Swansea University: A Century of Academic Excellence and Innovation

Swansea University, a public research university nestled along Swansea Bay in South Wales, has a rich history spanning over a century. From its humble beginnings as a University College with a small cohort of students to its current status as a leading academic institution with a global reach, Swansea University has consistently evolved and adapted to meet the changing needs of its students and the wider community.

Founding and Early Years (1920-1930s)

The institution was established as University College of Swansea in 1920, opening its doors on 5 October as the fourth college of the University of Wales. The University College of Swansea opened its doors to 90 students, comprising 81 males and 9 females. The foundation stone was laid by King George V in July 1920. Subjects taught from the beginning of the college were the sciences, mathematics, metallurgy and engineering. The professors were A.R. Richardson (Mathematics), E.J. Evans (Physics), J.E. Coates (Chemistry), A.E. Trueman (Geology), C.A. Edwards (Metallurgy) and F. Arts subjects were not taught immediately in 1920, but started in the following 'session', 1921-22. The first professors in those initial departments were David Emrys Evans (Classics), W.D. Thomas (English language and literature), Henry Lewis (Welsh), E. Ernest Hughes (History), F.A. Saunders Lewis, the well-known Welsh language writer and activist, became a member of staff in 1922 although he ran up against controversy in 1936/37 for trying to set fire to a Royal Air Force bombing school on the Llŷn Peninsula.

In 1923, Singleton Abbey and its surrounding land were handed to the college, facilitating the relocation of arts subjects from the temporary site in Mount Pleasant. This move marked a significant step in the development of the university's academic profile and physical presence.

Expansion and Development (1940s-1990s)

Swansea acquired departments of philosophy in 1925, German in 1931, economics in 1937, social policy in 1947, political theory and government in 1954 - the same year that a civil engineering and a geography department were added. In 1947, John Fulton, the university principal, had designs on creating the UK's first self-contained university campus. The 1960s saw the university embark on a large campus development programme, aiming to fulfill Fulton's plan of becoming a self-contained community within the city.

In 1994, Swansea University opened its School of Law in order to complement its departments in engineering, the sciences, and arts and humanities. The school is situated at the Singleton Campus. Teaching at the School of Law comprises undergraduate, postgraduate and professional courses. Undergraduate programmes include qualifying law degrees and joint honours programmes. Criminology courses moved to be part of the School of Social Sciences when the move to a faculty structure took place. Postgraduate law programmes include LLMs in shipping and trade, human rights, legaltech and MA in cyber crime and terrorism and research degrees.

The University Archive Collections

Evidence of those changes are documented in the University archive collections, cared for and managed at the Richard Burton Archives at Swansea University. The University archive collections form an indispensable record and offer so much to different types of researcher. To name just a few, the Archives have received enquiries about the University collections from family historians, geographers, scientists, architectural historians, broadcasters, journalists and authors. The University archive collections also include over 1000 photographs, all depicting scenes from University life. A particular favourite of mine is this image of staff of the University College of Swansea, standing outside Singleton Abbey. The photographic collections enable us to witness the development of the University campus - from the 1930s and 40s, when the University comprised of just Singleton Abbey, the 1937 library and a few demountable type buildings, to today’s vast sites of the Singleton and Bay campuses. This project includes the collation of details about copyright, enabling greater use of material to enhance marketing opportunities and promote key moments in the University’s history. The archive collections also provide information for the Departments of Governance and Compliance at the University. Swansea University students have been working on the University archive collections as part of student placements with Go Wales, Swansea Employability Academy (SEA), and the Heritage module in the College of Arts and Humanities. By preserving and providing access to the University archive collections, the Richard Burton Archives provide exciting opportunities for teaching, learning and research for the centenary and beyond.

Notable Staff Members

There were many notable staff members at the university in the period, including the long-serving female professor of botany, Florence Mock ridge. Another was Glanmor Williams (history) who retired in 1982. Other well-known staff members were the author of novels such as Lucky Jim and That Uncertain Feeling, Kingsley Amis, who lectured in English in the 1950s and early 1960s; Rush Rhees, who was a member of staff from 1940 to 1966, an expert on philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein; and Kenneth O.

Campuses and Facilities

For most of its history, Swansea University operated exclusively from the Singleton Park Campus. However, owing to rapid expansion, the university developed a 65-acre, £450 million beachfront science and innovation Bay Campus which opened in September 2015. The Bay campus has been developed on a 65-acre beachfront site between Fabian Way and Jersey Marine beach at Crymlyn Burrows.

Swansea Bay Sports Park facilities include, five minutes' walk from the Singleton Park Campus, the 50-metre Wales National Pool Swansea, eight-lane outdoor athletics track, six-lane indoor track and training centre, floodlit playing fields including rugby, football, lacrosse and cricket pitches, artificial hockey pitches, a sports hall, tennis and squash courts, a climbing wall and spin room. Facilities at the Bay Campus include a sports hall, multi-use games area, and gym.

During the 2012 Summer Olympics, the university hosted the training camps for the Mexican and New Zealand paralympic teams and the Ireland triathlon team. In 2014, it hosted the IPC Athletics European Championships. Sports science at the university ranks 13th in the Complete University Guide Sports Science Rankings 2023. The department has links with Swansea City A.F.C., Ospreys and Welsh Athletics. Former scholars include Wales rugby union player Alun Wyn Jones, Olympic swimmer Georgia Davies, Paralympian swimmer Liz Johnson and Paralympian boccia player David Smith. Swansea is in the top quarter of the British University's sporting leagues. It competes with Cardiff University in the Welsh Varsity tournament, the largest student sports event in Wales. The Wales National Pool, next to the Singleton Park Campus, is a 50-metre pool built to FINA standards. It is home to the Swim Wales National Performance Centre, a hub for elite and performance swimming in Wales. This has included disability swimming under renowned coach Billy Pye who has trained several Paralympians in Swansea, including Ellie Simmonds and Liz Johnson. University sports science researchers provide back-up to the hub.

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Located in the Taliesin building, the Egypt Centre is open to the public. More than 7,000 items are in its collection. Most were collected by the pharmacist and entrepreneur Sir Henry Wellcome. Staff lecture museum groups and other outside bodies on volunteering, social inclusion and how to widen community participation with university museums.

Academic Profile

Swansea University distinguishes itself through groundbreaking research across a spectrum of disciplines. The university delivers around 450 undergraduate and 350 postgraduate degree programmes.

The Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law is the largest law school in Wales and ranks third in the UK for criminology and 22nd in the UK for law (The Times Good University Guide 2019). The school offers courses in Criminology; Sociology and Social Policy, Economics, Education and Childhood Studies, and Politics, Philosophy and International Relations.

Established in 2004, the Medical School works closely with government, industry and the NHS, in particular Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board, over teaching, research and innovation. The School of Mathematics and Computer Science at Swansea University is located at the Computational Foundry on the Bay Campus, which is situated along the beachfront. Technocamps is a pan-Wales school and community outreach unit, founded in 2003 by the employees of the Computer Science Department at Swansea University. It aims to address gaps in digital education throughout Wales.

Research Excellence

Swansea is a research-led university, ranking 48th in the UK in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF). The university submitted the work of a record number of researchers (578) for assessment to REF2021, a 56% increase on the 370 submitted in 2014. It meant a growth in the university's overall proportion of world-leading and internationally excellent research from 80% in 2014 to 86% in 2021. Geography is ranked 20th in the UK, climbing 11 places with 90% 4* world-leading or 3* internationally excellent research. Swansea University's best ranked departments include Medicine and Mathematics, ranked 4th and 16th respectively in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.

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International Partnerships

Swansea University has a strategic partnership with Wuhan Union Hospital in Wuhan, China. The hospital was founded by Swansea missionary Reverend Doctor Griffith John. As a result of this partnership, in 2015, the College of Medicine hosted the 2nd UK-China Medical Forum at Singleton Hospital. Swansea University has also established a joint medical centre at the Wuhan Union Hospital to engage in clinical collaboration.

In 2013, Swansea University established a partnership with Rice University and Texas A&M University. The universities collaborate on research as well as exchange visits by academics and students. In 2012, Swansea University established a partnership with the Joseph Fourier University in Grenoble, France with the aim of beginning joint degree programmes, collaborative bids for European funding and student and staff exchanges particularly in the subject areas of Medicine, Computer Science and Engineering. This partnership has now grown to involve a community of universities and research organisations in the Rhone‐Alpes region of France with a combined student population of over 65,000.

In 2007, the university set up a programme along with the local NHS trust, Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board, to establish a partnership with the School of Medicine at the University of the Gambia in The Gambia. The purpose of this partnership is to improve health care outcomes as well as collaborate on clinical care, health service delivery, teaching and research.

Student Life

Swansea University Students' Union (Welsh: Undeb Myfyrwyr Prifysgol Abertawe) is the students' union for Swansea University. Known as the SU, it supports more than 170 student clubs including African-Caribbean, Chinese, Hellenic and Indian societies, among others. The Union runs student bars and nightclubs, a travel shop offering trips around the UK and Europe, a radio station, nursery, launderette and shops.

Most of Swansea University's individual and team training takes place at the Swansea Bay Sports Park off campus on Sketty Lane. In the same complex as the Wales National Pool, the Sports Village is home to outdoor football and rugby pitches, a running track, an indoor athletics centre, hockey pitches, racquet courts and a gym, which is open to both students and the general public.

Xtreme Radio is the radio station of the university, run by students. It was founded in November 1968 as Action Radio, making it the third oldest student radio station in the UK and oldest in Wales. It broadcasts to various areas around campus and is available worldwide on the internet.

Student Accommodation

Swansea University provides approximately 3200 places in university halls across its two campuses, as well as some 1300 in the purpose-built Hendrefoilan Student Village, with 686 places, and more in off-campus residences at Beck House. Hendrefoilan Student Village will be closing in June 2023. The Hendrefoilan estate was 2.5 miles from the Singleton Park campus, just off the main Swansea to Gower road, set amongst mature woodland with open grassy areas.

Bay Campus has 2000 rooms in a mix of twin, en-suite, premium en-suite and wheelchair accessible rooms, as well as 1 & 2-bed flats for singles or couples. There are nine halls that make up the campus residences providing accommodation to around 1182 students. The halls offer a combination of part and self-catered rooms and a choice of standard or ensuite study rooms. Three of these halls (Caswell, Langland and Oxwich) were completed in 2004 and the original halls (Kilvey, Preseli, Rhossili and Cefn Bryn, formerly known as Sibly, Lewis Jones, Mary Williams Annexe and Mary Williams respectively) have undergone some refurbishment in recent years. Penmaen and Horton are the newest addition to the campus residences providing 351 self-catered, ensuite study rooms.

Tŷ Beck consists of six large Victorian town houses situated in the Uplands area of Swansea, approximately a mile from the Singleton campus.

Governance and Structure

Swansea received its royal charter in 1920 and like many universities is governed by its constitution that is set out in its statutes and a charter. The Council consists of 29 members including the chancellor, pro-chancellors, vice-chancellor, treasurer, pro-vice-chancellors, staff and student members, city council representation and a majority of lay members. The Senate is the main academic body of the university and is responsible for teaching and research. Most of its 200 members are academics but it also includes representatives of the Students' Union and the Athletic Union. The Court consists of more than 300 members representing stakeholders from local to national institutions.

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