Academic Induction

This two-week course is for any international undergraduate student who would like an all-round introduction to academic study at St Andrews before starting on their degree. The course has a strong focus on writing and presenting information in academic contexts.

Staff members on the induction course will help you navigate many of the most important University's administrative procedures so that you can start finding your way around the library, lecture halls and service buildings before your degree starts. You will meet students from other countries and have the opportunity to participate in a range of social activities so both your social life and your academic life should be off to a flying start.

Course dates

Friday 18 August 2023 to Thursday 31 August 2023. The mandatory course orientation day is on Friday 18 August 2023.

Tuition fees

£1,070

A non-refundable deposit of £100 is required from students with unconditional offers. You should pay your deposit for the Academic Induction course when you accept your unconditional offer for your undergraduate degree. The full fee for your Academic Induction course must be paid by Friday 9 June 2023.

Tuition fees do not cover the cost of your accommodation during the course but you will be able to apply for University accommodation if required.

Payment can be made by the following methods:

When making a payment by bank transfer or credit card, please choose the ‘Tuition fees’ option and enter the relevant amount. This applies to deposits and balance payments.

Entry requirements

To apply for this course, you must be an international student and hold an unconditional offer for an undergraduate course at the University of St Andrews beginning in September 2022.

Course structure

This course is highly intensive and entails mornings and afternoons of class contact each week, in addition to workshops, information sessions, and independent learning.

Information sessions focus on aspects of studying at St Andrews, including navigating the library and using referencing software. There is a question and answer session on the advising system and institutional teaching policies, and an introduction to a variety of University services.

Morning sessions

Morning classes are divided into blocks of 60 minutes. Most classes are dedicated to essay writing and aim to enhance your command of academic language and style, and help you to develop clarity and cohesion in your written work. This means structuring and organising your argument or discussion in the way most appropriate to each subject you study. The remaining classes are dedicated to research, presentation and seminar skills, as well as dedicated sessions on critical thinking.

Afternoon sessions

In the afternoons, there are subject-based lectures delivered by staff from a range of academic Schools. These lectures give you the opportunity to understand the rationale behind the different teaching methods used across the University and the role they play in your learning.

Course content

The general emphasis of the course is on essay writing and the presentation skills necessary for success as an undergraduate, and classes will include strategies for working with a variety of sources from books, journal articles and lectures, both in libraries and online.

During the course, you will plan, draft, edit and submit a short essay on a topic related to your main area of study.

Topics will be agreed in consultation with your tutor, with whom you will have one-to-one meetings to get advice on the process of planning, researching and drafting your essay. You will receive personalised feedback on your work-in-progress.

The course covers the following topics:
- review of and practice in academic writing styles
- improving accuracy and clarity at sentence level
- developing cohesion in paragraphs and extended writing
- avoiding plagiarism: good practice in citation and referencing of sources
- dealing with different task types, including writing for examinations
- specific written assessments such as report writing or annotated bibliographies.
Each student will have the opportunity to practise giving a presentation on an academic topic. Classes will focus on creating an appropriate blend between demonstrating your knowledge and understanding of content and effective presentation techniques on which you will be informally assessed. You will receive a formative grade and written feedback on your presentation, and you will also have the opportunity to reflect on this task with your personal tutor.

This course includes the following:
- an overview of presentation style, techniques and strategies
- effective and appropriate use of PowerPoint
- referencing sources in an academic presentation
- dealing with questions from your audience
- presenting in different settings, including academic seminars.
Attending a variety of lectures from different Schools will enhance your confidence in your ability to operate in what may be a new, less familiar teaching style. This part of the course is also valuable in giving you the opportunity to practise listening and note-taking while dealing with different styles of delivery and different accents.

There are small changes in the lecture programme every year but in 2022 subject-specific lectures included:
- An Overview of International Relations
- The History of the University of St Andrews
- Biological Energy
- What is Sustainable Development?
- Scandinavian Design
- The Black Death
- What Makes Us Human?
- The Cinematic Appeal of Spiderman
- Scottish Literature
- Building and Developing Business Relationships Online.

Accommodation

Students on the course can choose to apply to live in University accommodation. University accommodation will be available from Thursday 17 August 2023.

When you complete the online application for accommodation, you must also ensure that you apply for accommodation for the Academic Induction course. This is to ensure that you will be allocated accommodation for both this course and your degree.

Private accommodation

If you do not want to apply for University residential accommodation, please be aware that you are responsible for making your own alternative arrangements. International Education Institute staff cannot assist you in finding private rented accommodation before or during the course. St Andrews can be very busy during the summer months, and it may be difficult to find an affordable room or flat.

Find out more about private accommodation in St Andrews.

Social activities

Social activities during the programme will typically include at least one excursion and a ceilidh (a Scottish dancing evening), with live music from a local band.

Other evening activities, such as theatre trips or events at the Students' Union are not included in the course fee. However, as students on these courses typically live together in University accommodation, there is plenty of opportunities to get to know each other, and there is never any shortage of informal social events.

Some or all in-person teaching on this course may be changed to online teaching if health and safety measures in summer 2023 require us to take this step. Planned social activities may also be subject to change.