University of Edinburgh
The Edinburgh FAQ and 'Ask a Student' thread
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Original post by twister1
Hi, I am a current y12 student looking to study history at university. I plan on taking a gap year after y13 to china, where I will au pair in return for mandarin lessons, and hopefully become fluent(ish) within the year. I know that edinburgh do a combined history with chinese degree which looks brilliant, and I love the city of edinburgh as I have family there. My problem is this: I didn't take a language at GCSE and so do not have the standard C grade requirement Edinburgh want for the majority of their courses. Do you think they would consider me due to the fact I will be taking a gap year to gain a profficiency of a language? Or would they simply reject me straight off? Any insight would be very much appreciated 
Also any history students or current students with advice for applying would be lovely. Thankyou for reading x
Also any history students or current students with advice for applying would be lovely. Thankyou for reading xWhy can you not study for GCSE Chinese in your spare time and take it as an independent candidate?
I would suspect that you will be told the GCSE requirement is there and you have to meet it. Just going off to a foreign country doesn't equate to the same as having a qualification in the language. I've been to China twice, I could claim that I learnt really good Mandarin whilst I was there which is certainly the equivalent of a GCSE grade, but I didn't - how are they supposed to know whether you did or not, particularly in a language like Chinese where I imagine it is very difficult be become "fluent" in a year. Similarly, if you do indeed become fluent in the language in your year there then you won't need to study the Chinese course at Edinburgh as it assumes students have no prior knowledge (or a basic level) of the language so teaches you from scratch. An interest in China will be a requirement for the Chinese degree but they're looking for that in addition to the basic entry requirements. Similarly, given you're applying for a language course, they want to see evidence of prior success as a language learner which is why they ask for a grade A at GCSE as a minimum linguistic requirement. They don't care whether you have any knowledge of Chinese or not when you start the course (as obviously, you can be really interested in China without having studied Chinese) but they do care about whether you will be able to cope with the academic linguistic demands of a highly intensive course. If you can't prove this to them by meeting their basic requirements, then why should they give you an offer when they have more than enough great applicants who do meet the minimum requirements?
University of Edinburgh
Original post by owl1992
Hello everyone! I am a prospective undergraduate student now choosing between Edinburgh and York for my firm choice. The only thing that I worry about studying at Edinburgh is the weather there. I am quite a careless person that often fall over nothing. (4 times last year...and there's a scar on my leg) I would like to know if it is hard to walk & easy to slip over when it snows & when the snow turns to ice? Do you often see people slip over in the snow and have to be taken to the hospital?
It may be a stupid question but I hope someone will help me out :/
Thank you
It may be a stupid question but I hope someone will help me out :/
Thank you
I saw snow in Edinburgh once during my entire degree of four years.
It did actually snow more times than that during my degree, I was just never there when it did.
Edinburgh snow isn't like in northern European countries where the snow comes in early November and lasts until May, it snows maybe twice a year and by snow I mean its a rainy/snowy kind of snow which doesn't really stick to the ground. If it does stick then it's only there for a day or two... a week as an absolute maximum.
dothestrand & oxymoronic!!! That is such a relief! 
Thank you!!Original post by Sule12
Do you know of the chances of having a gab year between applying and attending?
Well you'd either have to apply for deferred entry or get an offer then ask to defer it. They might be okay with it, they might not be, all you can do is try. If you know you want a gap year then you can always apply during your gap year for entry the following year.
I said fluent-ish, meaning I would have a grasp on the language. Obviously it is a difficult language but with 2 hours of mandarin lessons a day for a year as well as being able to practice a lot of the time, I would of thought I would be at least gcse level. GCSE chinese is not available to me - I have no money for a tutor, it isn't offered anywhere near me as I live in a small village in theddlethorpe, and self teaching chinese sounds slightly ambitious whilst doing 4 a levels don't you think? I'm not assuming they would give me an offer, I was asking an opinion to see if I stood a chance/ whether my goal was realistic. Also, my friend moved to Shanghai 8 months ago and is now a very competent mandarin speaker.. just saying. If you were trying to be helpful then sorry and thankyou but your tone sounds a bit rude to me, i don't see why people on this site have to pick holes in everything all the time.
Original post by twister1
I said fluent-ish, meaning I would have a grasp on the language. Obviously it is a difficult language but with 2 hours of mandarin lessons a day for a year as well as being able to practice a lot of the time, I would of thought I would be at least gcse level. GCSE chinese is not available to me - I have no money for a tutor, it isn't offered anywhere near me as I live in a small village in theddlethorpe, and self teaching chinese sounds slightly ambitious whilst doing 4 a levels don't you think? I'm not assuming they would give me an offer, I was asking an opinion to see if I stood a chance/ whether my goal was realistic. Also, my friend moved to Shanghai 8 months ago and is now a very competent mandarin speaker.. just saying. If you were trying to be helpful then sorry and thankyou but your tone sounds a bit rude to me, i don't see why people on this site have to pick holes in everything all the time.
I meant why don't you self teach Chinese in your gap year (which you'll be doing anyway) then put yourself in to sit the GCSE exam? You can do it as a private candidate, you just have to find an exam centre to let you sit it there so you could do it at your school where you've been taking your A levels at the moment. I believe the speaking exam has been removed from some GCSE Chinese syllabuses due to the difficulty of the language and also because its difficult to get enough people in each exam centre with enough knowledge of the language to cover the exam.
I was trying to be helpful yes, but I'm also being realistic as someone who works in the university applications sphere and knows more than enough about Edinburgh's admissions policy to tell you that if you do not have an A in a GCSE language then you will not be considered for a place because you do not meet the minimum entry requirements. However, if you want less informed people than me to reply to you and tell you that yes, you're likely to be considered because a GCSE in a language isn't really that important and as long as you have a brilliant personal statement then you'll definitely get an offer blah blah blah than that's fine but that isn't overly helpful to your situation.
People on TSR (particularly the people on the advisory side of the site) don't pick holes in things for the sake of it. I would have had a VERY dull life for the last 6 years if that's all I did on here!
We just use our vast experience and knowledge to support applicants as we know that not everyone can get the support they need from elsewhere. Sometimes that does involve telling people what they don't want to hear, but in the long run, that's actually better than wasting a choice and applying to somewhere you can't get into because someone who was less informed told you that a GCSE didn't matter. Anyway, good luck in your application
Hi everyone,
I'm a prospective international postgrad, joining Edinburgh in September. I currently hold a conditional offer from the university, and was wondering how long do they usually take to give an unconditional offer once I submit my required documents (my degree certificate etc.) Since I can apply for a tier 4 visa only once I receive this unconditional offer, I need to make travel plans accordingly. I asked the university and they gave me a vague answer, so I want to get a general idea from students who've been through this process.
Thanks!
I'm a prospective international postgrad, joining Edinburgh in September. I currently hold a conditional offer from the university, and was wondering how long do they usually take to give an unconditional offer once I submit my required documents (my degree certificate etc.) Since I can apply for a tier 4 visa only once I receive this unconditional offer, I need to make travel plans accordingly. I asked the university and they gave me a vague answer, so I want to get a general idea from students who've been through this process.
Thanks!
Hello Everyone, more specifically the moderator.
I am currently a NQF4 diploma student (graduate in august) in the UK. I applied to Edinburgh for a safety and I am not sure what I really have at my hands now so I need some assessing. I applied for LN14(Biz and acct) and got a conditional offer. its offer states
"Pass all subjects in Semester One with 50% in all subjects"
So my first question is, does it mean I got in ? Is the only requirement for me to pass in 1st Year?
Secondly, Because I am doing an accelerated course which allows me to do a similar degree in 2.5 years at UoExeter, (Graduate 2014), I am not sure which is better. I am really confused as to what kind of offer did i received. I got a 29 for IB despite a requirement of 34. is it a rare or common offer? and should i take it, or continue with the accelerated degree.
I am currently a NQF4 diploma student (graduate in august) in the UK. I applied to Edinburgh for a safety and I am not sure what I really have at my hands now so I need some assessing. I applied for LN14(Biz and acct) and got a conditional offer. its offer states
"Pass all subjects in Semester One with 50% in all subjects"
So my first question is, does it mean I got in ? Is the only requirement for me to pass in 1st Year?
Secondly, Because I am doing an accelerated course which allows me to do a similar degree in 2.5 years at UoExeter, (Graduate 2014), I am not sure which is better. I am really confused as to what kind of offer did i received. I got a 29 for IB despite a requirement of 34. is it a rare or common offer? and should i take it, or continue with the accelerated degree.
Original post by realistic-nonsense
Hello Everyone, more specifically the moderator.
Other people can help you too - they all know what they're talking about
I am currently a NQF4 diploma student (graduate in august) in the UK. I applied to Edinburgh for a safety and I am not sure what I really have at my hands now so I need some assessing. I applied for LN14(Biz and acct) and got a conditional offer. its offer states
"Pass all subjects in Semester One with 50% in all subjects"
So my first question is, does it mean I got in ? Is the only requirement for me to pass in 1st Year?
Secondly, Because I am doing an accelerated course which allows me to do a similar degree in 2.5 years at UoExeter, (Graduate 2014), I am not sure which is better. I am really confused as to what kind of offer did i received. I got a 29 for IB despite a requirement of 34. is it a rare or common offer? and should i take it, or continue with the accelerated degree.
"Pass all subjects in Semester One with 50% in all subjects"
So my first question is, does it mean I got in ? Is the only requirement for me to pass in 1st Year?
Secondly, Because I am doing an accelerated course which allows me to do a similar degree in 2.5 years at UoExeter, (Graduate 2014), I am not sure which is better. I am really confused as to what kind of offer did i received. I got a 29 for IB despite a requirement of 34. is it a rare or common offer? and should i take it, or continue with the accelerated degree.
Yes, if you got a conditional offer it makes you have a place providing you get 50% in everything that you're studying in semester one of your current course. Your current course is slightly harder than a normal A level course so this will be why they have only asked that you pass the course with at least 50%. If you have already achieved that then you can ask your current college to send notification to Edinburgh and then the university will give you an unconditional offer,
With Exeter, do you mean that you have been given an offer for 29 IB points? (rather than for your NQF4 diploma?)
As it doesn't matter about the requirement - they clearly liked your application and you have a place. I don't know if that is a common offer for the course at Exeter or not. If you are doing the IB and the NQF4 course together, they might have given you a low IB offer because you will gain a lot of knowledge from your NQF4 course too.
In terms of what you should do, I think you need to think about the course content and also the cost. Studying at Edinburgh for 4 years will be very expensive if you are paying international student fees. If you can spend half of that money and study at Exeter instead that seems quite good as Exeter is a very good university too. Have you looked at what you will be studying at Exeter? How come you can do it in 2.5 years? Is there an agreement with your current NQF4 course?
Right this is a strange question.
I hold an Uncon offer for Biological Sciences.
Recently I have decided I would quite like to study Humanities (history etc).
Will Edinburgh allow me to change?
I hold an Uncon offer for Biological Sciences.
Recently I have decided I would quite like to study Humanities (history etc).
Will Edinburgh allow me to change?
Original post by Cyanohydrin
Right this is a strange question.
I hold an Uncon offer for Biological Sciences.
Recently I have decided I would quite like to study Humanities (history etc).
Will Edinburgh allow me to change?
I hold an Uncon offer for Biological Sciences.
Recently I have decided I would quite like to study Humanities (history etc).
Will Edinburgh allow me to change?
Almost certainly not. They're usually very good about slight changes - biology to biological sciences, or similar. But changing your entire Faculty and going for a higher demand course is unlikely to happen. You would also have to meet the requirement for a History offer.
Best thing to do is ask the University directly. Like I say, they probably won't let you, but can't hurt to ask.
Original post by Cyanohydrin
Right this is a strange question.
I hold an Uncon offer for Biological Sciences.
Recently I have decided I would quite like to study Humanities (history etc).
Will Edinburgh allow me to change?
I hold an Uncon offer for Biological Sciences.
Recently I have decided I would quite like to study Humanities (history etc).
Will Edinburgh allow me to change?
Actually, when i went to the biological sciences faculty post app open day, they did say it is possible to change to that humanities faculty... i mean you will probably have to be outstanding but it isn't impossible
Hey!
I just had a question about accommodation. I have a dust allergy and I was wondering if all the rooms (specifically in catered at Pollock) have a carpet in them? From what I've seen on the accommodation website, there doesn't seem to be any rooms with panelled flooring. Thanks
I just had a question about accommodation. I have a dust allergy and I was wondering if all the rooms (specifically in catered at Pollock) have a carpet in them? From what I've seen on the accommodation website, there doesn't seem to be any rooms with panelled flooring. Thanks
Original post by Snapescape
Hey!
I just had a question about accommodation. I have a dust allergy and I was wondering if all the rooms (specifically in catered at Pollock) have a carpet in them? From what I've seen on the accommodation website, there doesn't seem to be any rooms with panelled flooring. Thanks
I just had a question about accommodation. I have a dust allergy and I was wondering if all the rooms (specifically in catered at Pollock) have a carpet in them? From what I've seen on the accommodation website, there doesn't seem to be any rooms with panelled flooring. Thanks
John Burnett has a handful of rooms that aren't carpeted. Not sure how you request them, but the residents in them are all allergic to dust, so there must be a mechanism to ask.
Hey everyone,
New poster here! I've received offers to study at the University of Edinburgh for Sustainable Development as a 2nd year transfer student and IR for first year entry. I'd love to find out more about the programs, so If any students that are in sustainable development currently frequent this board, I'd love to ask you a few questions personally to get a better sense of the program. It's my understanding that it was only implemented a few years ago and is quite new.
EDIT: Also, as far as sustainable development goes, students are supposed to choose one of five sub-disciplines within that to study from. I was offered a position in Sustainable Development and Politics specifically. However, looking at the course offerings Sustainable Development and Geography looks more appealing to me. Would it be possible to change my sub-focus from politics to geography?
resources here: http://www.sps.ed.ac.uk/undergrad/prospective/sustainable_development/programme_overview/pathways
Cheers!
New poster here! I've received offers to study at the University of Edinburgh for Sustainable Development as a 2nd year transfer student and IR for first year entry. I'd love to find out more about the programs, so If any students that are in sustainable development currently frequent this board, I'd love to ask you a few questions personally to get a better sense of the program. It's my understanding that it was only implemented a few years ago and is quite new.
EDIT: Also, as far as sustainable development goes, students are supposed to choose one of five sub-disciplines within that to study from. I was offered a position in Sustainable Development and Politics specifically. However, looking at the course offerings Sustainable Development and Geography looks more appealing to me. Would it be possible to change my sub-focus from politics to geography?
resources here: http://www.sps.ed.ac.uk/undergrad/prospective/sustainable_development/programme_overview/pathways
Cheers!
(edited 11 years ago)
Hi
I was wondering if there were any current English Lit students on this thread? I'm pretty sure I want to firm Edinburgh as I love pretty much everything about it. There's just one thing that's bugging me and that's the low satisfaction scores. I've read on a few websites that staff don't give students enough feedback when it comes to essays and close readings. Apparently it takes them a while to grade and then it's really hard to decipher what they've written? I'm fine when it comes to working by myself but now and then I need a little guidance..
Please answer asap, this UCAS deadline is looming thank you!
I was wondering if there were any current English Lit students on this thread? I'm pretty sure I want to firm Edinburgh as I love pretty much everything about it. There's just one thing that's bugging me and that's the low satisfaction scores. I've read on a few websites that staff don't give students enough feedback when it comes to essays and close readings. Apparently it takes them a while to grade and then it's really hard to decipher what they've written? I'm fine when it comes to working by myself but now and then I need a little guidance..
Please answer asap, this UCAS deadline is looming
thank you!
Original post by Snapescape
Hi
I was wondering if there were any current English Lit students on this thread? I'm pretty sure I want to firm Edinburgh as I love pretty much everything about it. There's just one thing that's bugging me and that's the low satisfaction scores. I've read on a few websites that staff don't give students enough feedback when it comes to essays and close readings. Apparently it takes them a while to grade and then it's really hard to decipher what they've written? I'm fine when it comes to working by myself but now and then I need a little guidance..
Please answer asap, this UCAS deadline is looming thank you!
I was wondering if there were any current English Lit students on this thread? I'm pretty sure I want to firm Edinburgh as I love pretty much everything about it. There's just one thing that's bugging me and that's the low satisfaction scores. I've read on a few websites that staff don't give students enough feedback when it comes to essays and close readings. Apparently it takes them a while to grade and then it's really hard to decipher what they've written? I'm fine when it comes to working by myself but now and then I need a little guidance..
Please answer asap, this UCAS deadline is looming
thank you!This is the response from one of my flatmates who studies english lit:
"Hmm, seeing we're only in first year maybe we haven't been through enough of the course to judge, but so far I think the marking and feedback is pretty standard. Other courses (philo and psych) sometimes take even longer to give us essay feedback so I guess I've never seen it as an issue, really. As for guidance, our tutor is really, really helpful, as well as our course organiser (by which I mean at least he replies to my emails). Essay feedback hasn't really been a problem so far, but 1. it depends on which tutor you get I guess and 2. I can only imagine it will probably get a bit worse in later years, as essay markers will be actual professors and not PhD students.
I hope this is helpful :|? Satisfaction-wise, the course is great!"
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