Degree finder

UCAS code: VV92

Duration: 4 years

Delivery: Full-time

School: Literatures, Languages and Cultures

College: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Study abroad

Introducing MA Scottish Ethnology and Scottish History

Uncover Scotland’s past and help shape its future, while gaining skills that you can apply to any culture. This programme combines two complementary approaches to the study of the Scottish nation, past and present.

Ethnology is the discipline which studies the culture and traditions of developed societies and is sometimes described as being at the intersection where history and anthropology meet. While commonly offered in universities across Europe, this is the only full undergraduate programme of its kind available within the UK.

Focusing on Scotland, but introducing comparative material from elsewhere, you will study the varying ways in which a modern European nation expresses itself culturally, through such forms as its customs, beliefs, social organisation, language, music and song.

How do these help to create and shape identity in the modern world? How do we use and make sense of the past from within our present, and how can this understanding help us to shape our future?

Working with a range of rich materials, from traditional archives to modern media and digital data, you will develop the practical and intellectual tools to help navigate and indeed influence contemporary culture and society in an increasingly globalised world.

The University of Edinburgh is one of the great centres for the study of Scottish History. We offer an unrivalled concentration of expertise in this field with courses covering the political, intellectual, economic, social and cultural history of Scotland from the medieval period to the recent past.

These courses deal with the great events, movements and ideas that have defined the Scottish past, and with the individuals, communities and institutions that have shaped Scottish life. Particular emphasis is given to the history of Edinburgh, to Scotland’s evolving relationship with the other parts of the British Isles, and with the significant influence of Scots across the wider world.

You will benefit from the rich archival resources available not only within the University but also in the great collections based in the city, including the National Library, National Archives, National Galleries and National Museums of Scotland.

What you will study

Year 1

You will study Scottish cultural history, heritage, cultural expression and representation. Courses also look at literature, music and visual arts and how these are linked to Scottish identity.

You will take a course on the history of Edinburgh from the Iron Age to the present day, and a compulsory course in historical skills that engages with broader questions about the nature of history as an academic discipline and the methods and skills required for historical research.

In addition, you will choose from a wide range of option courses offered by the University of Edinburgh.

Year 2

You will study oral and visual representations of Scotland through music, song, art, photography and film and you will receive practical training in ethnographic fieldwork techniques and ethics.

You will also take a course on historiography and a course that provides a wide-ranging overview of the history of Scotland from the early modern period to the twentieth century.

As in Year 1, you will have a choice from a wide range of option courses offered by the University of Edinburgh.

Year 3

In Year 3, you will choose from a range of specialist courses in both Scottish Ethnology and Scottish History.

Year 4

In Year 4, you will choose further specialist courses and will undertake your dissertation.

Programme structure

Find out more about the compulsory and optional courses in this degree programme.

To give you an idea of what you will study on this programme, we publish the latest available information. However, please note this may not be for your year of entry, but for a different academic year.

Programme structure (2020/21)

Where you will study

Our facilities

Teaching takes place in and around the University of Edinburgh's Central Area in a world-leading festival city bursting with cinemas, theatres, galleries, libraries and collections, including the National Library, Museum, Archives, and Galleries of Scotland, the Scottish Poetry Library, Museum of Edinburgh, and Scottish Storytelling Centre.

As well as the University's excellent computing and audiovisual resources, support services and social spaces, you'll also have access to specialist collections such as the School of Scottish Studies Archives, a unique and extensive collection of audio and visual material relating to the culture and tradition of Scotland (including some 33,000 audio recordings), and to the Archive’s extensive library holdings, including important Scottish ethnological, wider ethnological, and Celtic holdings.

Study abroad

There are opportunities to study abroad in Year 3 through the University's international exchange programme.

What are my options for going abroad?

Learning and assessment

How will I learn?

Courses are taught through a combination of lectures, seminars and small group tutorials. Extensive use is also made of audio and visual resources, as well as readily accessible online materials.

Great care is taken in providing a welcoming learning environment with regular face-to-face access to tutors, lecturers and support staff.

How will I be assessed?

You will be assessed through coursework and exams. In Years 3 and 4 you will complete a dissertation and regular presentations, as well as a range of innovative assessment forms such as 'audio essays' in the manner of a radio broadcast.

Programme details

Find out more about this programme's aims, what you will learn, how you will be assessed and what skills and knowledge you will develop.

To give you an idea of what to expect from this programme, we publish the latest available information. However, please note this may not be for your year of entry, but for a different academic year.

Programme details (2020/21)

Career opportunities

Scottish Ethnology and Scottish History graduates are highly valued in the workplace for the skills they have gained in research, analysis, communication and presentation, as well as their strong understanding of history, culture and society.

Your enhanced ability to think for yourself, to distil complex issues down to their central points, and to understand the reasons for societal change, will give you the edge in careers across different sectors.

Employment prospects are particularly high within education, journalism and the media, broadcasting (both radio and television), museums and heritage, politics and policy development, and the arts, cultural and tourism sectors.

There are also opportunities to continue studying at postgraduate level, with the honours years in particular developing the research skills you’ll need if you choose this path.

Entry requirements

Standard entry requirement

The standard entry requirement is:

SQA Highers: AAAB-ABBB by end of S5 or AAAA-AABB/ABBBB by end of S6. BBB must be achieved in one year of S4-S6.
A Levels: AAB - ABB.
IB: 39 points with 666 at HL - 34 points with 655 at HL.

Minimum entry requirement

The minimum entry requirement for widening access applicants is:

SQA Highers: ABBB by end of S6. BBB must be achieved in one year of S4-S6.
A Levels: ABB.
IB: 34 points with 655 at HL.

More information for widening access applicants

Required subjects

The grades used to meet our entry requirements must include:

SQA: Highers: no specific Higher subjects required. National 5s: English at C.
A Levels: no specific A Level subjects required. GCSEs: English at C or 4.
IB: HL: no specific subjects required. SL: English at 5.

Find out more about entry requirements

International applicants

We welcome applications from students studying a wide range of international qualifications.

Entry requirements by country

International Foundation Programme

If you are an international student and your school qualifications are not accepted for direct entry to the University you may be eligible for admission to this degree programme through our International Foundation Programme.

International Foundation Programme

Mature applicants

We welcome applications from mature students and accept a range of qualifications.

Mature applicant qualifications

English language requirements

You must demonstrate a level of English language competency at a level that will enable you to succeed in your studies, regardless of your nationality or country of residence.

SQA, GCSE and IB

For SQA, GCSE and IB students, unless a higher level is specified in the stated entry requirements, a pass is required in English at the following grades or higher:

SQA National 5 at C
SQA Standard Grade at 3
SQA Intermediate 1 at A
SQA Intermediate 2 at C
GCSE/IGSCE at C or 4
Level 2 Certificate Grade C
IB Standard Level at 5 (English ab initio is not accepted for entry)

English language tests

We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified*:

IELTS Academic module overall 6.5 with 5.5 in each component.
TOEFL-iBT (including Special Home Edition) 92 or above with 20 in each section. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
Cambridge English: Advanced or Proficiency overall 176 with 162 in each component.
Trinity ISE: ISE II with a distinction in all four components.

We also accept a wider range of international qualifications and tests.

English language qualifications must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the degree you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, or Trinity ISE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.

English language requirements

*(Revised 27 April 2020 to include TOEFL-iBT Special Home Edition.)

Discover Uni data

This information is part of a government initiative to enhance the material that higher education institutions provide about their degree programmes.

It is one of many sources of information which will enable you to make an informed decision on what and where to study.

Please note that some programmes do not have Discover Uni data available.

Fees, costs and funding

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees for MA Scottish Ethnology and Scottish History

Additional costs

Your dissertation may involve some fieldwork, depending on your topic of study, and this may incur travel costs. However, if you prefer, you can select an archive-based project that is unlikely to have any additional costs.

There may be additional costs if you choose to study abroad in Year 3.