University of Surrey - History

History

The University of Surrey was preceded by the Battersea Polytechnic Institute which was founded in 1891 and admitted its first students in 1894. Its aims were to provide greater access to further and higher education for some of the "poorer inhabitants" of London.

In 1901, Evening Classes consisted of some of the following; Mechanical Engineering and Building, Electrical Engineering, Chemical and other Trades, Physics and Natural Science, Maths, Languages, and Commercial subjects, Music. Special classes for Women in Domestic Economy subjects. Day Classes in Art, Science, Women's subjects and Gymnastics. Classes in preparation for University and Professional Examinations. Also. Science day School for Boys and Girls, Commercial School for Girls, Training School for Domestic Economy and Training for Teachers.

Of interest was on 19 January 1901, Mr Ronald Bagnall accompanied an Exhibition of animated photographs including latest war pictures, on his piano.

The Institute focused on science and technology subjects, and from about 1920 taught some classes for University of London students. The Institute awarded University of London external degrees.

In 1956, the Institute was among the first to receive the designation "College of Advanced Technology" and was renamed Battersea College of Technology. By the beginning of the sixties, the College had virtually outgrown its building in Battersea and had decided to move to Guildford. In addition to this, the Robbins Report of 1963 proposed that the Colleges of Advanced Technology, including Battersea, should expand and become degree-awarding universities.

In 1965, the university-designate acquired a greenfield site in Guildford from Guildford Cathedral, Guildford Borough Council and the Onslow Village Trust. The following year, on 9 September 1966 the University of Surrey was established by Royal Charter and by 1970 the move from Battersea to Guildford was complete.

Early visitors to the new campus were Led Zeppelin, who performed their very first gig at the university on 15 October 1968.

In 1982, the university became the trustee of the building of the Guildford Institute and uses parts of the building for its adult education programme which ensures a university presence in the heart of Guildford. The Assessment and Qualifications Alliance (formerly Associated Examining Board) moved from Aldershot to its own headquarters building on the Stag Hill campus in 1985.

The university marked its Silver Jubilee in 1991, an event celebrated by the publishing of Surrey - The Rise of a Modern University by Roy Douglas and by a Service of Thanksgiving in Guildford Cathedral attended by HM The Queen in March 1992.

The university celebrated its 35th anniversary year in May 2002 with a major event in Guildford Cathedral. It was also marked by the unveiling of the Surrey Scholar sculpture (by Allan Sly FBS) to mark the Golden Jubilee of Her Majesty The Queen and as a gift to the people of Guildford. The Surrey Scholar is located at the bottom of Guildford High Street. Understanding the Real World, a visual history of the university, by Christopher Pick, was published to coincide with this anniversary.

On 1 July 2005, Prof. Christopher Snowden became Surrey's fourth Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive. Like his predecessors Prof. Dowling and Prof. Kelly, Prof. Snowden is a fellow of the Royal Society. He was appointed in recognition of his pioneering work in the fields of microwave engineering and compound semiconductors.

In 2007, the university saw a major increase in overall applications by 39% compared with the previous year. This was followed by a further increase in applications of 12% in 2008.

In June 2008, Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page was awarded an honorary doctorate by the university for services to the music industry.

In October 2008, the university lost out to Royal Holloway in a bid to merge with London medical institute St George's, University of London.

From September 2009, the Guildford School of Acting became a subsidiary of the university and relocated from Guildford town centre to the university campus.