St Andrews - Ask A Current Student Thread

Are you a current applicant? Or are you applying in September??
At the moment (based on my little knowledge of SQA) that you're doing great with good grades and predicted good grades. And if you do get accepted on the Sutton Trust Summer School, then that will be great on an application.
If you are currently waiting for an offer, they will probably not know about your Sutton Trust application and so it'll have little effect on your current position. But with what you have and are predicted, I'd say you stand a chance.

What subject are you/have you applied for??

Can someone find you a bus timetable? Pull your finger out your arse mate.

well, i haven't applied for any unis yet, and i'm still waiting for a response from the Sutton Trust, which they have said will arrive in April. Now that you mention it, i don't actually know when to apply for Astrophysics/Astronomy they want AAAAB minimum at higher (with an A in maths and physics), but they haven't specified anything about advanced highers, which i am picking this week and will be starting in June i think advanced highers are only actually useful for 2nd-level entry whereby you basically skip your first year, or so i'm told.. so yeah... when SHOULD i apply??

well, i haven't applied for any unis yet, and i'm still waiting for a response from the Sutton Trust, which they have said will arrive in April. Now that you mention it, i don't actually know when to apply for Astrophysics/Astronomy they want AAAAB minimum at higher (with an A in maths and physics), but they haven't specified anything about advanced highers, which i am picking this week and will be starting in June i think advanced highers are only actually useful for 2nd-level entry whereby you basically skip your first year, or so i'm told.. so yeah... when SHOULD i apply??

To all the people who currently attend St.Andrews,

Just need a word of info/advice, I have an offer from St.Andrews to study Chemistry at undergraduate level and I'm keen on attending this September. However I also really love acting and theatre and I'm pretty sure St.Andrews isn't a liberal-arts-style program kinda thing so its a single degree you get at the end- how is the theatre group there? And how are the shows and how serious do people take theatre?
If I could I'd take a double major but that's only possible in liberal arts colleges...like one I've had an acceptance from in New York. St.Andrews is still my first choice though and I just need a word of advice about what the theatre/drama community is like over there? Just so I don't turn up in St.Andrews and get dubbed as the retard Jim Carrey of the campus.

Thank you!

1. How small are tutorial classes generally?
2. For the first year in which you take 3 subjects, can the 3rd subject be from a different faculty? (I'm thinking of whether it's possible to take up Economics, Biology/Psychology and English and I've got an offer for BSc Econ).
3. Do most students there drink? I'm aware that alcohol is prevalent in Scotland in general, but is it less so in St Andrews since it's a smaller town?
4. The only not-so-decent thing I heard about St Andrews is its library. How big of an issue is this to you?

2. For the first year in which you take 3 subjects, can the 3rd subject be from a different faculty? (I'm thinking of whether it's possible to take up Economics, Biology/Psychology and English and I've got an offer for BSc Econ).
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2. You have to stay within one Faculty but Arts also offers Economics, Psychology and English (not Biology though). I think as long as you fulfil the Faculty requirements you can change Faculty once you arrive. Though double-check with the website/prospectus/admissions.

I was under the impression (and always have been) that in your 1st year you can take modules outwith your faculty, so even if you were in the faculty of science you could still do economics, bio/psych and English, even though English is only in the arts faculty. I also think it's really difficult to change your FACULTY, as everything you do is based around your faculty basically (ie. your adviser will be only for those in the science faculty)

I was under the impression (and always have been) that in your 1st year you can take modules outwith your faculty, so even if you were in the faculty of science you could still do economics, bio/psych and English, even though English is only in the arts faculty. I also think it's really difficult to change your FACULTY, as everything you do is based around your faculty basically (ie. your adviser will be only for those in the science faculty)

I think you're right. For 1st years you can take any additional modules anywhere in the university, as long as there are no lecture classes. And that if you want to change your actually course within a faculty or the university is harder.

That's what was explained to me anyway...

I was under the impression (and always have been) that in your 1st year you can take modules outwith your faculty, so even if you were in the faculty of science you could still do economics, bio/psych and English, even though English is only in the arts faculty. I also think it's really difficult to change your FACULTY, as everything you do is based around your faculty basically (ie. your adviser will be only for those in the science faculty)

1. Depends on subject, but I guess mostly about 10 people. In Ancient History we are currently 8.
2. You have to stay within one Faculty but Arts also offers Economics, Psychology and English (not Biology though). I think as long as you fulfil the Faculty requirements you can change Faculty once you arrive. Though double-check with the website/prospectus/admissions.
3. I don't and some friends don't, many others do, and some get very wasted very often. It just depends on what you want to do.
4. I'm doing Classics and I've been finding it quite okay, even quite good often. It depends on the subject and on how specific the things you're looking for are.

Hope that gives you a taste.

Hm. Would it be possible to change from single honours to joint honours? I was looking into it, but couldn't find any answer.

Could a current Mathematics student help me?

I've applied and have an unconditional offer for BSc Mathematics. I was wondering how flexible it is to switch between the BSc and MMath? The other universities I've applied to it's pretty easy to switch between the two or you don't need to decide until 2nd year. I've looked around on the St. Andrews website and it doesn't really say anything about it.

I'm not doing the degree, but it's the same faculty though...
It's really easy to swap between the two. You don't even have to formally decide which one you do until about 2nd/3rd year because all modules are the same, but after that you need to decide which path.

I'm not doing the degree, but it's the same faculty though...
It's really easy to swap between the two. You don't even have to formally decide which one you do until about 2nd/3rd year because all modules are the same, but after that you need to decide which path.

Thank you for your reply! That really helps =) I'm currently trying to choose my insurance so...

Hi, i'm interested in applying for philosophy or social anthropology at St. Andrews but have a few questions.
My gcses are good, all a but lack the a* for the oxbridges etc. Does this matter much when applying here?
In terms of personal statement which is very important, what sort of things are they looking for in it?
Any responses would be kindly appreciated, thanks