University of Sunderland

The University of Sunderland is a university located in Sunderland in the North East of England. The university has 20,887 students, and was one of six universities to be short-listed for 'University of the Year' in the Times Higher Education Supplement Awards 2012.

Sunderland has been an important centre for education since 674 AD, when Benedict Biscop built St. Peter's Church and monastery. St. Peter's Church was the site of the greatest scriptorium north of the Alps. The oldest existing Latin version of the Bible – the Codex Amiatinus – was written at St Peter's Church. This area has been developed as the Sir Tom Cowie Campus at St Peter's of the University of Sunderland. The University's £9m state-of-the-art Media Centre, launched in 2004, is near St. Peter's Church.

The University of Sunderland Students' Union is headed by five sabbatical officers who run the Union and are elected into the roles by their peers for a period of one year. The current officer positions are President, Vice President, Education and Welfare Officer, Sports and Activities Officer and Entertainments and Media Officer. They are augmented by five lay Trustees to make up the Trustee Board.

The Students' Union is responsible for providing events, offering support and advice, fundraising and supporting campaigns and being the 'voice' of the student body.

The Students' Union currently has two bars, one being The Bonded Warehouse, located near the Panns bank and Scotia Quay halls of residence, and North Shore (formerly Manor Quay/Campus) located on the St. Peters campus. Both venues offer cheap food and drinks, and have a variety of theme nights throughout the course of the academic year. North Shore is a brand new 'Student Hub' for the academic year 2010/11 and encases a green centre, bar & grill, theatre and nightclub.

The student union magazine is called DN (Degrees North) magazine and student/community centred radio station Spark FM, part of the wider Spark Media Group, operates from within the Media department but is not exclusively operated as a student concern.

• The Robson Visual Arts Masters Awards