What can I study

Courses you can take at Edinburgh

As a visiting student at Edinburgh, you can choose courses from across 19 different schools.  

The College of Science and Engineering has seven Schools where you can take courses: 

  • Biological Sciences
  • Chemistry
  • Engineering
  • GeoSciences
  • Informatics
  • Mathematics
  • Physics and Astronomy

You can also apply for courses in the Deanery of Biomedical Sciences. 

How course selection works 

When you apply, we check all of your requested course choices to make sure they are suitable for you. This process may take some time as we send course requests to our Schools academic advisors to review. 

You can explore courses using the Visting Students Course Finder 

You should use the Course Finder to learn more about each course. It will give you a course description, pre-requisites, what level the course is, which semester it is taught in and which years students usually take it (Year 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5). 

The majority of undergraduate degree programmes at the University of Edinburgh follow a four-year degree structure.

We recommend that students try to select courses from the same year group or SCQF level. This helps to avoid timetable clashes.

Course Credits 

Students are expected to take a full course load (60 credits per semester, or 120 credits for the academic year).

 

If you're in the College of Science and Engineering (CSE) 40 out of your 60 credits each semester must be from CSE courses. 

Taking courses in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences 

You can take 20 credits per semester in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. These credits count towards your total of 60 credits per semester. 

Your place on these courses will be confirmed by the Visiting Students team in the College of Arts and Humanities. 

Courses at the School of Informatics 

Visiting students that are not on exchange can only take 20 credits per semester in the School of Informatics due to high demand. 

Credit Levels

Visiting students should choose courses in each year that match their current level of study. 

Students must check the course pages on the Visiting Students Course Finder to see what pre-requisites are needed for each course.

1st year

1st year courses are SCQF level 8. Most 1st year courses in the College of Science and Engineering need you to have studied the subject before at SQA Higher grade A/B level or equivalent. For example, courses in Physics will require students to have studied Physics and Mathematics.

2nd year

2nd year courses are SCQF level 8. These courses will need you to have studied at SQA Advanced Higher grade A or equivalent, or completed one year of degree level study in this subject area. Some courses will have more specific pre-requisites, so check the course pages on the Visiting Students Course Finder. 

3rd year

3rd year courses can be SCQF level 9 or 10. Edinburgh students will have had two years of study in the subject area when taking 3rd year courses. Visiting students should also have two years of study in the relevant subject area. 

4th year

4th year courses can be SCQF level 10 or 11. These courses are for students in their final year of study and who have already done two - three years of study in a relevant subject area (depending on your degree length). 

Course Timetables 

When you are picking your courses make sure you don't have any timetable clashes. You should check your timetable before the start of the semester using the Course Timetable Browser. 

You will notice that lectures are compulsory events, but many tutorials will show multiple options. When you arrive at Edinburgh, your Student Advisor will help you choose a tutorial that works with your timetable.

Changing your course 

If you want to make any changes to your chosen courses, you should email the CSE Visiting Students team with your updated course list, ranked in order of preference (1, 2, 3) 

You can also wait until you arrive at Edinburgh and your Student Advisor will help you change your course. 

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