University experience has been essential to my life journey.