Course Selection Guide

Course Catalogue

To explore the available courses at the University of Aberdeen, please refer to the University's Catalogue of Courses.

Our catalogue updates in late summer of each year. While there may be some changes before you arrive for your studies, as there would be at any institution, we do not expect dramatic shifts so the catalogue should be reflective of what will be available.

When exploring the catalogue it is important to know whether a course will run in the September or January term. If you are looking for courses in the September term, you should consider courses which have a 0 as the second digit in their code (e.g. EL1005); January term courses are identified by having '5' as the second digit in their code (e.g. EL1505). Occasionally courses will have other numbers, but the course catalogue entry will always tell you which term the course is running in. The catalogue should also tell you if a course is capped for numbers, which is indicated at the bottom in the 'Are there a limited number of places available' section (example below).

Course Prerequisites

While exploring the catalogue you may discover a course which has course prerequisites. Prerequisites relating to programme level/year of study (i.e. Programme Level 1, see above) are waived for study abroad and exchange students, but students will still need to meet other prerequisites where necessary. Where previous University of Aberdeen courses are referenced as a prerequisite in the catalogue, students will need to show sufficient evidence in their transcript that they have studied equivalent course material. This is especially relevant in science related subjects, and is more prevalent in higher level courses.

Subject areas by School

Below you will find a helpful list of our available subject areas, separated into their respective schools.

Students at the university of Aberdeen are expected to take 60 Aberdeen credits per term, or 120 credits over the course of the academic year. However students need to take a minimum of 46 credits per term to be classified as a full time registered student, and are allowed to take up to a maximum of 75 credits in a single term where necessary.

One University of Aberdeen credit represents what you are expected to achieve in 10 'notional hours' of learning time. Notional hours refers to the time that you will spend both in the classroom and in private study. You may find that the number of contact teaching hours in Aberdeen is less than you are used to as UK universities tend to place larger importance on self-study.

It is highly likely that your home institution uses a different credit system from that of the University of Aberdeen. To help you choose an appropriate number of courses, below you will find details on equivalent credit figures pertaining to the European and American credit systems. If you are unsure of how many credits you should take while in Aberdeen, please don't hesitate to speak to us and your home institution for guidance.

ECTS Credits

The University of Aberdeen uses a credit system which is double the ECTS system. For example, 15 Aberdeen credits corresponds to 7.5 ECTS.

US Credit Hours

The expected course load of 60 credits per term equates to approximately 15 US credit hours. Most courses are 15 credits each, which equates to 3-4 US credit hours depending on your home university.

While most of our undergraduate courses are available to exchange and study abroad students, applicants should be aware of the following course restrictions when making their selections.

European Exchange Agreement Restrictions

European exchange students are required to select at least 50% of their credits from the discipline area that corresponds to their Inter-Institutional Exchange Agreement. You may choose the remainder from our wide range of courses, subject to previous experience, availability and timetabling.

General Course restrictions

While we accept students at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, exchange students are not permitted to take the following courses:

• Level 5 (postgraduate) courses.
• Level 4 English or Linguistics courses.
• Clinical Medicine and Dentistry courses.
• Diploma in Legal Practice (DLP) courses, as identified by a 'D' in the second-to-last digit of the course code (e.g., LS55DA).
• Dissertation, Project or Professional Practice courses (unless these are specifically listed as open to non-graduating students, eg HI304J/CM4032)
• Education Courses with in-school placements.
• JB, JC, QB, QC, QI and QL coded courses

Additionally, students only studying in term 1 cannot take Level 4 courses from the School of Medical Sciences, unless given prior approval, as these are usually assessed in May.

Limited Course Availability

Please note, some course options, particularly at honours (level 3 and 4) have limited availability. The following courses do not represent an exhaustive list of capped courses, but are intended to highlight disciplines that are often close to capacity.

• Ethnology and Folklore (EF) courses
• Field courses (these will only be available to students, space permitting, where the course is mandatory for their degree)
• Level 3 English Courses
• Sixth Century (SX) courses

Timetable Clashes

Before submitting your preferred course options it is helpful to check that there will be no timetable clashes. This will allow you to get an idea of when particular courses will be held, and identify any timetabling conflicts which may require you to seek alternative options.

Applicants can check for timetable clashes by using the Course Overlay tool.

Please note: This tool should be used for guidance only, as course timetables may still be changed in the months leading up to the start of term. Furthermore, many courses provide multiple tutorial/lab slots, but only expect students to select one of them after registering. The Course Overlay will only check lecture clashes and is not able to identify clashes among optional classes within a course. If you are unsure about a particular combination of courses, then don't hesitate to contact us for further clarity.

Submitting Courses in our Application Form

When submitting courses in our application form, you will be prompted to select a minimum of eight options, maximum of ten, for your period of study. To submit a course, you will need to enter its corresponding course code, as listed in our course catalogue (For example, EL1009 is the code for Acts of Reading). Our application form is linked to our course catalogue, and will only allow you to proceed if you have input course codes correctly. If you submit a code that is not recognised, you will be prompted to replace it with an alternative

We ask applicants not only to select the minimum number of credits for their period of study, usually 60 or 120, but also to list several back up courses so we can assess your suitability against a range of options. The more options you provide, the better informed you can be about available course options prior to starting your studies at University of Aberdeen.

Offer Letters

Once your application has been approved you will receive an offer letter confirming your provisional course selection, see circled in document below. It is important that you read over the details in your offer letter to ensure your preferred course selection has been approved, check what conditions, if any, has been set for your selection, or whether you need to make alternative selections prior to the start of studies. Please note, your course selection is still provisional and subject to timetabling and availability. Other restrictions may apply as applicable, see above.

Go Abroad Tutors

All incoming exchange and study abroad students will be allocated a Go Abroad Tutor. Go Abroad Tutors will be listed on your official offer letter and can be contacted ahead of your studies to discuss any potential course changes prior to the start of term. Please contact goabroad.incoming@abdn.ac.uk to notify us of any approved course changes, including email confirmation from your Go Abroad Tutor, so we can update our records accordingly.

If you require an official learning agreement signed to confirm your final course selection, this should be completed by your Go Abroad Tutor.

My Curriculum

In the weeks leading up to the start of term your provisional course selection from your offer letter will be confirmed on My Curriculum by the Go Abroad Team. If for any reason your selection cant be processed, for example a timetable clash, you will be contacted so you can provide an alternative option.

Students are permitted to make course changes up until the end of the second week of teaching in most instances, and should contact the Go Abroad team to request any changes be actioned where necessary.