University of St Andrews
Encyclopedia
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world
after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews
, Fife
, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between 1410 and 1413, when a Papal Bull
was issued by the Avignon Antipope Benedict XIII
. In post-nominals the university's name was historically abbreviated as "St And" (from the Latin Sancti Andreae).
St Andrews is considered one of the United Kingdom
's best universities. The Duke of Cambridge, when he returned to launch its 600th anniversary campaign, described the University of St Andrews as "far and away the best university in the world". St Andrews is judged as world-class for teaching and research and domestic league tables place it as the best university in Scotland; it is currently ranked as the third best university in the UK according to the most recent university league table produced by The Guardian (see Rankings of universities in the United Kingdom). The 2012 QS international ranking places St Andrews as the second best university in Scotland, while the Times Higher Education World Universities Ranking names St Andrews among the world’s Top 20 Arts and Humanities universities.
St Andrews has a diverse student body and cosmopolitan character due to its over 30% intake of international students from well over 100 countries, with 15% of the current student body coming from North America. Throughout its more recent history, St Andrews has maintained strong links with leading academic institutions in the United States and Canada, including members of the Ivy League
.
of incorporation was bestowed upon the Augustinian priory
of St Andrews Cathedral. A Papal Bull
was issued in 1413 by the Avignon Pope Benedict XIII. A royal charter was granted in 1532. The University grew in size quite rapidly; A pedagogy
, St John's College
was founded 1418–1430 by Robert of Montrose and Lawrence of Lindores, St Salvator's College was established in 1450, St Leonard's College in 1511, and St Mary's College
in 1537. St Mary's College was a re-foundation of St Johns College and earlier pedagogy. Some of the early college buildings that are in use today date from this period such as St Salvator's Chapel
and St Leonards College chapel and St Mary's College quadrangle. At this time, much of the teaching was of a religious nature and was conducted by clerics associated with the cathedral
.
From the 17th to 19th centuries, St Andrews underwent a dramatic decline which at some point even menaced the university's own survival. Pupil numbers were very low; for instance, when Samuel Johnson
visited the university in 1773, the university barely had 100 pupils, and this situation did not improve during the 19th century, as in the 1870s, the student population was fewer than 150. Apart from a low number of pupils, it was also unusual for them to graduate: especially during the 17th and 18th centuries, students would attend college for a term or two. This was due to relative irrelevance of academic degrees for educated people at that time, as they did not secure any social position for those coming from upper classes, and those coming from more humble origins could not commonly afford a college education if they did not hold a scholarship. The poverty of Scotland also damaged St Andrews, as few were able to patronise the university and its colleges -state support being improbable- and the income these ones got was scarce. Hence Samuel Johnson's depiction of St Andrews as a place of quiet decadence.
In 1747, severe financial problems triggered the dissolution of St Leonard's College, whose properties and staff were merged into St Salvator's College to finally form the United College of St Salvator and St Leonard
.
In the 19th century, St Andrews offered a traditional education based on classical languages, divinity and philosophical studies, and at that time was slow to embrace more practical fields such as science, medicine and law that were the vogue. Perhaps partly in response to this and to the low number in pupils, the university merged with University College in Dundee in 1897, which became a centre of medical, scientific and legal excellence. This affiliation ended in 1967 when the college, renamed Queen's College, became a separate and independent institution as the University of Dundee
. The loss of teaching facilities for clinical medicine caused the university's Bute Medical School
to form a new attachment with the University of Manchester
, which was then expanding its clinical medicine intake.
After the foundation of University College, the decadence of St. Andrews came to an end. It became increasingly popular amongst the Scottish upper class to send their children to their oldest higher learning institution, and the university soon enough saw a renaissance that has been maintained to date. Its current world-class reputation in teaching and research consistently place St Andrews as the top university in Scotland and often amongst the top five in the UK, according to annual league tables produced by The Times, Sunday Times and The Guardian.(see Rankings of universities in the United Kingdom) The Times Higher Education World Universities Ranking named St Andrews among the world’s Top 20 Arts and Humanities universities in 2010.
The independent IpsosMORI National Student Survey
s in 2006–2008 commissioned by HEFCE placed it joint third among the UK universities.
In the Research Assessment Exercise
2001 the University did not receive a rating lower than 4 on a grading scale 1–5*, where 5* denotes outstanding international research. The departments of English and Psychology have received a 5*, and 72% of staff across the university received a 5 or 5* rating. Furthermore, The Philosophical Gourmet report ranked St Andrews' joint graduate programme in philosophy with Stirling University second in the UK in 2009.
The latest national Research Assessment Exercise
(RAE 2008) sponsored by the UK government, The Times
, The Guardian
and The Independent
ranked St Andrews as 16th by grade point average and quality index across the units of assessment it submitted.
Nearly 86% of its graduates obtain a First Class or an Upper Second Class Honours degree. The ancient Scottish universities award Master of Arts
degrees (except for science students who are awarded a Bachelor of Science degree) which are classified upon graduation, in contrast to Oxbridge
where one becomes a Master of Arts after a certain number of years, and the rest of the UK, where graduates are awarded BAs. These can be awarded with honours; the majority of students graduate with honours.
The latest UCAS figures show that there are generally 10 applications per undergraduate place available. The University has not entered Clearing since 2003. The standard offer of a place tends to require five best Highers equivalent to AAABB, or three best A-levels equivalent to AAB, or a score of 34–38 points on the International Baccalaureate.
The university has one of the smallest percentages of students (13%) from lower income backgrounds, out of all higher education institutions in the UK. Intake from Independent schools
in England is high (around 40%). The average price for accommodation for students at St Andrews is more than that for students at any other university in Scotland.
, called the Sponsio Academica
, although this tradition now has been digitalised and is agreed to as part of an online matriculation process.
In English:
, or giving tours to prospective students and visitors as well as on St Andrews day, where recently many students wear their gown throughout the entire day. Divinity students wear a black undergraduate gown. (See Academic dress of the University of St Andrews
.)
Raisin Weekend This celebrates the relationship between the Bejants/Bejantines (First-Year students) and their respective Academic Parents who, in St. Andrews' tradition, guide and mentor them in their time at the university. Tradition has it that students went up to study with a sack of oatmeal and a barrel of salt-herring as staple foods to last them a term. Therefore anything more exotic was seen as a luxury. In return for the guidance from academic parents a further tradition sprang up of rewarding these "parents" with a pound of raisins. Since the 19th Century the giving of raisins was steadily transformed into the giving of a derivative - such as wine or maybe even something else comestible.
Raisin Weekend is held annually over the last weekend of November, when first years are entertained by their academic parents and hand over their raisins or equivalent. Since any one student may have multiple academic parents of either sex there is no simple formality to the proceedings. However affairs often begin with a tea party (or similar) thrown by the mother(s) and then a pub-crawl or house party led by the father(s). It is fairly common for several academic families to combine in the latter stages of the revels.
In return for the raisins (or equivalent) the parents give their "children" a formal receipt - the Raisin Receipt - composed in Latin. Over time this receipt progressively became more elaborate and often humorous. For instance it tends to deprecate the recipient as miserable (especially if male) and glorifies the parent as noble and learned. The receipt can be written on anything and is to be carried everywhere by the Bejant/ine on the morning of Raisin Monday until midday. Over the years receipts have been written on items such as fancy dress or awkward items such as ladders (especially where there are multiple recipients in one academic family) that have to be carried around, including into lectures, often with disruptive effects. Instances of receipts written on livestock flourished in the middle of the 20th Century until one such occasion in the 1960s (involving a donkey that had been fed on laxatives) resulted in the university authorities issuing guidance banning such occurrences. Some lecturers also enter into the spirit of frivolity, allowing for the fact that some students are not in their normal classes due to physical linkages in the Raisin Receipts - for instance the First-Year Physics lecture on Raisin Monday in 1970 consisted of a discourse on the aerodynamics of a banana.
At midday all the First-Years gather in Quad of St Salvator's College, to compare their receipts and also to be open to challenge from older students who may look for errors in the Latin of the receipt (an almost inevitable occurrence). Upon detection of such error(s) the bearer may be required to sing the Gaudie. In more recent years this gathering has also culminated in a shaving foam fight.
are cobblestone markings denoting where Protestant martyrs were burnt at the stake. To students, the most notable of these is the cobblestone initials "PH" located outside the main gate of St Salvator's College. These cobblestones denote where Patrick Hamilton
was martyred in 1528. According to student tradition, stepping on the "PH" will cause a student to become cursed, with the effect that the offender will fail his or her degree and so students are known to jump over the cobblestones when passing. Aside from the May Dip, an older tradition is that the remedy for this is to walk three times round the post at the end of the pier. Other, less superstitious, students pointedly do step on it to prove the tradition incorrect. It is not uncommon for graduates to deliberately step on the cobbles immediately after receiving their degree, as a celebration of having escaped the curse during their undergraduate study.
sung by the University Madrigal Group. The May Dip is also traditionally the only way of removing the curse inflicted by stepping on the PH cobbles. If a student steps on the stones, he or she can be forgiven by running into the North Sea at dawn on the First of May.
As with the other Ancient universities
of Scotland, governance is determined by the Universities (Scotland) Act 1858. This Act created three bodies: the General Council
, University Court
and Academic Senate
(Senatus Academicus).
, academics and former academics of the University. It meets twice a year and appoints a Business Committee to transact business between these meetings. Its most important functions are to appoint two Assessor
s to the University Court
and elect the University Chancellor
.
is the body responsible for administrative and financial matters, and is in effect the governing body of the University. It is chaired by the rector
, who is elected by all the matriculated
students of the University. Members are appointed by the General Council, Academic Senate
and Fife Council
. The President of the Students' Representative Council and Director of Representation are ex officio members of the Court. Several lay
members are also co-opted and must include a fixed number of alumni of the University.
(Latin Senatus Academicus) is the supreme academic body for the university. Its members include all of the professors of the university, certain senior teaders
, a number of senior lecturer
s and lecturer
s and three elected student senate representatives – one from the arts and divinity faculty, one from the science and medicine faculty and one postgraduate student. It is responsible for authorising degree programmes and issuing all degrees to graduates. Another function of the senate is to discipline students. The President of the Senate is the University Principal.
The university is divided into four academic faculties:
Each is governed by a faculty council and administered by a dean
. Students apply to become members of a particular faculty, as opposed to any particular school or department.
The current composition of the Office of the Principal is:
As of August 2011, the Deans are:
and West Park, which was pulled down to make way for the Students' Union building, built in the 1970s.
The university guarantees every first year student a place of accommodation. For this reason, when 400 extra students joined for the 2008/09 academic year, the university had to rent out flats in the previously sold Hepburn Hall to accommodate the rise in student numbers.
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chairs meetings of the University Court, the governing body of the university, and is elected by the matriculated student body.
Wilson attended three Scottish Universities including St Andrews, but did not earn a degree from any of them. Carrying important letters of introduction, Wilson arrived in the US in 1765. He became a Latin tutor at Philadelphia College (now the University of Pennsylvania
), and successfully petitioned that institution to grant him an honorary Master of Arts.
Witherspoon was president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University
). Witherspoon was largely responsible for converting the institution into a success by employing Scottish educational standards. He received his Master of Arts
, Bachelor of Divinity
, and was made a Doctor of Divinity
at the University of St Andrews.
In 1759 Franklin received an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of St Andrews.
in Atlanta runs an exchange programme with St Andrews called the Bobby Jones Scholars
programme, which allows for recent graduates of both universities to study at the other university. In addition, the School of Physics and Astronomy maintains a postgraduate exchange with The Georgia Institute of Technology
. Both of these exchanges are funded by the Robert T. Jones Memorial Trust. The Robert Lincoln McNeil Scholarship is run in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania
. One of the largest exchanges is with the University of California
, and students are routinely sent to Berkeley
, UCLA, and UCSD. The School of International Relations and the School of Modern Languages also oversee an undergraduate student exchange with Sciences Po in Paris. Queen's University
and the University of Western Ontario
in Canada provide a reciprocal exchange with St Andrews through the Robert Tyre Jones Jr. Scholarships program.
Any alumnus, student or staff member can wear a scarf of dark blue, sky blue and white:
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University of St Andrews
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St Mary's College
>
Bute Medical School
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St Leonard's College (Postgraduate)
is the organisation which represents the student body of the University of St Andrews.
The Association was instituted in 1983 under the Constitution and Laws of the University of St Andrews Students’ Association. It comprises the Students' Representative Council (SRC), established in 1885 and legally defined under the Universities (Scotland) Act 1889, and the Students' Union (which was itself a merger of the Students' Union and the Women's Union). The Students' Association is registered with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator
as charity SCO19883
The Students' Association Building (colloquially known as the Union) is located on St Mary's Place, St Andrews
. External bodies operating in the building include a Blackwells bookshop and the University's Student Support Services. The Students' Association is affiliated to, and a founding member of, the Coalition of Higher Education Students in Scotland
(CHESS) and is not a member of the National Union of Students.
The university's Music Society comprises many student-run musical groups, including the University's flagship Symphony Orchestra (now conducted by the Glasgow based Christopher Swaffer), Wind Band, and Chorus (the largest student music group). They also organise their own series of weekly lunchtime recitals. The Society was noted for particular strength in the University in the Sunday Times Universities Guide 2011. The music society organised a major composition competition, Prelude to the 600th, in 2011 which was won by Mark David Boden. This received much attention from the media and high profile figures in the music industry such as Sir Peter Maxwell Davies. One of the oldest and most well respected choirs in the University is the Madrigal Group which performs a concert each term and has a summer tour each year.
The 'A Cappella Society' represents all four a cappella groups in St Andrews: The Other Guys
, The Alleycats, The Accidentals and The Hummingbirds. From 2009–2011, all four of these groups, as well as Glasgow's Choral Stimulation since 2010, have participated in The Voice Festival UK
(VF-UK) competition, with The Other Guys, The Accidentals and The Alleycats all having reached the London final since the competition's inception. Recently, The Other Guys released a video onto YouTube, entitled Royal Romance, a tribute to the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
, which earned them significant recognition both throughout Scotland and in international media.
Students and staff from the University of St Andrews are developing Project Zambia. Piloted in 2009, the project is now embedded in the work of the Department of Sport and Exercise and the Student Experience Office in the University of St Andrews. Students are recruited from two sections of the University's student body: top performance athletes are chosen for their commitment to sport, while students who have shown commitment to pastoral volunteering, aiding their fellow students, are chosen to extend their experience in the caring professions.The students, and staff seeking professional development, travel to Zambia
to live and work in the communities, schools and orphanages for the summer months in conjunction with the Zambian organisation 'Sport In Action'.
is the Student representative body for sport.
Academics of the University of St Andrews
English-speaking world
The English-speaking world consists of those countries or regions that use the English language to one degree or another. For more information, please see:Lists:* List of countries by English-speaking population...
after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews
St Andrews
St Andrews is a university town and former royal burgh on the east coast of Fife in Scotland. The town is named after Saint Andrew the Apostle.St Andrews has a population of 16,680, making this the fifth largest settlement in Fife....
, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between 1410 and 1413, when a Papal Bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
was issued by the Avignon Antipope Benedict XIII
Antipope Benedict XIII
Benedict XIII, born Pedro Martínez de Luna y Pérez de Gotor , known as in Spanish, was an Aragonese nobleman, who is officially considered by the Catholic Church to be an antipope....
. In post-nominals the university's name was historically abbreviated as "St And" (from the Latin Sancti Andreae).
St Andrews is considered one of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's best universities. The Duke of Cambridge, when he returned to launch its 600th anniversary campaign, described the University of St Andrews as "far and away the best university in the world". St Andrews is judged as world-class for teaching and research and domestic league tables place it as the best university in Scotland; it is currently ranked as the third best university in the UK according to the most recent university league table produced by The Guardian (see Rankings of universities in the United Kingdom). The 2012 QS international ranking places St Andrews as the second best university in Scotland, while the Times Higher Education World Universities Ranking names St Andrews among the world’s Top 20 Arts and Humanities universities.
St Andrews has a diverse student body and cosmopolitan character due to its over 30% intake of international students from well over 100 countries, with 15% of the current student body coming from North America. Throughout its more recent history, St Andrews has maintained strong links with leading academic institutions in the United States and Canada, including members of the Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
.
History
The university was founded in 1410 when a charterCharter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
of incorporation was bestowed upon the Augustinian priory
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
of St Andrews Cathedral. A Papal Bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
was issued in 1413 by the Avignon Pope Benedict XIII. A royal charter was granted in 1532. The University grew in size quite rapidly; A pedagogy
Pedagogy
Pedagogy is the study of being a teacher or the process of teaching. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction....
, St John's College
St John's College, St Andrews
St John's College of the University of St Andrews as a constituent college founded between 1418 and 1430 and was the precursor to present-day St Mary's College...
was founded 1418–1430 by Robert of Montrose and Lawrence of Lindores, St Salvator's College was established in 1450, St Leonard's College in 1511, and St Mary's College
St Mary's College, St Andrews
St Mary's College of the University of St Andrews, in Fife, Scotland - in full, the New College of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - was founded in 1538 by Archbishop James Beaton, uncle of Cardinal David Beaton on the site of the pedagogy or St Johns College .St Mary's College was...
in 1537. St Mary's College was a re-foundation of St Johns College and earlier pedagogy. Some of the early college buildings that are in use today date from this period such as St Salvator's Chapel
St Salvator's Chapel
St Salvator's Chapel is one of two collegiate chapels belonging to the University of St Andrews, the other being St Leonard's Chapel. It was founded in 1450, built in the Late Gothic architectural style, and refurbished in the 1680s, 1860s and throughout the 20th century...
and St Leonards College chapel and St Mary's College quadrangle. At this time, much of the teaching was of a religious nature and was conducted by clerics associated with the cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
.
From the 17th to 19th centuries, St Andrews underwent a dramatic decline which at some point even menaced the university's own survival. Pupil numbers were very low; for instance, when Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
visited the university in 1773, the university barely had 100 pupils, and this situation did not improve during the 19th century, as in the 1870s, the student population was fewer than 150. Apart from a low number of pupils, it was also unusual for them to graduate: especially during the 17th and 18th centuries, students would attend college for a term or two. This was due to relative irrelevance of academic degrees for educated people at that time, as they did not secure any social position for those coming from upper classes, and those coming from more humble origins could not commonly afford a college education if they did not hold a scholarship. The poverty of Scotland also damaged St Andrews, as few were able to patronise the university and its colleges -state support being improbable- and the income these ones got was scarce. Hence Samuel Johnson's depiction of St Andrews as a place of quiet decadence.
In 1747, severe financial problems triggered the dissolution of St Leonard's College, whose properties and staff were merged into St Salvator's College to finally form the United College of St Salvator and St Leonard
United College, St Andrews
The United College is one of the two statutory colleges of the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland...
.
In the 19th century, St Andrews offered a traditional education based on classical languages, divinity and philosophical studies, and at that time was slow to embrace more practical fields such as science, medicine and law that were the vogue. Perhaps partly in response to this and to the low number in pupils, the university merged with University College in Dundee in 1897, which became a centre of medical, scientific and legal excellence. This affiliation ended in 1967 when the college, renamed Queen's College, became a separate and independent institution as the University of Dundee
University of Dundee
The University of Dundee is a university based in the city and Royal burgh of Dundee on eastern coast of the central Lowlands of Scotland and with a small number of institutions elsewhere....
. The loss of teaching facilities for clinical medicine caused the university's Bute Medical School
Bute Medical School
The University of St Andrews School of Medicine is the school of medicine at the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland; it used to be known as the 'Bute Medical School' until the 2010–2011 academic year...
to form a new attachment with the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
, which was then expanding its clinical medicine intake.
After the foundation of University College, the decadence of St. Andrews came to an end. It became increasingly popular amongst the Scottish upper class to send their children to their oldest higher learning institution, and the university soon enough saw a renaissance that has been maintained to date. Its current world-class reputation in teaching and research consistently place St Andrews as the top university in Scotland and often amongst the top five in the UK, according to annual league tables produced by The Times, Sunday Times and The Guardian.(see Rankings of universities in the United Kingdom) The Times Higher Education World Universities Ranking named St Andrews among the world’s Top 20 Arts and Humanities universities in 2010.
Terms
The university operates an unusual system of three terms within two semesters. The semesters are called Martinmas and Candlemas. The Martinmas semester runs from late September until mid January. There are 12 teaching weeks in this term which all occur before Christmas with the examinations are held after Christmas. After examinations there is an inter-semester break and then the new semester begins in early February.Reputation
National student survey
The National Student Survey is a survey, launched in 2005, of all final year degree students at institutions in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
s in 2006–2008 commissioned by HEFCE placed it joint third among the UK universities.
In the Research Assessment Exercise
Research Assessment Exercise
The Research Assessment Exercise is an exercise undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions...
2001 the University did not receive a rating lower than 4 on a grading scale 1–5*, where 5* denotes outstanding international research. The departments of English and Psychology have received a 5*, and 72% of staff across the university received a 5 or 5* rating. Furthermore, The Philosophical Gourmet report ranked St Andrews' joint graduate programme in philosophy with Stirling University second in the UK in 2009.
The latest national Research Assessment Exercise
Research Assessment Exercise
The Research Assessment Exercise is an exercise undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions...
(RAE 2008) sponsored by the UK government, The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
and The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
ranked St Andrews as 16th by grade point average and quality index across the units of assessment it submitted.
Nearly 86% of its graduates obtain a First Class or an Upper Second Class Honours degree. The ancient Scottish universities award Master of Arts
Master of Arts (Scotland)
A Master of Arts in Scotland can refer to an undergraduate academic degree in humanities and social sciences awarded by the ancient universities of Scotland – the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh, while the University of...
degrees (except for science students who are awarded a Bachelor of Science degree) which are classified upon graduation, in contrast to Oxbridge
Oxbridge
Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge in England, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior social status...
where one becomes a Master of Arts after a certain number of years, and the rest of the UK, where graduates are awarded BAs. These can be awarded with honours; the majority of students graduate with honours.
The latest UCAS figures show that there are generally 10 applications per undergraduate place available. The University has not entered Clearing since 2003. The standard offer of a place tends to require five best Highers equivalent to AAABB, or three best A-levels equivalent to AAB, or a score of 34–38 points on the International Baccalaureate.
The university has one of the smallest percentages of students (13%) from lower income backgrounds, out of all higher education institutions in the UK. Intake from Independent schools
Independent school (UK)
An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...
in England is high (around 40%). The average price for accommodation for students at St Andrews is more than that for students at any other university in Scotland.
Traditions
Sponsio Academica
In order to become a student at the university a person must take an oath in Latin at the point of matriculationMatriculation
Matriculation, in the broadest sense, means to be registered or added to a list, from the Latin matricula – little list. In Scottish heraldry, for instance, a matriculation is a registration of armorial bearings...
, called the Sponsio Academica
Sponsio Academica
The Sponsio Academica is the oath taken by all students matriculating into the four ancient Scottish universities. Traditionally the oath - in Latin - was given orally but it is now appended to the matriculation form signed by each student...
, although this tradition now has been digitalised and is agreed to as part of an online matriculation process.
In English:
We students who set down our names hereunder in all good faith make a solemn promise that we shall show due deference to our teachers in all matters relating to order and good conduct, that we shall be subject to the authority of the Senatus AcademicusAcademic SenateAn Academic Senate is a governing body in some universities and colleges, and is typically the supreme academic authority for the institution.-Scotland:...
and shall, whatever be the position we attain hereafter, promote, so far as lies in our power, the profit and the interest in our University of St Andrews. Further, we recognise that, if any of us conducts ourselves in an unbecoming or disorderly manner or shows insufficient diligence in their studies and, though admonished, does not improve, it is within the power of the Senatus Academicus to inflict on such students a fitting penalty or even expel them from the University.
Gowns
One of the most conspicuous traditions at St Andrews is the wearing of academic dress, particularly the distinctive red undergraduate gown of the United College. Undergraduates in Arts and Science subjects can be seen wearing these garments at the installation of a Rector or Chancellor, at chapel services, on 'Pier Walks', at formal hall dinners, at meetings of the Union Debating SocietyUniversity of St Andrews Union Debating Society
The University of St Andrews Union Debating Society is a student debating society at the University of St Andrews in Scotland.-Creation and early history:...
, or giving tours to prospective students and visitors as well as on St Andrews day, where recently many students wear their gown throughout the entire day. Divinity students wear a black undergraduate gown. (See Academic dress of the University of St Andrews
Academic dress of the University of St Andrews
Academic dress at the University of St Andrews is an important part of university life. The University of St Andrews was founded between 1410 and 1413, being the oldest of the ancient universities of Scotland and the third oldest university in the English-speaking world.-Use of academic...
.)
Bejant
This is the traditional term used to describe a First-Year male student and is thought to be a derivative of the French "bec jaune" or yellow-beak, meaning a fledgling. The female is described as a Bejantine. This nomenclature seems to be restricted to St. Andrews although there is no reason why it may not have been more widespread historically. Any student in his or her third year may be referred to as a Tertian and in their final year as a Magistrand (one who is about to graduate). These elder categories are entitled to act as Academic Parents (see Raisin Weekend).Chapels
The university owns two college chapels, St Salvator's and St Leonard's, both have their own choirs. The Chapel of St Leonard's is considerably older whilst St Salvator's (or "Sallies" as it is affectionately known) has a full peal of six bells, the only university chapel in Scotland to have this feature.Raisin Weekend
Raisin Weekend This celebrates the relationship between the Bejants/Bejantines (First-Year students) and their respective Academic Parents who, in St. Andrews' tradition, guide and mentor them in their time at the university. Tradition has it that students went up to study with a sack of oatmeal and a barrel of salt-herring as staple foods to last them a term. Therefore anything more exotic was seen as a luxury. In return for the guidance from academic parents a further tradition sprang up of rewarding these "parents" with a pound of raisins. Since the 19th Century the giving of raisins was steadily transformed into the giving of a derivative - such as wine or maybe even something else comestible.
Raisin Weekend is held annually over the last weekend of November, when first years are entertained by their academic parents and hand over their raisins or equivalent. Since any one student may have multiple academic parents of either sex there is no simple formality to the proceedings. However affairs often begin with a tea party (or similar) thrown by the mother(s) and then a pub-crawl or house party led by the father(s). It is fairly common for several academic families to combine in the latter stages of the revels.
In return for the raisins (or equivalent) the parents give their "children" a formal receipt - the Raisin Receipt - composed in Latin. Over time this receipt progressively became more elaborate and often humorous. For instance it tends to deprecate the recipient as miserable (especially if male) and glorifies the parent as noble and learned. The receipt can be written on anything and is to be carried everywhere by the Bejant/ine on the morning of Raisin Monday until midday. Over the years receipts have been written on items such as fancy dress or awkward items such as ladders (especially where there are multiple recipients in one academic family) that have to be carried around, including into lectures, often with disruptive effects. Instances of receipts written on livestock flourished in the middle of the 20th Century until one such occasion in the 1960s (involving a donkey that had been fed on laxatives) resulted in the university authorities issuing guidance banning such occurrences. Some lecturers also enter into the spirit of frivolity, allowing for the fact that some students are not in their normal classes due to physical linkages in the Raisin Receipts - for instance the First-Year Physics lecture on Raisin Monday in 1970 consisted of a discourse on the aerodynamics of a banana.
At midday all the First-Years gather in Quad of St Salvator's College, to compare their receipts and also to be open to challenge from older students who may look for errors in the Latin of the receipt (an almost inevitable occurrence). Upon detection of such error(s) the bearer may be required to sing the Gaudie. In more recent years this gathering has also culminated in a shaving foam fight.
Cobblestones
Situated around the town of St AndrewsSt Andrews
St Andrews is a university town and former royal burgh on the east coast of Fife in Scotland. The town is named after Saint Andrew the Apostle.St Andrews has a population of 16,680, making this the fifth largest settlement in Fife....
are cobblestone markings denoting where Protestant martyrs were burnt at the stake. To students, the most notable of these is the cobblestone initials "PH" located outside the main gate of St Salvator's College. These cobblestones denote where Patrick Hamilton
Patrick Hamilton (martyr)
Patrick Hamilton was a Scottish churchman and an early Protestant Reformer in Scotland. He travelled to Europe, where he met several of the leading reforming thinkers, before returning to Scotland to preach...
was martyred in 1528. According to student tradition, stepping on the "PH" will cause a student to become cursed, with the effect that the offender will fail his or her degree and so students are known to jump over the cobblestones when passing. Aside from the May Dip, an older tradition is that the remedy for this is to walk three times round the post at the end of the pier. Other, less superstitious, students pointedly do step on it to prove the tradition incorrect. It is not uncommon for graduates to deliberately step on the cobbles immediately after receiving their degree, as a celebration of having escaped the curse during their undergraduate study.
May Dip
The May Dip is a student tradition held annually at dawn on May Day. Students stay awake until dawn, at which time they collectively run into the North Sea to the sound of madrigalsMadrigal (music)
A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six....
sung by the University Madrigal Group. The May Dip is also traditionally the only way of removing the curse inflicted by stepping on the PH cobbles. If a student steps on the stones, he or she can be forgiven by running into the North Sea at dawn on the First of May.
Governance and administration
Ancient university
Ancient university is a term used to describe seven medieval and renaissance universities of the United Kingdom and Ireland that exist today. Six of those universities are currently located in the United Kingdom and one in the Republic of Ireland...
of Scotland, governance is determined by the Universities (Scotland) Act 1858. This Act created three bodies: the General Council
General Council (Scottish university)
The General Council of an ancient university in Scotland is the corporate body of all graduates and senior academics of each university. They were instituted by the Universities Act 1858, but each has had its constitution and organisation considerably altered by subsequent statutes.The Act of...
, University Court
University Court
A University Court is an administrative body of a university in the United Kingdom. In England's Oxbridge such a Court carries out limited judicial functions; whereas in Scotland it is a University's supreme governing body, analogous to a Board of Directors or a Board of Trustees.-England:In the...
and Academic Senate
Academic Senate
An Academic Senate is a governing body in some universities and colleges, and is typically the supreme academic authority for the institution.-Scotland:...
(Senatus Academicus).
General Council
The General Council is a standing advisory body of all the graduatesAlumnus
An alumnus , according to the American Heritage Dictionary, is "a graduate of a school, college, or university." An alumnus can also be a former member, employee, contributor or inmate as well as a former student. In addition, an alumna is "a female graduate or former student of a school, college,...
, academics and former academics of the University. It meets twice a year and appoints a Business Committee to transact business between these meetings. Its most important functions are to appoint two Assessor
Assessor (law)
In some jurisdictions, an assessor is a judge's or magistrate's assistant. This is in fact the historical meaning of this word.-By country:In Denmark, it was the former title given to Supreme Court judges. Today the title is given to Deputy Judges...
s to the University Court
University Court
A University Court is an administrative body of a university in the United Kingdom. In England's Oxbridge such a Court carries out limited judicial functions; whereas in Scotland it is a University's supreme governing body, analogous to a Board of Directors or a Board of Trustees.-England:In the...
and elect the University Chancellor
Chancellor of the University of St Andrews
The Chancellor is the titular head of the University of St Andrews. His duties include conferring degrees, promoting the University’s image throughout the world, and furthering its interests, both within Scotland and beyond....
.
University Court
The University CourtUniversity Court
A University Court is an administrative body of a university in the United Kingdom. In England's Oxbridge such a Court carries out limited judicial functions; whereas in Scotland it is a University's supreme governing body, analogous to a Board of Directors or a Board of Trustees.-England:In the...
is the body responsible for administrative and financial matters, and is in effect the governing body of the University. It is chaired by the rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
, who is elected by all the matriculated
Matriculation
Matriculation, in the broadest sense, means to be registered or added to a list, from the Latin matricula – little list. In Scottish heraldry, for instance, a matriculation is a registration of armorial bearings...
students of the University. Members are appointed by the General Council, Academic Senate
Academic Senate
An Academic Senate is a governing body in some universities and colleges, and is typically the supreme academic authority for the institution.-Scotland:...
and Fife Council
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
. The President of the Students' Representative Council and Director of Representation are ex officio members of the Court. Several lay
Laity
In religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...
members are also co-opted and must include a fixed number of alumni of the University.
Senatus Academicus
The Academic SenateAcademic Senate
An Academic Senate is a governing body in some universities and colleges, and is typically the supreme academic authority for the institution.-Scotland:...
(Latin Senatus Academicus) is the supreme academic body for the university. Its members include all of the professors of the university, certain senior teaders
Reader (academic rank)
The title of Reader in the United Kingdom and some universities in the Commonwealth nations like Australia and New Zealand denotes an appointment for a senior academic with a distinguished international reputation in research or scholarship...
, a number of senior lecturer
Senior lecturer
Senior lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a faculty position at a university or similar institution. Especially in research-intensive universities, lecturers lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...
s and lecturer
Lecturer
Lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a position at a university or similar institution, often held by academics in their early career stages, who lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...
s and three elected student senate representatives – one from the arts and divinity faculty, one from the science and medicine faculty and one postgraduate student. It is responsible for authorising degree programmes and issuing all degrees to graduates. Another function of the senate is to discipline students. The President of the Senate is the University Principal.
Faculties
- ArtsHumanitiesThe humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
- DivinityDivinity (academic discipline)Divinity is the study of Christian and other theology and ministry at a school, divinity school, university, or seminary. The term is sometimes a synonym for theology as an academic, speculative pursuit, and sometimes is used for the study of applied theology and ministry to make a distinction...
- Medicine
- Science
Each is governed by a faculty council and administered by a dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
. Students apply to become members of a particular faculty, as opposed to any particular school or department.
Number of students by faculty
Academic year 2005/2006 [1]:| Faculty | Undergraduate | Postgraduate |
| Arts | 3,582 | 604 |
| Divinity | 48 | 50 |
| Medicine | 419 | 7 |
| Science | 1,731 | 367 |
| Total | 5,780 | 1,028 |
Departments
- Psychology at St Andrews has a long and distinguished history. Psychology had been taught at St Andrews since the late 1800s within the School of Philosophy, Logic, and Metaphysics, but when Psychology was moved to Dundee (which was then part of the University) it formed a separate department led by Alfred Flook. After the ceding of the University of DundeeUniversity of DundeeThe University of Dundee is a university based in the city and Royal burgh of Dundee on eastern coast of the central Lowlands of Scotland and with a small number of institutions elsewhere....
from St Andrews in 1967, Psychology was re-established two years later with Professor Malcolm JeevesMalcolm JeevesProf Malcolm Jeeves CBE FRSE is Emeritus Professor of Psychology at the University of St. Andrews, and was formerly President of The Royal Society of Edinburgh. He established the Department of Psychology at St...
taking the Foundation Chair of Psychology in 1969. Significant expansion and success of the department and its research saw it move to its current home in the Old Library in St Mary's College in 1979 where it became the School of Psychology. Ever since then the School has continued to succeed and lead in Scottish and British Psychology, coming in the top category for each Research Assessment Exercise carried out (an achievement only held by St Andrews and three other UK departments of Psychology: the University of Cambridge, the University of Oxford, and the University of YorkUniversity of YorkThe University of York , is an academic institution located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the campus university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, covering a wide range of subjects...
). The latest RAE in 2008 saw the School of Psychology at St Andrews come 1st in Scotland for its research, and 7th overall in the United Kingdom. Latest rankings from the Guardian University Guide 2011 also see psychology at St Andrews standing as the third best department in the UK. The cchool's main research interests centre around: social psychology, perception, origins of mind, human cognition, behavioural neuroscience and applied, clinical and health psychology. The head of school is currently Verity Brown. - The Anthropology Department is noted for its research work, with recognition given to the department by research councils such as the Scottish Funding CouncilScottish Funding CouncilThe Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council, more commonly known as the Scottish Funding Council , is the body in Scotland that distributes funding from the Scottish Government to the country's colleges and universities...
(SFC) in the last years and the department has achieved high standings in the latest Research Assessment ExerciseResearch Assessment ExerciseThe Research Assessment Exercise is an exercise undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions...
(RAE). The Complete University Guide has ranked social anthropology at St Andrews as Number 3 after Cambridge and Oxford on a range of criteria. - The School of Chemistry was founded in 1811 and has undergone rapid development and improvement over the past decade. In the 2008 RAE chemistry was ranked fourth for quality in the UK and as a consequence of its joint submission with Edinburgh chemistry it was ranked first in the "power rating". Currently the School of Chemistry has 35 academic staff, over 120 PhD students and 80 postdoctoral research workers with research in synthesis (e.g. selenium chemistry, Woollins reagent carbenes, fluorocarbons) energy storage and conversion (fuel cells and lightweight batteries) X-ray crystallography (e.g. robotic chemical crystallography), biological chemistry and surface science. The current head of school is Derek Woollins.
- The Department of Earth Sciences continues a tradition of teaching and research in geology dating from 1903. The department’s research focuses on fundamental questions about earth system behaviour from the present through to deep time and the application of such knowledge to benefit societies and create sustainable economies. In the 2010 league tables of UK geology and earth science courses the University of St Andrews was ranked second (Independent), third (The Times) and fourth (Guardian) and currently enjoys the best record nationally for graduate employability. The head of department is Peter Cawood.
Office of the Principal
The principal is the chief executive of the university and is assisted in that role by several key officers.The current composition of the Office of the Principal is:
- Principal and Vice-Chancellor: Louise RichardsonLouise RichardsonProfessor Louise Richardson FRSE is a political scientist whose specialist field is the study of terrorism...
- Deputy Principal and Vice-Principal (Research): Christopher Hawkesworth FRS
- Master of the United CollegeMaster of the United CollegeThe Master of the United College is a senior academic at the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland who is charged with carrying out duties as required by the Academic Senate of that University...
: Neville Richardson - Vice-Principal (Governance and Planning): Ronald Piper
- Vice-Principal (Proctor): Lorna Milne
- Vice-Principal (External Relations): Stephen Magee
- Quaestor and FactorFactor (Scotland)In Scotland a factor is a person or firm charged with superintending or managing properties and estates -- sometimes where the owner or landlord is unable to or uninterested in attending to such details personally, or in tenements in which several owners of individual flats contribute to the...
: Derek Watson
Deans of the faculties
The deans are academics appointed by the Master of the United College to oversee the day to day runnings of each faculty. They were once elected by their constituents but this was changed to appointment in 2005.As of August 2011, the Deans are:
- Dean of the Faculty of Arts: Nic Beech
- Dean of the Faculty of Divinity and Principal of St Mary's College: Ivor Davidson
- Dean of the Faculty of Medicine: R. Hugh MacDougall
- Dean of the Faculty of Science: Malcolm MacLeod
Student residence halls
St Andrews is characterised amongst Scottish universities as having a significant number of students in university operated accommodation. Approximately half of the overall student population live "in hall". All are now co-educational and non-smoking. Residences include:- Albany ParkAlbany Park, St AndrewsAlbany Park is a small residential area owned by the University of St Andrews completed in 1973. It is situated on the East Sands Beach on the road out of town to the East Neuk of Fife, Scotland...
- Andrew Melville HallAndrew Melville HallAndrew Melville Hall is a student hall of residence of the University of St Andrews, Scotland.It is named after Andrew Melville, a 16th-century Scottish scholar, theologian and religious reformer who was a graduate of the University, and who later became its rector and dean of...
- David Russell ApartmentsDavid Russell ApartmentsDavid Russell Apartments is a large residential complex owned by the University of St Andrews, its first phase being opened in September 2003. It replaces, and was built on the site of the now demolished David Russell Hall...
(built on the site of the now-demolished original David Russell Hall) - Deans CourtDeans Courtright|thumb|Deans Court Deans Court is a student hall of residence at the University of St Andrews, and arguably the oldest dwelling house in the city of St Andrews, Scotland. It lies at the east-end of St Andrews, between where both North street and South street commence. The entrance of the...
(Postgraduate only) - Fife Park
- New Fife Park Apartments
- Gannochy House (Postgraduate only)
- John Burnet Hall (known as Atholl, and was male only)
- McIntosh Hall (known as Chattan, and was female only)
- New HallNew Hall (St Andrews)New Hall is the largest single-building Hall of Residence owned by the University of St Andrews. It was opened in 1993 and is located in the town of St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. It has 519 bedrooms, of which 25 are shared. All are en-suite...
- St Regulus Hall (originally male only)
- St Salvator's HallSt Salvator's HallSt Salvator's Hall, affectionately known as Sallies, is a student hall of residence at the University of St Andrews. It lies close to the quadrangle of the United College, St Andrews and St Salvator's Chapel in a quiet area between North Street and The Scores. Regarded as one of the University's...
(originally male only) - Stanley Smith House & Angus House (Postgraduate only)
- University Hall (originally female only)
Former residences
In addition to the residences listed above, the University formerly also had the following residences:- Hamilton HallHamilton HallHamilton Hall was a hall of residence for the University of St Andrews, Scotland, between the years of 1949 and 2006.-History:The building that would become Hamilton Hall was originally opened as a hotel in 1895 to capitalise on the rapid expansion of St Andrews as a popular tourist destination...
- Hepburn Hall – (although Hepburn remains a university residence under lease)
- Southgait Hall – (Largely rebuilt in the 1990s and still let to students albeit privately)
- Kinnessburn Hall
- David Russell Hall
- Bishops Hall (now part of St Leonards School)
and West Park, which was pulled down to make way for the Students' Union building, built in the 1970s.
The university guarantees every first year student a place of accommodation. For this reason, when 400 extra students joined for the 2008/09 academic year, the university had to rent out flats in the previously sold Hepburn Hall to accommodate the rise in student numbers.
Arts and media
- Alistair MoffatAlistair MoffatAlistair Moffat is an award winning writer and journalist, former director of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and Rector of the University of St Andrews.-Education:...
, writer, journalist and Director of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival - Robert AytonRobert AytonSir Robert Aytoun was a Scottish poet.Ayton was the son of Ayton of Kinaldie House in Fife.He and his elder brother entered St Leonard's College in St Andrews in 1584. After graduating MA from St...
, poet - Crispin Bonham-CarterCrispin Bonham-CarterCrispin Bonham-Carter is an English actor and theatre director.Bonham-Carter is a distant cousin of Helena Bonham Carter. He is the son of Peter Bonham-Carter and Clodagh Greenwood. Educated at Glenalmond College, he graduated from the University of St Andrews, Scotland with a degree in classics...
, actor - Dilys BreeseDilys BreeseDilys Breese was a natural history television producer for the BBC and an ornithologist with the British Trust for Ornithology, who commemorate her contribution by awarding the Dilys Breese Medal, funded by her bequest to them.Breese was brought up in Wales, she was educated at Oswestry Girls'...
, television producer, natural history - Andrew CrumeyAndrew CrumeyAndrew Crumey is a novelist and former literary editor of the Scotland on Sunday newspaper. He was born in Kirkintilloch, north of Glasgow, Scotland. He graduated with First Class Honours from the University of St Andrews and holds a PhD in theoretical physics from Imperial College, London. In...
, novelist - Gavin DouglasGavin DouglasGavin Douglas was a Scottish bishop, makar and translator. Although he had an important political career, it is for his poetry that he is now chiefly remembered. His principal pioneering achievement was the Eneados, a full and faithful vernacular translation of the Aeneid of Virgil and the first...
, poet and bishop, counted among the Scots Makars - William DunbarWilliam DunbarWilliam Dunbar was a Scottish poet. He was probably a native of East Lothian, as assumed from a satirical reference in the Flyting of Dunbar and Kennedie , where, too, it is hinted that he was a member of the noble house of Dunbar....
, poet, counted among the Scots Makars - Michelle DuncanMichelle DuncanMichelle Duncan is a Scottish actress. She was nominated for a BAFTA Scotland Award for her performance in Sea of Souls....
, actress - Tenniel EvansTenniel Evans-Family:Walter Tenniel Evans was born in Nairobi, Kenya. His middle name derived from the illustrator Sir John Tenniel, a distant relation. His daughter, Serena Evans, is an actress, and his son, Matthew, is a television director....
, actor - Alexander HumeAlexander HumeAlexander Hume was a Scottish poet.The son of Patrick, 5th Lord Polwarth, he was educated at the University of St. Andrews and on the Continent. He was originally destined for the law, but devoted himself to the service of the church, and became minister of Logie in Stirlingshire...
, poet, counted among the Scots Makars - William Fowler, poet, counted among the Scots Makars
- Robert FergussonRobert FergussonRobert Fergusson was a Scottish poet. After formal education at the University of St Andrews, Fergusson followed an essentially bohemian life course in Edinburgh, the city of his birth, then at the height of intellectual and cultural ferment as part of the Scottish enlightenment...
, poet - Sarah HallSarah Hall (writer)Sarah Hall is an English novelist, and poet. Her critically acclaimed second novel, The Electric Michelangelo, was nominated for the 2004 Man Booker Prize and achieved considerable international commercial success...
, novelist - Gilbert Hay, poet, counted among the Scots Makars
- Hazel IrvineHazel IrvineHazel Irvine , is a television presenter from the United Kingdom.- Life and career :Educated at Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh, she achieved an M.A. in History of Art at the University of St. Andrews, and competed in golf, netball and athletics at university level. In her final year she was...
, television presenter - Sir David Lindsay, poet and diplomat
- Bruce MarshallBruce MarshallLieutenant-Colonel Claude Cunningham Bruce Marshall, known as Bruce Marshall was a prolific Scottish writer who wrote fiction and non-fiction books on a wide range of topics and genres. His first book, A Thief in the Night came out in 1918, possibly self-published...
, novelist - Ian McDiarmidIan McDiarmidIan McDiarmid is a Scottish theatre actor and director, who has also made sporadic appearances on film and television.McDiarmid has had a successful career in theatre; he has been cast in many plays, while occasionally directing others and although he has appeared mostly in theatrical productions,...
, actor - Hilary McKayHilary McKayHilary McKay is a British children's author.-Biography:She was born in Boston, Lincolnshire, and is the eldest of four daughters. She studied English, Zoology and Botany at St Andrews University before becoming a public protection scientist. Her first novel,The Exiles, was written in 1991...
, author - Louise MinchinLouise MinchinLouise Minchin is an English journalist and presenter. She is currently a regular presenter on the BBC News channel, as well as being the main relief presenter for the BBC News at One and BBC Breakfast and a guest presenter on The One Show.-Early life:Born Louise Grayson in 1968 in Hong Kong , to...
, newsreader - Craig OliverCraig Oliver (media executive)Craig Stewart Oliver is a British news editor, producer and media executive, and the current Head of Communications for British Prime Minister David Cameron...
, Downing Street Director of Communications - Siobhan RedmondSiobhan RedmondSiobhan Redmond is a Scottish actress.Originally from Tollcross, Glasgow, Redmond's first television appearances were in the early 1980s. Her first TV appearance was in 1982 in a sketch show called "Nothing to worry about!" which then lead to the sketch show Alfresco...
, actress - Alastair ReynoldsAlastair ReynoldsAlastair Preston Reynolds is a British science fiction author. He specialises in dark hard science fiction and space opera. He spent his early years in Cornwall, moved back to Wales before going to Newcastle, where he read physics and astronomy. Afterwards, he earned a PhD from St Andrews, Scotland...
, science fiction author - Brian TaylorBrian Taylor (journalist)Brian Taylor is the political editor for BBC Scotland. Taylor – who joined the BBC in 1985 – originally co-presented Left, Right and Centre and was political correspondent prior to his current role....
, journalist - William TennantWilliam TennantWilliam Tennant , Scottish scholar and poet, was born at Anstruther, Fife.He was lame from childhood. His father sent him to the University of St Andrews, where he remained for two years, and on his return he became clerk to one of his brothers, a corn factor...
, poet - Fay WeldonFay WeldonFay Weldon CBE is an English author, essayist and playwright, whose work has been associated with feminism. In her fiction, Weldon typically portrays contemporary women who find themselves trapped in oppressive situations caused by the patriarchal structure of British society.-Biography:Weldon was...
, feminist and writer - Timothy Williams, novelist
- Kid CanaveralKid CanaveralKid Canaveral is an indie pop band that formed in St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, but are now based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Since 2007 the band have released a number of well received singles, an E.P. and an album on their own label, Straight to Video Records, and in 2011 they signed with Scottish...
, Music Group
Philosophers, academics
- Sir Eric AndersonWilliam Eric Kinloch AndersonSir William "Eric" Kinloch Anderson, , was Provost of Eton College from September 2000 – 30 January 2009.Anderson was educated at George Watson's College, Edinburgh and gained a MA degree in English at the University of St. Andrews...
, academic, Provost of Eton College - Robert Balfour, philosopher
- G. W. S. BarrowG. W. S. BarrowGeoffrey Wallis Steuart Barrow DLitt FBA FRSE is a British historian and academic. He is Professor Emeritus at the University of Edinburgh, and arguably the most prominent Scottish medievalist of the last century....
, arguably the most prominent Scottish medievalist of the last century - Andrew Bell (educationalist)Andrew Bell (educationalist)Andrew Bell was a Scottish Anglican priest and educationalist who pioneered the Madras System of Education in schools and was the founder of Madras College, a secondary school in St. Andrews.-His life and work:Andrew Bell was born at St. Andrews, in Scotland on 27 March 1753 and attended St...
, Scottish Anglican priest and educationalist, founder of Madras CollegeMadras CollegeMadras College is a secondary school in St. Andrews, Fife in Scotland.-History:Madras College, founded in 1832, takes its name from the system of education devised by the school's founder, the Rev Dr Andrew Bell.... - Lionel ButlerLionel Harry ButlerDr Lionel Butler FRHistS MA DPhil was an academic and Principal of Royal Holloway College, University of London from 1973-1981.-Education and war service:...
First Professor of Medieval History (1955) and later Vice-Principal of the university. Principal of Royal Holloway College, University of London (1973–1981) - Stephen HaliczerStephen HaliczerStephen Haliczer is an American Jewish historian of Spain, Italy, and the Catholic Church during the Early Modern era. He is a professor of history at Northern Illinois University. Haliczer's undergraduate work was done at Bard College and his graduate work at St. Andrews University...
, historian - Kieron O'HaraKieron O'HaraDr Kieron O'Hara is a philosopher, computer scientist and political writer. He is currently a senior research fellow within the department of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton where he specialises in the politics, philosophy and epistemology of technology...
, philosopher and political writer - Russell KirkRussell KirkRussell Kirk was an American political theorist, moralist, historian, social critic, literary critic, and fiction author known for his influence on 20th century American conservatism. His 1953 book, The Conservative Mind, gave shape to the amorphous post–World War II conservative movement...
, American political theorist, historian, and fiction author - Walter PerryWalter PerryWalter Laing MacDonald Perry, Baron Perry of Walton FRS FRCP FRSE was a distinguished academic. He was the first Vice Chancellor of the Open University....
, Lord Perry of Walton, first Vice-Chancellor of the Open UniversityOpen UniversityThe Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom... - Dominic SandbrookDominic SandbrookDominic Sandbrook http://dominicsandbrook.com/wordpress/about/ is a British historian. Born in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, he was educated at Malvern College...
, historian and author - Lawrence StenhouseLawrence StenhouseLawrence Stenhouse was a British educational thinker who sought to promote an active role for teachers in educational research and curriculum development...
, educational researcher
Business and law
- Lord Colonsay, former Lord AdvocateLord AdvocateHer Majesty's Advocate , known as the Lord Advocate , is the chief legal officer of the Scottish Government and the Crown in Scotland for both civil and criminal matters that fall within the devolved powers of the Scottish Parliament...
and Lord Justice General - Lord Cullen, former Lord PresidentLord President of the Court of SessionThe Lord President of the Court of Session is head of the judiciary in Scotland, and presiding judge of the College of Justice and Court of Session, as well as being Lord Justice General of Scotland and head of the High Court of Justiciary, the offices having been combined in 1836...
of the Court of SessionCourt of SessionThe Court of Session is the supreme civil court of Scotland, and constitutes part of the College of Justice. It sits in Parliament House in Edinburgh and is both a court of first instance and a court of appeal....
and Lord Justice General - Lord EassieRonald Mackay, Lord EassieRonald David Mackay, Lord Eassie is a Scottish lawyer and judge of the country's Supreme Courts, sitting in the Inner House of the Court of Session.-Education:...
, Judge of the Inner HouseInner HouseThe Inner House is the senior part of the Court of Session, the supreme civil court in Scotland; the Outer House forms the junior part of the Court of Session. It is a court of appeal and a court of first instance...
of the Court of Session - Sir John Rose (Rolls-Royce), CEO of Rolls-Royce plcRolls-Royce plcRolls-Royce Group plc is a global power systems company headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s second-largest maker of aircraft engines , and also has major businesses in the marine propulsion and energy sectors. Through its defence-related activities...
- Olivier SarkozyOlivier SarkozyOlivier Sarkozy is a French-American businessman and the half-brother of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.-Early life:Olivier Sarkozy was born to Pal Sarkozy de Nagy-Bocsa and Christine de Ganay. His father was previously married to Andrée Mallah and had three children with her, including Nicolas...
, senior investment banker and half brother of French President, Nicolas SarkozyNicolas SarkozyNicolas Sarkozy is the 23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. He assumed the office on 16 May 2007 after defeating the Socialist Party candidate Ségolène Royal 10 days earlier....
Politics and public affairs
- Henry BalnavesHenry BalnavesHenry Balnaves was a Scottish politician and religious reformer.-Biography:Born in Kirkcaldy, Fife, around 1512, he was educated at the University of St Andrews and on the continent, where he adopted Protestant views. Returning to Scotland, he continued his legal studies and in 1538 was appointed...
, Scottish politician and religious reformer - Marco BiagiMarco Biagi (politician)Marco Biagi is a Scottish politician, serving as the SNP MSP for Edinburgh Central.Biagi was raised in Dunbartonshire. He studied at the University of St Andrews where he was awarded a First. He was also elected as a Vice-President of the Students' Association and in 2002 managed the unsuccessful...
MSP, SNPScottish National PartyThe Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
Member of the Scottish Parliament - Edgar Paul BoykoEdgar Paul BoykoEdgar Paul Boyko was an Alaskan attorney. He served as Attorney General for the State of Alaska under the administration of Governor Walter Hickel from 1967 to 1968.-Biography:...
, Attorney General for the State of Alaska under Governor Walter Hickel - Angie BrayAngie BrayAngela Lavinia Bray is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Ealing Central and Acton since 2010.-Biography:...
MP, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician - Malcolm BruceMalcolm BruceMalcolm Gray Bruce, MP is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Gordon. He has been the chairman of the International Development Select Committee since 2005.-Early life:...
, Liberal DemocratLiberal DemocratsThe Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
MP - Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of ElginThomas Bruce, 7th Earl of ElginThomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin and 11th Earl of Kincardine was a Scottish nobleman and diplomat, known for the removal of marble sculptures from the Parthenon in Athens. Elgin was the second son of Charles Bruce, 5th Earl of Elgin and his wife Martha Whyte...
, diplomat - Eamonn ButlerEamonn ButlerEamonn Butler is Director and co-founder of the Adam Smith Institute think tank, and an author and broadcaster on economic and social issues.-Career:...
, director and co-founder, Adam Smith InstituteAdam Smith InstituteThe Adam Smith Institute, abbreviated to ASI, is a think tank based in the United Kingdom, named after one of the founders of modern economics, Adam Smith. It espouses free market and classical liberal views, in particular by creating radical policy options in the light of public choice theory,... - Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of ArgyllArchibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of ArgyllArchibald Campbell, 1st Marquess of Argyll, 8th Earl of Argyll, chief of Clan Campbell, was the de facto head of government in Scotland during most of the conflict known as the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, also known as the British Civil War...
, 8th Earl of Argyll, chief of Clan Campbell - John Campbell, 1st Baron CampbellJohn Campbell, 1st Baron CampbellJohn Campbell, 1st Baron Campbell PC, KC was a British Liberal politician, lawyer, and man of letters.-Background and education:...
, Liberal politician and lawyer - Christopher ChopeChristopher ChopeChristopher Robert Chope OBE is a British barrister and Conservative politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Christchurch.-Early life:...
MP, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician - Barry GardinerBarry GardinerBarry Strachan Gardiner is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Brent North since 1997...
, Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, MP - Marlyn GlenMarlyn GlenMarlyn Glen is a Scottish Labour politician, and was Member of the Scottish Parliament for North East Scotland region from 2003 till she stood down in the election of 2011....
, Scottish Labour PartyScottish Labour PartyThe Scottish Labour Party is the section of the British Labour Party which operates in Scotland....
politician, and Member of the Scottish ParliamentMember of the Scottish ParliamentMember of the Scottish Parliament is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.-Methods of Election:MSPs are elected in one of two ways:...
for North East Scotland region since 2003. - James Graham, 1st Marquess of MontroseJames Graham, 1st Marquess of MontroseJames Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose was a Scottish nobleman and soldier, who initially joined the Covenanters in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, but subsequently supported King Charles I as the English Civil War developed...
, royalist military commander - John Graham, 1st Viscount of DundeeJohn Graham, 1st Viscount of DundeeJohn Graham of Claverhouse, 1st Viscount Dundee , known as the 7th Laird of Claverhouse until raised to the viscounty in 1688, was a Scottish soldier and nobleman, a Tory and an Episcopalian...
, JacobiteJacobitismJacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
military commander, "Bonnie Dundee" - John Campbell, 9th Duke of ArgyllJohn Campbell, 9th Duke of ArgyllJohn George Edward Henry Douglas Sutherland Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll KG, KT, GCMG, GCVO, VD, PC , usually better known by the courtesy title Marquess of Lorne, by which he was known between 1847 and 1900, was a British nobleman and was the fourth Governor General of Canada from 1878 to 1883...
, British nobleman and was Governor General of CanadaGovernor General of CanadaThe Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
from 1878 to 1883 - Michael FallonMichael FallonFor the American Physician / Candidate for U.S. House of Representatives see Mike FallonMichael Cathel Fallon is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Sevenoaks, and as of September 2010 the deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party.-Early life:Michael Fallon...
MP, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician - Arthur HobhouseArthur HobhouseSir Arthur Lawrence Hobhouse was a long-serving English local government Liberal politician, who is best remembered as the architect of the system of National parks of England and Wales....
, architect of the system of National parks of England and WalesNational parks of England and WalesThe national parks of England and Wales are areas of relatively undeveloped and scenic landscape that are designated under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949...
, MP - Mark LazarowiczMark LazarowiczMark Lazarowicz, is a British Labour Co-operative politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Edinburgh North and Leith since 2001...
, Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician - John MacGregor, Baron MacGregor of Pulham Market, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician - Lewis Moonie, Baron Moonie, Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, MP - Madsen PirieMadsen PirieDr Duncan Madsen Pirie, PhD is a British researcher, author, and educator. He is the founder and current President of the Adam Smith Institute, a UK think tank which has been in operation since 1978.-Early life and education:...
, founder, Adam Smith InstituteAdam Smith InstituteThe Adam Smith Institute, abbreviated to ASI, is a think tank based in the United Kingdom, named after one of the founders of modern economics, Adam Smith. It espouses free market and classical liberal views, in particular by creating radical policy options in the light of public choice theory,... - Lyon Playfair, 1st Baron PlayfairLyon Playfair, 1st Baron PlayfairLyon Playfair, 1st Baron Playfair GCB, PC, FRS was a Scottish scientist and Liberal politician.-Background and education:...
, scientist and LiberalLiberal Party (UK)The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
politician - George ReidGeorge Reid (Scottish politician)George Newlands Reid, PC , is a Scottish politician. From February 1974 to 1979 he served as a Scottish National Party Member of Parliament for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire. He was elected in 1999 as a Member of the newly established Scottish Parliament as a regional MSP for Mid Scotland and...
, Scottish National PartyScottish National PartyThe Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
politician and second Presiding Officer of the Scottish ParliamentScottish ParliamentThe Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament... - Alex SalmondAlex SalmondAlexander Elliot Anderson "Alex" Salmond MSP is a Scottish politician and current First Minister of Scotland. He became Scotland's fourth First Minister in May 2007. He is the Leader of the Scottish National Party , having served as Member of the Scottish Parliament for Gordon...
, First Minister of ScotlandFirst Minister of ScotlandThe First Minister of Scotland is the political leader of Scotland and head of the Scottish Government. The First Minister chairs the Scottish Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Scottish Government policy...
and leader of the Scottish National PartyScottish National PartyThe Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom.... - John SawersJohn SawersSir Robert John Sawers, KCMG is a British diplomat and senior civil servant. He is the current Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service...
, British Ambassador to the UN and Director of MI6 - Alex Singleton, Political commentator and former president of the Globalisation Institute
- Catherine StihlerCatherine StihlerCatherine Stihler is a British Labour Party politician. She has been a Member of the European Parliament for Scotland since 1999, being re-elected in 2004 and 2009...
, Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician - Jamie StoneJamie StoneJames "Jamie" Stone is a Scottish Liberal Democrat politician. He was a member of the Scottish Parliament for the constituency of Caithness, Sutherland, and Easter Ross, which is the northern-most mainland Scotland constituency and one of the largest constituencies in Britain...
, Liberal DemocratLiberal DemocratsThe Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
Member of the Scottish Parliament - Desmond SwayneDesmond SwayneDesmond Angus Swayne TD MP , is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He is Member of Parliament for the constituency of New Forest West in Hampshire, and is currently also Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, David Cameron, having been his PPS during his time...
MP, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician - Hugo SwireHugo SwireHugo George William Swire is a British Conservative Party politician. He has been the Member of Parliament for East Devon since 2001. He is currently a Minister of State for Northern Ireland in the current Government....
MP, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
politician - James WilsonJames WilsonJames Wilson was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. Wilson was elected twice to the Continental Congress, and was a major force in drafting the United States Constitution...
, signatory of the United States Declaration of IndependenceUnited States Declaration of IndependenceThe Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a... - Hikmat Abu ZaydHikmat Abu ZaydHikmat Abu Zayd was an Egyptian politician and academic. She became the first female cabinet minister in Egypt in 1962. Her tenure as Minister of Social Affairs set a precedent. Afterwards, it became common for women to head that ministry...
, first Egyptian female cabinet member
Religion
- David BeatonDavid BeatonThe Most Rev. Dr. David Cardinal Beaton was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish Cardinal prior to the Reformation.-Career:...
, Cardinal Archbishop of St Andrews - James BeatonJames BeatonDr. James Beaton was a Scottish church leader, the uncle of Dr. David Cardinal Beaton and the Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland....
, Scottish church leader, the uncle of Cardinal David BeatonDavid BeatonThe Most Rev. Dr. David Cardinal Beaton was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish Cardinal prior to the Reformation.-Career:... - George BuchananGeorge Buchanan (humanist)George Buchanan was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar. He was part of the Monarchomach movement.-Early life:...
, scholar, theologian and playwright - The Reverend Alexander Duff, missionary and founder of Scottish Church College, CalcuttaScottish Church College, CalcuttaThe Scottish Church College is the oldest continuously running Christian liberal arts and sciences college in India. It is affiliated with the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education , the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education for the awarding of baccalaureate and post baccalaureate...
- Thomas ChalmersThomas ChalmersThomas Chalmers , Scottish mathematician, political economist, divine and a leader of the Free Church of Scotland, was born at Anstruther in Fife.-Overview:...
, theologian and leader of the Free Church of ScotlandFree Church of Scotland (1843-1900)The Free Church of Scotland is a Scottish denomination which was formed in 1843 by a large withdrawal from the established Church of Scotland in a schism known as the "Disruption of 1843"... - Colin FalconerColin Falconer (bishop)Colin Falconer was a 17th century Scottish minister and bishop. Born in 1623, he was the son of Beatrix Falconer née Dunbar and her husband William Falconer of Dunduff. He graduated in the liberal arts at St Leonard's College, University of St Andrews, and moved on to become a clergyman...
, 17th century Scottish minster and bishop - George GillespieGeorge GillespieGeorge Gillespie was a Scottish theologian.-Life:He was born at Kirkcaldy, where his father, John Gillespie, was parish minister, and studied at St. Andrews University as a "presbytery bursar". On graduating he became domestic chaplain to John Gordon, 1st Viscount Kenmure , and afterwards to John...
, Scottish theologian - Patrick HamiltonPatrick Hamilton (martyr)Patrick Hamilton was a Scottish churchman and an early Protestant Reformer in Scotland. He travelled to Europe, where he met several of the leading reforming thinkers, before returning to Scotland to preach...
, Protestant reformer, early martyr of the Scottish Reformation+ - Alexander HendersonAlexander Henderson (theologian)Alexander Henderson was a Scottish theologian, and an important ecclesiastical statesman of his period. He is considered the second founder of the Reformed Church in Scotland, and its Presbyterian churches are largely indebted to him for the forms of their dogmas and organization.-Life:He was born...
, theologian - John KnoxJohn KnoxJohn Knox was a Scottish clergyman and a leader of the Protestant Reformation who brought reformation to the church in Scotland. He was educated at the University of St Andrews or possibly the University of Glasgow and was ordained to the Catholic priesthood in 1536...
, theologian, leader of the Protestant Reformation who is considered the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland - Andrew MelvilleAndrew MelvilleAndrew Melville was a Scottish scholar, theologian and religious reformer. His fame encouraged scholars from the European Continent to study at Glasgow and St Andrews.-Early life and early education:...
, scholar and theologian and religious reformer - John Munro of Tain, dissenter opposing reforms of James VI.
- Victor PremasagarVictor PremasagarVictor Premasagar was the fourth successor of Frank Whittaker as Bishop in Medak. He was an Indian churchman and Old Testament scholar. He also became Moderator of the Church of South India.-Early years:...
, Old TestamentOld TestamentThe Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
scholar and Moderator of the Church of South IndiaChurch of South IndiaThe Church of South India is the successor of the Church of England in India. It came into being in 1947 as a union of Anglican and Protestant churches in South India. With a membership of over 3.8 million, it is India's second largest Christian church after the Roman Catholic Church in India... - Klyne SnodgrassKlyne SnodgrassKlyne Ryland Snodgrass is an American theologian, author and professor of New Testament Studies at the North Park Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois. His publication Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus garnered a 2009 Christianity Today Book Award.- Education...
, American scholar and theologian - Sheila WatsonSheila Watson (cleric)Sheila Watson is a cleric in the Church of England.Watson grew up in a seaside town and graduated in classics at the University of St Andrews. She then did a preparatory year of theology at Oxford and then returned to St Andrew's for a research degree...
, archdeacon - John WitherspoonJohn WitherspoonJohn Witherspoon was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey , he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration...
, theologian, President of Princeton UniversityPrinceton UniversityPrinceton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
and signatory of the U.S. Declaration of IndependenceDeclaration of independenceA declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
. - Christopher Woods, Chaplain of Christ's College, University of Cambridge
Royalty
- King James II of Scotland
- The Duke of Cambridge (known at university as William Wales)
- The Duchess of Cambridge (known at university by her maiden name Catherine Middleton); on 25 February 2011, the couple paid an official visit to the university so that Prince William could give a speech for the university's 600th anniversary. They also accepted the establishment of a scholarship for needy students in their name as a wedding present. It was Middleton's second official function as a future member of the Royal Family
- Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan
Sciences
- Joseph BancroftJoseph BancroftJoseph Bancroft was a surgeon and parasitologist born in England, who emigrated to Australia.-Early life:...
, surgeonSurgeonIn medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
and parasitologist born in England, who emigrated to Australia - Alexander BerryAlexander BerryAlexander Berry was a Scottish-born surgeon, merchant and explorer who in 1822 was given a land grant of 10,000 acres and 100 convicts to establish the first European settlement on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia.This settlement became known as the Coolangatta Estate and later...
, explorer, Australian pioneer and settler of Coolangatta - Sir Douglas BlackDouglas BlackSir Douglas Andrew Kilgour Black, was a physician in the United Kingdom, famous as the author of the Black Report.He was born in Shetland in 1913, and studied medicine at the Bute Medical School, University of St Andrews, graduating with MB ChB in 1933.He conducted research into water loss and...
, physician and the author of Black ReportBlack ReportThe Black report was a 1980 document published by the Department of Health and Social Security in the United Kingdom, which was the report of the expert committee into health inequality chaired by Sir Douglas Black... - Sir James BlackJames W. BlackSir James Whyte Black, OM, FRS, FRSE, FRCP was a Scottish doctor and pharmacologist. He spent his career both as researcher and as an academic at several universities. Black established the physiology department at the University of Glasgow, where he became interested in the effects of adrenaline...
, Nobel prize winner in Medicine - Saba Douglas-HamiltonSaba Douglas-HamiltonSaba Iassa Douglas-Hamilton is a Kenyan wildlife conservationist and television presenter.-Early life:Born on a farm near Naivasha in the Great Rift Valley in Kenya, she is the daughter of zoologist, Iain Douglas-Hamilton and Oria Douglas-Hamilton née Rocco. Saba means "seven" in Swahili...
, British wildlife conservationist and television presenter - John GarrowJohn GarrowProfessor John Garrow , MD, PhD , FRCP , FRCP was editor of European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1988-1999. He was formerly Professor of Human Nutrition, University of London, Honorary consultant physician St Bartholomew's Hospital, St Mark's Hospital, Royal London Hospital and Northwick Park...
, honorary consultant physician, chairman of HealthWatchHealthWatchHealthWatch is a long-established UK charity which promotes evidence-based medicine. Its formal aims are:# The assessment and testing of treatments, whether “orthodox” or “alternative”;...
, Joint Advisory Committee on Nutrition Education and Association for the Study of Obesity - James GregoryJames Gregory (astronomer and mathematician)James Gregory FRS was a Scottish mathematician and astronomer. He described an early practical design for the reflecting telescope – the Gregorian telescope – and made advances in trigonometry, discovering infinite series representations for several trigonometric functions.- Biography :The...
, astronomer and mathematician, has been said that "Of the British mathematicians of the seventeenth century, Gregory was only excelled by NewtonIsaac NewtonSir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...
." - Walter HaworthWalter HaworthSir Norman Haworth was a British chemist best known for his groundbreaking work on ascorbic acid while working at the University of Birmingham. He received the 1937 Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his investigations on carbohydrates and vitamin C"...
, Nobel prize winner in ChemistryNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,... - Francis Robert JappFrancis Robert JappFrancis Robert Japp was a British chemist who discovered the Japp-Klingemann reaction in 1887.He was born in Dundee, Scotland, the son of James Japp, a minister of the Catholic Apostolic Church. He graduated from St Andrews with an M.A. in 1868 and entered the University of Edinburgh as a student...
, British Chemist who discovered the Japp–Klingemann reaction in 1887. - Edward JennerEdward JennerEdward Anthony Jenner was an English scientist who studied his natural surroundings in Berkeley, Gloucestershire...
, Doctor of Medicine, first doctor to introduce & study the Smallpox vaccine - Richard Kemp, chemist and manufacturer of illegal supply of LSDLSDLysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
– arrested as a result of Operation JulieOperation JulieOperation Julie was a UK police investigation into the production of LSD by two drug rings during the mid-1970s. The operation, involving 11 police forces over a two-and-a-half year period, resulted in the break-up of one of the largest LSD manufacturing operations in the world... - Alan MacDiarmidAlan MacDiarmidAlan Graham MacDiarmid ONZ was a chemist, and one of three recipients of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 2000.-Early life:He was born in Masterton, New Zealand as one of five children - three brothers and two sisters...
, NobelNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
prize winner in Chemistry - John NapierJohn NapierJohn Napier of Merchiston – also signed as Neper, Nepair – named Marvellous Merchiston, was a Scottish mathematician, physicist, astronomer & astrologer, and also the 8th Laird of Merchistoun. He was the son of Sir Archibald Napier of Merchiston. John Napier is most renowned as the discoverer...
, mathematician, inventor of logarithms
Other
- James CrichtonJames CrichtonJames Crichton, known as the Admirable Crichton , was a Scottish polymath noted for his extraordinary accomplishments in languages, the arts, and sciences before his killing when aged 21.-Life:...
, polymath, the original "Admirable Crichton" - Findlay S. DouglasFindlay S. DouglasFindlay S. Douglas was a Scottish amateur golfer who won the U.S. Amateur in 1898, and later became President of the United States Golf Association ....
, former President of the United States Golf AssociationUnited States Golf AssociationThe United States Golf Association is the United States' national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the Rules of Golf. The USGA also provides a national handicap system... - Anthony Dickson HomeAnthony Dickson HomeSurgeon General Sir Anthony Dickson Home VC KCB was a Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:Home was 30 years old, and a surgeon in the 90th Foot,...
, Served as Surgeon General of the British Army. Awarded the Victoria CrossVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories.... - John HoneyJohn HoneyJohn Honey became famous as a nineteen-year-old student of the University of St Andrews. On January 3, 1800, he was attending a service at St Salvator's Chapel when the congregation received news that a small ship, the Janet of Macduff, had run aground east of the town harbour. Five men were...
, student who rescued five men from a ship - Sir Chris Hoy, World, Olympic and Commonwealth Cycling Champion
- Charles B. MacdonaldCharles B. MacdonaldCharles Blair Macdonald was a major figure in early American golf. He built the first 18-hole course in the United States, was a driving force in the founding of the United States Golf Association, won the first U.S...
, a major figure in early American golf - William Gordon RutherfurdWilliam Gordon RutherfurdCaptain William Gordon Rutherfurd RN, CB was an officer in the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars whose career was almost entirely conducted in the West Indies except for a brief sojurn in European waters during which he commanded the ship of the line at the...
, Commander of at the battle of TrafalgarBattle of TrafalgarThe Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars .... - Barney White-SpunnerBarney White-SpunnerLieutenant General Sir Barnabas William Benjamin White-Spunner, KCB, CBE is the current Commander of the British Field Army.-Military career:Educated at Eton College and the University of St Andrews, Barney White-Spunner was commissioned into the Blues and Royals in 1979. He was appointed...
, Commander of the British Field Army - George Kennedy YoungGeorge Kennedy YoungGeorge Kennedy Young, CB, MBE, M.A. was a deputy director of MI6, and later involved in British right-wing politics. He was also a merchant banker....
, Deputy Director of MI6 and Merchant Banker
Rectors
In Scotland, the position of Rector exists in the four ancient universities (St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh) – as well as in the University of Dundee. The post (officially Lord Rector, but by normal use Rector alone) was made an integral part of these universities by the Universities (Scotland) Act 1889. The Rector of the University of St AndrewsRector of the University of St Andrews
The Lord Rector of the University of St Andrews is a university official chosen every three years by the students of the University of St Andrews...
chairs meetings of the University Court, the governing body of the university, and is elected by the matriculated student body.
- Charles NeavesCharles NeavesCharles Neaves, Lord Neaves FRSE was a Scottish advocate, judge, theologian and writer. He served as Solicitor General , as a judge of the Court of Session, the supreme court of Scotland , and as Rector of the University of St Andrews .Neaves was known as one of the early analysts of the history...
, Lord Neaves 1872–1874, Scottish theologian, juristJuristA jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
and evolutionEvolutionEvolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
analyst - John CleeseJohn CleeseJohn Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...
1970–1973, English actor and comedian - Rudyard KiplingRudyard KiplingJoseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
1922–1925, Nobel PrizeNobel PrizeThe Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner, British author and poet - Andrew CarnegieAndrew CarnegieAndrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
1901–1907, Scottish-born American businessman, philanthropist - John Stuart MillJohn Stuart MillJohn Stuart Mill was a British philosopher, economist and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of...
1865–1868, English philosopher and political economist - Douglas HaigDouglas Haig, 1st Earl HaigField Marshal Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig, KT, GCB, OM, GCVO, KCIE, ADC, was a British senior officer during World War I. He commanded the British Expeditionary Force from 1915 to the end of the War...
, 1916–1919, Senior British Commander of World War I - J. M. BarrieJ. M. BarrieSir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
, 1919–1922, Scottish author of Peter PanPeter PanPeter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with... - Fridtjof NansenFridtjof NansenFridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen was a Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. In his youth a champion skier and ice skater, he led the team that made the first crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, and won international fame after reaching a...
, 1925–1928, Norwegian explorer, scientist, diplomat and Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
winner
Links with the United States
The university has a strong link with the United States. Significant numbers of students matriculate from the United States. Many important American figures (and emigrants to the United States) from Scotland have been associated with the university:- Andrew CarnegieAndrew CarnegieAndrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, and entrepreneur who led the enormous expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century...
, Lord Rector of the University. See the following link to the NY Times article which documents his controversial Inaugural Address: LORD RECTOR CARNEGIE. - Bill BrysonBill BrysonWilliam McGuire "Bill" Bryson, OBE, is a best-selling American author of humorous books on travel, as well as books on the English language and on science. Born an American, he was a resident of Britain for most of his adult life before moving back to the US in 1995...
, author. - Bobby JonesBobby Jones (golfer)Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones Jr. was an American amateur golfer, and a lawyer by profession. Jones was the most successful amateur golfer ever to compete on a national and international level...
, golfer. - Guy Sands-PingotGuy Sands-PingotGuy Ludvic Sands-Pingot is an American brigadier general of the United States Army. He served as Commander of the 353rd Civil Affairs Command located at Fort Wadsworth, New York from 3 December 2005 through 6 December 2008....
, Brigadier General, USAR. - Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, awarded honorary degree. - Michael DouglasMichael DouglasMichael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and as Best Actor in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the...
, awarded honorary degree. - Jonathan Taylor ThomasJonathan Taylor ThomasJonathan Taylor Thomas is an American actor, voice actor, former child star, and teen idol...
, actor, exchange student. - Arnold PalmerArnold PalmerArnold Daniel Palmer is an American professional golfer, who is generally regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men's professional golf. He has won numerous events on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, dating back to 1955...
honorary Doctor of Laws - Jack NicklausJack NicklausJack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...
honorary Doctor of Laws - Tom WatsonTom Watson (golfer)Thomas Sturges Watson is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and now mostly on the Champions Tour....
honorary Doctor of Laws
Signatories of the American Declaration of Independence
Three of the signatories of the 1776 American Declaration of Independence attended or received degrees from St Andrews, including:- James WilsonJames WilsonJames Wilson was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence. Wilson was elected twice to the Continental Congress, and was a major force in drafting the United States Constitution...
, born at Carskerdo, near CuparCuparCupar is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland. The town is situated between Dundee and the New Town of Glenrothes.According to a recent population estimate , Cupar had a population around 8,980 making the town the ninth largest settlement in Fife.-History:The town is believed to have...
(signer from the state of Pennsylvania)
Wilson attended three Scottish Universities including St Andrews, but did not earn a degree from any of them. Carrying important letters of introduction, Wilson arrived in the US in 1765. He became a Latin tutor at Philadelphia College (now the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
), and successfully petitioned that institution to grant him an honorary Master of Arts.
- John WitherspoonJohn WitherspoonJohn Witherspoon was a signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. As president of the College of New Jersey , he trained many leaders of the early nation and was the only active clergyman and the only college president to sign the Declaration...
, born at Gifford, East LothianGifford, East LothianGifford is a village in the parish of Yester in East Lothian, Scotland. It lies approximately 4 miles south of Haddington and 25 miles east of Edinburgh.-History:...
(signer from the state of New Jersey)
Witherspoon was president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
). Witherspoon was largely responsible for converting the institution into a success by employing Scottish educational standards. He received his Master of Arts
Master of Arts (Scotland)
A Master of Arts in Scotland can refer to an undergraduate academic degree in humanities and social sciences awarded by the ancient universities of Scotland – the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh, while the University of...
, Bachelor of Divinity
Bachelor of Divinity
In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity is usually an undergraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology or, rarely, religious studies....
, and was made a Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
at the University of St Andrews.
- Benjamin FranklinBenjamin FranklinDr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
, born Boston, Massachusetts (signer from the state of Pennsylvania)
In 1759 Franklin received an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of St Andrews.
Exchange programmes
The College of William & Mary sends several students each year to study in Scotland, while in return several St. Andrews students frequently participate in the reverse exchange program. As of Fall 2010, incoming freshmen at William & Mary will be given the option of a four-year, joint degree program, spending their first year in Williamsburg, the second in St. Andrews, and the two final years as they decided. St. Andrews students will be offered the same program, with their first year at their home institution. Emory UniversityEmory University
Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...
in Atlanta runs an exchange programme with St Andrews called the Bobby Jones Scholars
Bobby Jones (golfer)
Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones Jr. was an American amateur golfer, and a lawyer by profession. Jones was the most successful amateur golfer ever to compete on a national and international level...
programme, which allows for recent graduates of both universities to study at the other university. In addition, the School of Physics and Astronomy maintains a postgraduate exchange with The Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States...
. Both of these exchanges are funded by the Robert T. Jones Memorial Trust. The Robert Lincoln McNeil Scholarship is run in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. One of the largest exchanges is with the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
, and students are routinely sent to Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, UCLA, and UCSD. The School of International Relations and the School of Modern Languages also oversee an undergraduate student exchange with Sciences Po in Paris. Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
and the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
in Canada provide a reciprocal exchange with St Andrews through the Robert Tyre Jones Jr. Scholarships program.
Any alumnus, student or staff member can wear a scarf of dark blue, sky blue and white:
University of St Andrews
St Mary's College
St Mary's College, St Andrews
St Mary's College of the University of St Andrews, in Fife, Scotland - in full, the New College of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary - was founded in 1538 by Archbishop James Beaton, uncle of Cardinal David Beaton on the site of the pedagogy or St Johns College .St Mary's College was...
Bute Medical School
Bute Medical School
The University of St Andrews School of Medicine is the school of medicine at the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland; it used to be known as the 'Bute Medical School' until the 2010–2011 academic year...
St Leonard's College (Postgraduate)
United College, St Andrews
The United College is one of the two statutory colleges of the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland...
Student organisations
Students' association
The University of St Andrews Students' AssociationUniversity of St Andrews Students' Association
The University of St Andrews Students' Association was founded in 1864, and is the oldest students' union in the world.-Management:The Association is run by a student-majority Board and four sabbatical officers, each responsible for a separate aspect of student life: the Director of Representation...
is the organisation which represents the student body of the University of St Andrews.
The Association was instituted in 1983 under the Constitution and Laws of the University of St Andrews Students’ Association. It comprises the Students' Representative Council (SRC), established in 1885 and legally defined under the Universities (Scotland) Act 1889, and the Students' Union (which was itself a merger of the Students' Union and the Women's Union). The Students' Association is registered with the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator
Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator
The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government, with responsibility for the regulation of charities in Scotland...
as charity SCO19883
The Students' Association Building (colloquially known as the Union) is located on St Mary's Place, St Andrews
St Andrews
St Andrews is a university town and former royal burgh on the east coast of Fife in Scotland. The town is named after Saint Andrew the Apostle.St Andrews has a population of 16,680, making this the fifth largest settlement in Fife....
. External bodies operating in the building include a Blackwells bookshop and the University's Student Support Services. The Students' Association is affiliated to, and a founding member of, the Coalition of Higher Education Students in Scotland
Coalition of Higher Education Students in Scotland
The Coalition of Higher Education Students in Scotland is a body representative of students in Scotland founded in 2001 by the Students' Associations of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and St Andrews Universities, and Glasgow University's Students' Representative Council.CHESS was founded in 1999 out...
(CHESS) and is not a member of the National Union of Students.
Societies
Students at the university form various voluntary societies for academic, social, artistic, political, religious and other purposes. Many of these are affiliated with the Students' Association. Other groups are not affiliated to the University or the Students Association, and therefore not a part of the University structure. An incomplete list can be found here: independent student groupsIndependent Student Groups in St Andrews
There are a number of unaffiliated groups run by students in the University of St Andrews, Scotland-Independent media:* Newspapers** The Saint, published fortnightly, is the oldest of the student publications and has the highest circulation...
The university's Music Society comprises many student-run musical groups, including the University's flagship Symphony Orchestra (now conducted by the Glasgow based Christopher Swaffer), Wind Band, and Chorus (the largest student music group). They also organise their own series of weekly lunchtime recitals. The Society was noted for particular strength in the University in the Sunday Times Universities Guide 2011. The music society organised a major composition competition, Prelude to the 600th, in 2011 which was won by Mark David Boden. This received much attention from the media and high profile figures in the music industry such as Sir Peter Maxwell Davies. One of the oldest and most well respected choirs in the University is the Madrigal Group which performs a concert each term and has a summer tour each year.
The 'A Cappella Society' represents all four a cappella groups in St Andrews: The Other Guys
The Other Guys (University of St Andrews)
The Other Guys is an all-male a cappella ensemble from the University of St Andrews, Scotland. The group was founded in 2004 and has been one of the groups responsible for the rise of collegiate a cappella in Scotland....
, The Alleycats, The Accidentals and The Hummingbirds. From 2009–2011, all four of these groups, as well as Glasgow's Choral Stimulation since 2010, have participated in The Voice Festival UK
The Voice Festival UK
The Voice Festival UK is the only UK-wide festival which celebrates the art of unaccompanied singing.The Festival's central purpose is to increase the awareness and popularity of the a cappella art form in the UK, and to support the development of the existing UK a cappella scene, by recruiting...
(VF-UK) competition, with The Other Guys, The Accidentals and The Alleycats all having reached the London final since the competition's inception. Recently, The Other Guys released a video onto YouTube, entitled Royal Romance, a tribute to the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton
The wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, and Catherine Middleton took place on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London. Prince William, the eldest son of Charles, Prince of Wales, first met Catherine Middleton in 2001, when both were studying at the University of St Andrews. Their...
, which earned them significant recognition both throughout Scotland and in international media.
Students and staff from the University of St Andrews are developing Project Zambia. Piloted in 2009, the project is now embedded in the work of the Department of Sport and Exercise and the Student Experience Office in the University of St Andrews. Students are recruited from two sections of the University's student body: top performance athletes are chosen for their commitment to sport, while students who have shown commitment to pastoral volunteering, aiding their fellow students, are chosen to extend their experience in the caring professions.The students, and staff seeking professional development, travel to Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
to live and work in the communities, schools and orphanages for the summer months in conjunction with the Zambian organisation 'Sport In Action'.
Athletic union
The University of St Andrews Athletic UnionUniversity of St Andrews Athletic Union
The University of St Andrews Athletic Union is the umbrella organisation for the support and development of University sport and sports clubs...
is the Student representative body for sport.
- University of St Andrews Rugby Football ClubUniversity of St Andrews Rugby Football ClubThe University of St Andrews Rugby Football Club is an affiliated member of the University of St Andrews Athletic Union in Fife, Scotland. It was founded in 1858, making it one of the oldest football clubs in the world. In 2008, the club celebrated its sesquicentennial year, marking its 150th...
(Founded 1858)
Media
- Newspapers:
- The SaintThe Saint (UK newspaper)The Saint is a newspaper written by students at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. It is one of only three such newspapers in the UK to enjoy complete financial and editorial independence, as it is not affiliated with the University or Students' Association in any way...
is the longest-lived student newspaper, published fortnightly since 1997 and tracing its roots several decades further. It is fully independent of both the Student's Union and the university, which has led to some controversy about certain articles in the past. This independence is only matched by four other student newspapers in Britain, and one in Ireland – FelixFelix (newspaper)Felix is the award-winning student newspaper of Imperial College London. It won the Guardian Student Newspaper of the Year award in 2008. The newspaper is published weekly during term time, approximately 30 issues per year, and is distributed around the various Imperial College campuses.The FELIX...
at Imperial College LondonImperial College LondonImperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
, CherwellCherwell (newspaper)Cherwell is an independent newspaper, largely published for students of Oxford University. First published in 1920, it has had an online edition since 1996. Named after the local river, Cherwell is published by OSPL , who also publish the sister publication ISIS along with the Etcetera Supplement...
in OxfordOxfordThe city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, VarsityVarsity (Cambridge)Varsity is the oldest of Cambridge University's main student newspapers. It has been published continuously since 1947, and is one of only three fully independent student newspapers in the UK. It appears every Friday around Cambridge...
in CambridgeCambridgeThe city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, The Inquirer at City University in London and the "College Tribune" at University College DublinUniversity College DublinUniversity College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
in Dublin. - On 17 April 2006, the Vine magazine (supported by the Students' Association) was re-launched. The magazine claimed to generate discussion and thought throughout the student population of the town, and was printed at irregular intervals. Sales were poor, and the publication eventually closed down in 2007.
- The Tribe "an off-beat art and lifestyle publication appealing to University of St Andrews students passionate about journalism and photography" was launched in 2009.
- The Regulus Magazine, founded in January 2010, is a student-run publication entirely devoted to political and economic affairs featuring contributions from prestigious members of the international community.
- The Saint
- Academic Journals:
- In 2007 the James Crichton Society was created to foster "academic inquiry and discussion". It produced a monthly journal but has since ceased to publish.
- St. Andrews Psychology Review (S.P.R.) founded in 2008 in association with St. Andrews Psychology Department and The St. Andrews Psychology Society (independently funded and not affiliated with The St. Andrews Student Union). While it is the first Independent Academic Journal at The University St. Andrews it has a number of individuals who aren’t university staff or students as writers and staff.
- Aporia (The Philosophy Society Journal) A biannual philosophy journal, founded in 2006, that features undergraduates, graduates, and postgraduates from around the UK.
- Ha@sta, a student produced annual journal for those interested in the History of Art has been published since 1995.
- There is a postgraduate journal for Museum and Gallery Studies.
- Radio:
- On 28 February 2005, a number of St Andrews students launched the university's first FMFrequency modulationIn telecommunications and signal processing, frequency modulation conveys information over a carrier wave by varying its instantaneous frequency. This contrasts with amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier is varied while its frequency remains constant...
station broadcasting over 5 km on the 87.7 MHzHertzThe hertz is the SI unit of frequency defined as the number of cycles per second of a periodic phenomenon. One of its most common uses is the description of the sine wave, particularly those used in radio and audio applications....
frequency. The station was granted a Restricted Service LicenceRestricted Service LicenceA UK Restricted Service Licence , is typically granted to radio stations and television stations broadcasting within the UK to serve a local community or a special event...
by OfcomOfcomOfcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
, which allowed for six hours of broadcast a day. Subsequent periods of broadcast followed until the end of 2007, when it was decided to re-brand Star FM as STAR or St Andrews Radio and broadcast solely as an Internet station online for twenty-four hours a day. The radio station is now a sub-committee of the Students' Association under the name of the Broadcasting Committee. It broadcasts 24/7 during University term time. The station can be found at www.standrewsradio.com.
- On 28 February 2005, a number of St Andrews students launched the university's first FM
- Web:
- An independent website has been set up by students at the university for topical discussion and an unbiased review of the town and University.
- On 15 August 2009, a group of independent St Andrews students launched a detailed and interactive unofficial 'survival guide' for incoming undergraduates providing information on the town and university life. The guide features a Twitter feed to interact with new students and a newsletter that encourages dialogue with current students.
- In 2010 StAnd Science, a student science and technology blog was launched.
See also
- Academic dress of the University of St AndrewsAcademic dress of the University of St AndrewsAcademic dress at the University of St Andrews is an important part of university life. The University of St Andrews was founded between 1410 and 1413, being the oldest of the ancient universities of Scotland and the third oldest university in the English-speaking world.-Use of academic...
Academics of the University of St Andrews
- Ancient universities of ScotlandAncient universities of ScotlandThe ancient universities of Scotland are medieval and renaissance universities which continue to exist until the present day. The majority of the ancient universities of the British Isles are located within Scotland, and have a number of distinctive features in common, being governed by a series of...
- Chancellor of the University of St AndrewsChancellor of the University of St AndrewsThe Chancellor is the titular head of the University of St Andrews. His duties include conferring degrees, promoting the University’s image throughout the world, and furthering its interests, both within Scotland and beyond....
- List of medieval universities
- Rector of the University of St AndrewsRector of the University of St AndrewsThe Lord Rector of the University of St Andrews is a university official chosen every three years by the students of the University of St Andrews...
Sources
- University of St Andrews – Facts and Figures
- guardian.co.uk
- R.G. Cant The University of St Andrews, A Short History (Oliver and Boyd Ltd. 1946)