You can be confident that your experience at Sussex will help give you the best possible start in your chosen career. You will be joining the many Sussex graduates who have gone on to be highly successful in a variety of fields.
Ian McEwan, CBE Author
Ian, an English Literature graduate, is one of the UK’s best-known living authors. Over the past 30 years, he has written novels, short stories, and TV and film scripts. Ian has won several prestigious literary awards.
Zhang Xin, Property developer
After achieving a degree in Economics at Sussex and a Masters at Cambridge, Zhang Xin worked on Wall Street before returning to China to pursue a career in real estate. Her company, SOHO China Ltd, has undertaken a series of award-winning building projects that have made her one of China’s most successful property developers.
Harriet Lamb CBE, Chief Executive, Fairtrade International
Harriet is a leading campaigner for fair trade and has worked to establish fair trade standards worldwide. She has campaigned for refugee rights and against the use of the pesticide dibromochloropropane in banana plantations in Costa Rica, and also supported the UK Minimum Wage Campaign.
Michael Fuller, Chief Inspector of the HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate
From a cadet with London’s Metropolitan Police Service, Michael rose to the rank of Deputy Assistant Commissioner before becoming Chief Constable of Kent Police in 2004. In 2010, he was appointed Chief Inspector of the Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate. A Psychology graduate, Michael has been awarded the Queen’s Police Medal for distinguished service.
- Other high-profile Sussex graduates
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Arts
Jeremy Deller, Turner Prize winner • C J Sansom and Philippa Gregory, authors.
Business
Hannah Jones, Vice-President of Sustainable Business and Innovation, and Government Affairs, Nike Inc • Keith Skeoch, CEO for Standard Life Investments • Dame Gail Rebuck DBE, Chair and Chief Executive, Random House Group • Sean Phelan, Founder of Multimap.
Charities and NGOs
David Bull, Chief Executive, UNICEF • Geoffrey Dennis, Chief Executive, CARE International • Barbara Stocking, Chief Executive, Oxfam GB • Sally Hunt, General Secretary, University and College Union (UCU).
Law
Michael Turner QC • Richard Wilson QC • Richard Miller QC • Raquel Agnello QC • Iain Cullen, Partner at Simmons & Simmons • Sandra Davis, Partner, Mishcon de Reya.
Media
Alexandra Shulman OBE, Editor of UK Vogue • Catherine Mayer, Europe Editor, TIME • Dermot Murnaghan, Presenter, Sky News • Becky Anderson, CNN news anchor • Clive Myrie, BBC television news journalist • James Woudhuysen, public speaker and columnist.
Music
Jessie Ware, vocalist • Darren Foreman, known as Beardyman, performance artist.
Public service
Shamshad Akhtar, Assistant Secretary General, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations • Sir Suma Chakrabarti KCB, President, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development • Jamie Shea, Deputy Assistant Secretary General, Emerging Security Challenges Division, NATO • Jil Matheson, National Statistician, Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority.
Politics
Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP, Rt Hon Ben Bradshaw MP, Rt Hon Peter Hain MP and Rt Hon Tony Baldry MP • Festus Mogae, former President of the Republic of Botswana.
Science
Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development, and Director, Science, Technology and Globalization Project, Harvard University • Professor Georgina Mace CBE FRS, Director of the NERC Centre for Population Biology, Imperial College • Professor Sir Peter Knight FRS, Principal of the Kavli Royal Society International Centre.
- The Alumni Network
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The Sussex Alumni Network is dedicated to helping you stay in touch with the University and your friends after you graduate. The organisation boasts a network of 80,000 former students in over 190 countries and provides lots of ways to keep in contact, including alumni groups, an annual magazine, regular email newsletters and events in the UK and overseas.
Membership also entitles you to a wide range of benefits, including career guidance and professional networking.
Linda's career perspective
‘I read Music at Sussex when it was one of the first universities to open its doors to "working-class" people. Sussex was pioneering in giving non-Oxbridge types a first-class higher education.
‘I'm an Executive Producer for BBC News and Current Affairs, making current affairs and features programmes for Kent and Sussex. That's after roles in factual programming for ITV, satellite and cable channels and Channel 4. It's been a varied career in lifestyle, children's and factual/entertainment programming, as well as serious current affairs, for which my interdisciplinary experience at Sussex was an invaluable preparation.
‘Just the fact I'd gone to Sussex opened doors. It was hugely popular and trendy but, above all, it gave me confidence.’
Linda Bell
Executive Producer, BBC News and Current Affairs, South East
Andrew's career perspective
‘Having already worked as an economist in the UK and Africa (teaching at the University of Malawi), I came to Sussex in my early 30s for a Masters in Economics. The Economics staff were a stimulating and diverse group, and there was a good mixture of serious learning and irreverence – something that characterises many professional analysts.
‘The course had immediate benefit, because my application for an economist post in the government of Papua New Guinea produced a job offer and I spent three fascinating and professionally useful years in Port Moresby.
‘It also stood me in good stead when applying to the UK Government Economic Service. I entered as an economic advisor and spent over 20 years in a range of jobs. These included major projects and policies in environment, transport, trade and industry, and defence. Economists are involved in option appraisal and decision-making in all parts of government, and at all levels. Their role is often to persuade policy-makers (or politicians) to follow a systematic approach to deciding issues – advocating the use of cost-benefit analysis – rather than just doing what seems obvious. So it was important to understand and to be able to communicate the concepts underpinning this approach, which I had covered in depth at Sussex.
‘The hard work of my year at Sussex was enjoyable, and the mostly international student group on my course was a real plus. The knowledge and skills I gained undoubtedly set me up for the career I then followed.’
Andrew Gibbons
Economic Advisor, UK Government Economic Service