Each year, Options Solutions team members visit many, many post-secondary institutions. These visits allow us to learn beyond what is readily available on the internet and in print materials. While on campus, we often meet with admission staff and Options alumni who attend the institution. We love learning about the nuance and vibe of each place and about all the hidden opportunities that exist there.
Our Options on Tour series highlights some of our recent adventures and shares them with you. We’ll feature what we saw, who we met, and what neat things/hidden nuggets we learned.
The University of Edinburgh – Edinburgh, Scotland
At the beginning of June, Melinda took a trip to the UK for the UCAS International Conference. While she was there, she popped in to several universities. Read on for the highlights from her visit to the University of Edinburgh.
The Basics
- The University of Edinburgh is located centrally in Scotland’s capital.
- Edinburgh is the fourth-largest university in the United Kingdom by total enrolment and the second largest university in Scotland, receiving over 66,000 undergraduate applications per year.
- In 2002, the university was reorganised into three Colleges, comprised of the Colleges of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Science & Engineering, and Medicine & Vet Medicine. Within these colleges are Schools, which either represent one academic discipline such as Informatics or assemble adjacent academic disciplines such as the School of History, Classics and Archaeology.
- The Edinburgh University Students’ Association represents students to the university and the wider world and is responsible for over 250 student societies at the university.
Featured Academic Programs
- Edinburgh is well-known for their programs in medicine, informatics, and engineering.
- Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence and Computer Science.
- Masters of Informatics in Informatics (five year undergaduate Masters Programme).
- Masters of Arts in Interdisciplinary Futures (equivalent to a Bachelor of Arts).
- Bachelor of Engineering in Structural and Fire Safety Engineering.
Interesting Facts
- Princess Anne is the current chancellor of the Unviersity of Edinbugh and has been since 2011.
- Edinburgh is the home of Dolly the sheep, the first animal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell.
- The city of Edinburgh is a sister city with Vancouver and has been since 1978.
- The Main Library building was designed to look like a bookcase on the outside by its architect, Sir Basil Spence. When it was opened in 1967, it was the biggest university library in the United Kingdom. It has 8 floors, a café, and even an exhibition space on the ground floor.
- Unlike at other universities, students at the University of Edinburgh don’t wear mortar board hats at their graduation ceremony. Instead, they are tapped on the head with the ‘Geneva Bonnet’ and wear hooded robes with linings that match our degree subject and level.
Check out our Admissions category for all our Options on Tour posts!
