New Students

Choose your optional courses

Discover more about the optional courses available across the University and how to get started with your research.

It is strongly recommended that you use the time in advance of starting your studies to explore your options and choose a selection of courses that you would be happy to take in your first year. 

What are optional courses? 

All degree programmes at the University of Edinburgh are made up of different courses. All degree programmes have courses which are compulsory to take in order to graduate with that degree (sometimes known as core courses). Many degree programmes also offer some flexibility for you to choose some courses (sometimes known as optional courses), giving you scope to experience a wider range of subjects or even try something new.

Your school will be in touch to let you know if you are able to take optional courses and provide you with further information about how and when to make your choices. 

Some courses are very popular and you are not guaranteed to get your first choice, so it is best to explore as many courses as possible and identify at least three courses that you would be happy to take. This could be a great opportunity to take a course you have never even thought of before or know little about. For example, did you know that we teach a really wide range of languages and that the vast majority are available to complete beginners?

 

Watch now - Course Options Information and Q&A Live Online Session (UG)

On Thursday 31 August,  we hosted an online session for new undergraduate students, providing general information about course options. The session covered the following key questions:

  • Why do I need to choose courses?
  • What might my choices look like?
  • How do I request those choices?
  • When will my choices be confirmed?
  • What happens if my choices are fully subscribed?

In case you couldn't join us on the day or would like a re-cap of what was covered,  you can watch a recording of the session by clicking the link below (MyEd log-in required):

Watch the Course Options Information and Q&A Live Online Session (UG) recording

Start researching your course options now

You cannot confirm your choices until you start

The information and tools below will help you to understand your course options fully before you start your studies. There are so many courses to explore and different ways to check if they are suitable for you and could take more time than you expect to go through your options. We recommend that you start using the tools below as soon as possible. 

You may wish to explore the master catalogue of courses known as the DRPS, or see how different courses fit within your programme on a system called PATH, or see how the desired course fits within your timetable on the Course Timetable Browser.

More detailed information about how each tool can be used: How to choose optional courses 

Tools to help you research your optional courses:

 

Pre-Honours Course guide (with indicative availability)

This document has been developed by Schools and Colleges, and highlights courses that you may be interested in exploring as your optional course choices. Please remember to consult course details on the DRPS for the most up to date information on each course.  

In this document you will notice some courses highlighted in green colour, these are likely to have the most availability for students enrolling from outside schools.

Course Options information for Visiting Students 

You can find additional information about what courses you can take as a visiting student, how many credits you need and what postgraduate options are available.

Courses and Credits for Visiting Students