Scottish Studies

What makes a nation? This course looks at the ways in which Scotland was forged from a rich diversity of competing local identities, languages, ethnicities and international interactions.

Subject content

Contributions from scholars across the humanities will help you to understand how national identity is created and sustained through histories, visual arts and music. 

Topic examples

• Film – Nation, People, Place.  
• Reformation and Mary Queen of Scots.
• National Song.
• Scotland and the Renaissance.

These examples are merely a sample and are based on previous years. Topics may change based on the curriculum chosen by the department in any given year. 

Academic skills

Aside from the study of specific content, students will learn to improve their academic writing, learning to shape arguments and developing an academic writing style, whilst also improving their subject-specific vocabulary.

Learning experiences

Students will experience a mixture of lectures, seminars, group work and independent study on this course. Lecture content is taught by staff of the University of St Andrews. 

Additional information

The academic course is enhanced by field trips to sites of interest such as Falkland Palace, and cultural enrichment is provided through the general Academic Experience Courses, which includes an extensive programme of social and cultural activities, sports and much more. 

Course information

Students will receive an official certificate from the University of St Andrews to confirm their successful completion of the course.