A Gude to Undergraduate Study at the University of Aberdeen for North American Students

1. Undergraduate Study
Brian Hussey
International Officer

2. Key Facts
• Founded in 1495, the 5th oldest university in the English-speaking world
• 15,000 students
• 12,000 Undergraduate Students
• 3,000 Graduate Students
• 32% international (representing 120 nationalities)
• Over 70 majors spanning the Arts, Social Sciences, Law, Business,
Engineering, Science and Medicine
• Named in the Top Ten Most Beautiful Historic Universities in the UK by QS
Top Universities website

3. Location
Aberdeen
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Inverness
London
DundeePerth
Birmingham
Manchester
Travel Times
Edinburgh – 2hr 30 mins
Glasgow – 3hrs
Inverness – 2hr 15 mins
London – 1hr 20 mins
Paris – 2hrs
Amsterdam – 1hr 35 mins
Frankfurt – 2 hrs

4. Academic Structure
Arts and Social Sciences
• Business School
• School of Divinity, History and
Philosophy
• School of Education
• School of Language, Literature,
Music and Visual Culture
• School of Law
• School of Social Sciences
Life Sciences and Medicine
• School of Biological Sciences
• School of Medicine, Medical
Sciences and Nutrition
• School of Psychology
Physical Sciences
• School of Engineering
• School of Geosciences
• School of Natural and Computing
Sciences

5. Reputation & Rankings
• Ranked 137th in the world (top 1%), 2015-16 QS World
Rankings
• Ranked 85th in Europe, Times Higher Rankings, 2016
• Ranked 55th in the world for research impact, 2015
CWTS Leiden Rankings
• Ranked 23rd in the world in the Times Higher Education
World University Rankings of the best ancient universities
(over 400 years)
• Ranked 84th in the world for Life Sciences, 2015 THE
World University Rankings

6. Campus
• Located in the historic district of Old
Aberdeen – 20 minute walk from the centre of
the modern city.
• Sir Duncan Rice Library (2012), named
amongst the “20 Most Spellbinding University
Libraries in the world” by the Independent
newspaper.
• Sports Village and Aquatics Centre
• 7 Museum Collections

16. Undergraduate Study
• 4 year undergraduate degree system
• Degree Programmes: Master of Arts, Bachelor
of Science, Bachelor of Divinity, Bachelor of
Engineering, Bachelor of Law
• Over 75 subjects (majors)
• Single Honours or Joint Honours degrees
• Emphasis on breadth and flexibility, with
opportunity to change subject
• Major research project in senior year

17. Enhanced Study
Select your additional classes from outside your main subject from three
types:
• Sustained Study: Study a language, business subject or computing
alongside your main subject over years 1 and 2
• Discipline Breadth Courses: Courses chosen from outside the student’s
specified degree subject (major).
• Sixth Century Courses: Cross-disciplinary courses designed to help you
develop a deeper critical understanding of your chosen area of study by
setting the subject in a wider context.

18. Minimum Entry Requirements
United States
• High School Diploma (>3.3)
• SAT 1250 or ACT 26
• SAT Subject Tests
• APs (Grade 3 or above for specific subject requirements)
• Personal Statement and Reference
Canada
• High School Diploma (>75%) + Subject Requirements
International Baccalaureate
• 32 Points (including 5,5,5 at HL)

19. How to Apply
UCAS (www.ucas.com)
• Apply top up to 5 choices in the UK
• Home Students Deadline: 15 January, excluding Medicine (15th
October)
• International Student Deadline: 30 June
Common App (www.commonapp.org)
• To be used if applying only to the University of Aberdeen – not
permitted if applying on UCAS to other UK universities
• International Student Deadline: 30 June

20. Admissions: 5 Things to remember…
1. Apply to your chosen subject (e.g. Politics & International Relations,
History, Marine Biology, Engineering)
2. Students are admitted to the relevant degree programme, depending on
their subject, e.g. Master of Arts (MA), Bachelor of Science (BSc),
Bachelor of Engineering (BEng), Bachelor of Law (LLB)
3. Entry requirements vary by degree programme
4. As you are admitted to a degree programme, you can change to another
subject (major) within the degree programme
5. You will begin taking some classes from your subject (major) in your first
year, but you are also required to choose classes from other subjects

21. Academic Year 2016-17
FALL
Move In Weekend 3rd and 4th September
Term Opens 5th September (Orientation Week)
Teaching Commences 12th September
Exams 3rd – 16th December
SPRING
Move In Weekend 7th-8th January
Term Opens 10th January (Orientation Week)
Teaching Commences 16th January
Spring Break 31st March – 24th April
Exams 29th April – 19th May

22. Cost of Attendance
Entry 2017/18 £GBP (per year)
Arts/Humanities-Based Programmes £14,700
Science/Engineering-Based Programmes £18,000
Average Room & Board and Day-to-Day Living Costs* £8,100
Average Total Cost of Attendance (Arts-based) £22,800
Average Total Cost of Attendance (Science/Engineering) £26,100
*Includes food, housing, recreation, laundry, local transport, phone, utilities. Please note, students applying for a Tier 4 visa are
required to demonstrate access to £1,105 per month in order to comply with visa regulations. See www.gov.uk/tier-4-general-visa

23. International Undergraduate Scholarship
• Scholarship covers fourth year tuition of your degree
• Open to all eligible international undergraduate students studying for 4
years or more at the University of Aberdeen (excludes Medicine).
• Awarded upfront upon admission to the University
• No separate application required
Fixed Fee Structure
• International Undergraduate fees (excluding Medicine) are fixed for each
year of study
• The same fee is applies over each year of study.

24. Findlay Walker Scholarship (US Students)
• Two awards of $2,000 for new incoming US undergraduate students
Federal Aid (US Students)
• FAFSA Student Loans
• FAFSA Code: G09368

25. Aberdeen
• Population: 220,000
• Student City - 2 universities and 1 college
• Safest City in the UK
• Milder than you might think! - Average
January Temperature: 4ºC/ 39ºF
• Beach – 15 walk from campus

26. Aberdeen
• International Airport with direct flights to
London, Amsterdam, Dublin, and Paris
• Cosmopolitan – 1 in 6 born outside of the
UK
• Major international centre for the energy
industry, particularly oil, gas and renewables
• Known as “Castle Country”, Aberdeenshire
is home to over 300 castles, including
Balmoral Castle, the summer residence of
the British Royal Family

27. Aberdeen
• 10 Festivals (visual arts, music, literature,
and tech)
• Art galleries, theatres and museums
• Aberdeen Dolphinwatch
• Cairngorms National Park just 2 hrs drive
(including Ski resorts)
• Traditional Pubs, Live Music Venue and
Clubs

28. Weather
City
Average Daylight
Hours - January
Average Daylight
Hours -June
Average
Temperature °C ( °F)
- January
Average
Temperature °C ( °F)
- June
Average Rainfall
mm (in) - January
Average Rainfall
mm (in) - June
Aberdeen 7h, 28m 17h, 49m 3 (37) 12 (54) 82 (3) 53 (2)
Edinburgh 7h,41m 17h, 30m 3 (37) 13 (55) 57 (2) 51 (2)
Glasgow 7h, 42m 17h 28m 3 (37) 14 (56) 111 (4) 70 (3)
London 8h 24m 16h 31m 4 (39) 16 (60) 53 (2) 46 (2)
Manchester 8h 07m 16h 55m 4 (39) 14 (58) 69 (3) 67 (3)
Sources:
www.climatemps.com

29. Student Life
• 55 Student Sports Clubs
• 100 Student Societies
• Volunteering Opportunities
• Aberdeen University Students' Association
(AUSA)
• Student Media (Aberdeen Student Radio and
The Gaudie Newspaper)

30. STAR Award
• STAR (Students Taking Active Roles) Award is
your opportunity to gain recognition for your
skills and attributes development
• Includes Students’ Association roles and on-
campus positions such as Class Rep or S4S
Mentor.
• involves skills development workshops,
maintaining a record of your activities and
completing a competency-based assessment

31. Careers Service
• 1-2-1 Appointments
• STAR Award
• Internships
• Career Mentoring Programme
• BP Tutoring Scheme
• Professional Skills Programmes
• Graduate Careers Fairs
• Volunteering and part-time work

32. Study Abroad
• Erasmus
• Departmental exchanges with European
universities
• International Exchange
• Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong,
Japan, Mexico, Singapore, USA

33. Housing
www.abdn.ac.uk/accommodation
• Housing guaranteed for all new students
• Catered or self-catered options
• Corridor style or Apartment-style units
• All students have their own single room

34. Housing
• Old Aberdeen campus (Catered)
• Johnston Hall
• Crombie Hall (en-suite bathrooms available)
• Hillhead Student Village (Self-catered)
• Adam Smith, Fyfe and Wavell (corridor style
units with shared kitchen & toilet/shower
facilities)
• Grant Court, Hector Boece, Keith House
(self-catered apartments)
• New Carnegie (self-catered apartments with
en-suite bathrooms)
• North Court, South House (self catered
apartments with shared bathroom)

35. Student Support
• Orientation
• Personal Tutor
• Student Learning Centre
• Careers Service
• International Student Advisers (Visa advice)
• International Centre
• Counselling Service
• Chaplaincy
• Resident Assistants (RAs)
• AUSA Student Advice Centre

36. Student Visa
• TIER 4 Student Visa
• Apply 3 months before your programme
commences
• Entitlement to work (20 hrs per week
during term)
• Payment of Immigration Health Surcharge
of £150 per year gives Access National
Health Service (NHS)
• Free access to doctor (physician),
prescriptions and hospital care

38. Contact Us
Brian Hussey
Lead International Officer (Americas)
University of Aberdeen
t: +44 1224 272187
e: brian.hussey@abdn.ac.uk
w: www.abdn.ac.uk/international/
www.instagram.com/study_in_aberdeen/
www.studyinaberdeen.wordpress.com/
www.youtube.com/user/uniofaberdeen