Registration for new students

Find out how to collect your username and password and register online.

How to complete Online Registration

All new students are required to register for their course. This is an important process because it means you are officially a member of the University, and ensures you have access to all the information and resources you need for your studies. 

You should register before teaching starts on your course and when you return each year. 

You will receive an email containing your candidate number and instructions on how to complete Online Registration.

There are two steps to Online Registration.

1. Start Registration

   The first step allows you to get your username and password.

   This gives you access to your:

   • IT login (for your timetable, module resources and our online learning platform Canvas) and your Sussex email account
   • wifi set-up process to get online
   • Library account including your reading lists
   • membership of the Students’ Union.
   
   

   Tip: If you cannot see your teaching timetable or modules in Sussex Direct, contact your school office.

   Your printing account is set up the first time you log into a campus computer.

   To complete this step follow the link below and select ‘Collect username and password’. All you need is your surname, date of birth and candidate number. You should make a note somewhere safe of your username and password, which are case sensitive. 

   Register now

   Set up Okta and Multi-factor Authentication (MFA)

   You need to use our single sign-on process to access applications such as Sussex Direct and the IT Services support portal.

   To do this you need to sign in to Okta and set up Multi-factor Authentication (MFA). This will allow you to log in to systems quickly and safely with a single username and password. 

   Read the full instructions for setting up Okta and MFA. 

   Once you’ve got your login details you can update your profile, including:

   • checking personal details, including name, date of birth and contact details
   • telling us if you have any disabilities
   • declaring any criminal convictions
   • uploading a photograph for your student ID card.
   
   

   The picture you upload must be:

   • a portrait headshot with only you in the photo
   • recent and a true likeness
   • in colour
   • clear, in focus and free from red-eye or shadow
   • free of reflection or glare from glasses.
   
   

   You must:

   • face forward, look at the camera, with eyes open and nothing covering your face
   • not wear sunglasses
   • not wear a hat or cover your head unless for medical or religious reasons.
   
   

   Try not to lose your card as you may be charged for a replacement. 

2. Complete Registration

   From Monday 4 September, you can complete Registration.

   This is where we ask you to:

   • confirm your emergency/trusted contact
   • confirm your term-time address
   • agree to the University’s regulations
   • choose any option or elective modules (if applicable)
   • pay tuition fees or rent (if applicable). 
   
   

   If you complete Online Registration before 14 September 2023, we will post your student ID card to your home address (if you are UK-based and do not require a visa). This will also be the trigger to release any loan you are expecting from the Student Loans Company.

   If you complete Online Registration after 14 September 2023, your ID card will be sent to your term time address that you provided to us as part of Online Registration.

Students from Overseas

Find out what you need to do if you’re a student on a visa (including a student visa and non-student visa).

On a student visa   

If you’re a student from outside of the UK who has been issued a CAS by the University and a student visa, you will need to attend an in-person session once you’ve arrived in order to complete Registration. This also allows us to issue you with your student ID card and your Biometric Residence Permit (BRP), unless UKVI have granted you a digital visa.

You will need to bring the following documents with you:

• your passport
• evidence of your arrival date in the UK (either a stamp in your passport or your boarding card/air ticket)
• the letter from UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI) confriming your ‘leave to enter’ or ‘leave to remain’ dates
• your share code if you have digital visa status.

If you applied for a visa while still in the UK (for instance as a student who has been studying with Study Group) you will need to bring your previous BRP and evidence of your new visa application with you when you attend, in order to complete Registration.

Attending an in-person Registration session

In-person Registration will be running in the Student Centre. Between Monday 25 September and Wednesday 4 October these Registration sessions will be arranged by academic school. You will receive a welcome email from your Head of School which identifies which School you belong to. 

We will also be running a number of general drop-in Registration sessions for anyone who arrives before Welcome Week, or misses their scheduled School slot.

Check the timetable below for when to attend:

On a non-student visa

Completing Registration is different if you’re an international student with a non-student visa and haven’t been issued a CAS by the University. You do not need to attend an in-person Registration system and can upload your documents online.

The online Registration system will show you how to upload the documents you need to provide to confirm you are eligible to study in the UK. This will include your passport, document visa or share code (if you have a digital visa status). Once we have checked these documents we will be able to confirm your Registration and arrange to send you your student ID card. This check can take a few days.

Paying your fees

You pay your tuition and accommodation fees as part of the Online Registration process. You will be guided through this by the system.

If you are paying tuition fees with a Student Loans Company loan, you do not need to arrange payment through Online Registration.

If you’re staying in University-managed accommodation, you pay your accommodation fees through our accounts system a few days after you move in. We will be in touch with you about how to do this.

See more about paying fees when you start at Sussex.

Scholarships and loans

If you have a scholarship, this will show in the Registration process. If your scholarship is not showing, email scholarships@sussex.ac.uk.

Maintenance loans are released to eligible students once Registration is complete and verification has been approved.

Late arrival

All new students were expected to arrive in time for Welcome Week (starting Monday 25 September) ahead of the start of term on Monday 2 October. This was the beginning of teaching for most students.

For students experiencing exceptional circumstances which meant they would not arrive by the above dates, a latest arrival date of Friday 20 October was agreed.

If you are not in the UK and able to complete your registration by Friday 20 October, you will need to defer your offer of a place to September 2024.

Registering attendance at teaching sessions

You may need to use the SussexMobile App to register attendance at teaching sessions. If this is the case, you will be guided by your tutor.

This is different to completing the Online Registration process above.

Re-registration for returning students

All returning students are required to re-register online each academic year. As you progress from one academic stage to the next, you will be invited to register again for the next stage of your course.

See more from Before you arrive