The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, England. The university received its royal charter in 1966, along with a number of other institutions following recommendations in the Robbins Report. The University of Surrey began as the Battersea Polytechnic Institute founded in 1891 under the City of London Parochial Charities Act (1883) scheme to establish Polytechnic Institutes throughout London. The university's research output and global partnerships have led to it being regarded as one of the UK's leading research universities.

Surrey is a member of the Association of MBAs and is one of four universities in the University Global Partnership Network. Surrey is also part of the SETsquared partnership along with the University of Bath, the University of Bristol, the University of Southampton and the University of Exeter. A major centre for satellite and mobile communications research, Surrey is in partnership with King's College London and the University of Dresden to develop 5G technology worldwide. It also holds a number of formal links with institutions worldwide, including the Surrey International Institute, launched in partnership with the Dongbei University of Finance and Economics. Surrey has been awarded three Queen's Anniversary Prizes for its research, with the 2014 Research Excellence Framework ranking 78% of the university's research outputs as "world leading" or "internationally excellent".

The university's main campus is on Stag Hill, close to the centre of Guildford and adjacent to Guildford Cathedral. Surrey Sports Park is situated at the nearby Manor Park, the university's secondary campus. In addition, the university owns the Surrey Research Park, providing facilities for over 110 companies engaged in research. Among British universities, Surrey had the 14th highest average UCAS Tariff for new entrants in 2015. It is currently in the top 30 of the three main ranking compilations of universities in the United Kingdom, placing 23rd in both The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide and The Complete University Guide, and 26th in The Guardian University Guide for 2019/20. In 2019, Surrey was ranked 1st in the UK and 7th in the world for research partnerships with employers in the QS World Employability Rankings. Surrey was named as The Sunday Times University of the Year in 2016.

The chancellor of the university is Prince Edward, Duke of Kent. Current and emeritus academics at the university include ten Fellows of the Royal Society, twenty-one Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering, one Fellow of the British Academy and six Fellows of the Academy of Social Sciences. Surrey has educated many notable alumni, including Olympic gold medallists, several senior politicians, as well as a number of notable persons in various fields including the arts, sports and academia. Graduates typically abbreviate the University of Surrey to Sur when using post-nominal letters after their degree.

The university conducts extensive research on small satellites, with its Surrey Space Centre and spin-off commercial company, Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. In the 2001 Research Assessment Exercise, the University of Surrey received a 5* rating in the categories of "Sociology", "Other Studies and Professions Allied to Medicine", and "Electrical and Electronic Engineering" and a 5* rating in the categories of "Psychology", "Physics", "Applied Mathematics", "Statistics and Operational Research", "European Studies" and "Russian, Slavonic and East European Languages".

The 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey opened in September 2015, for the purpose of research for the development of the first worldwide 5G network. It has gained over £40m support from international telecommunications companies including Aeroflex, MYCOM OSI, BBC, BT Group, EE (telecommunications company), Fujitsu Laboratories of Europe, Huawei, Ofcom, Rohde & Schwarz, Samsung, Telefonica and Vodafone – and a further £11.6m from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).

In addition, the Surrey Research Park is a 28 ha (69-acre) low density development which is owned and developed by the university, providing large landscaped areas with water features and facilities for over 110 companies engaged in a broad spectrum of research, development and design activities. The university generates the third highest endowment income out of all UK universities "reflecting its commercially-orientated heritage."