Program Information | Course Information | W&M Faculty | Dates | Deadlines | Program Fees | Eligibility | Handbooks

APPLICATION DEADLINE: December 2nd, 2024 (11:59pm)

The University of St Andrews, founded in 1413, is Scotland's oldest university and the third oldest university in the English-speaking world. The university has over 8,900 students, with 45% of the student body coming from outside the UK. The university boasts 18 academic schools and learning centers and is consistently ranked among the best universities in the UK and internationally. The university is known for their unique, ancient traditions, and academic garb. There is an active student association, over 140 student societies, and the well-known “Union Debating Society,” which hosts weekly debates and is open to all matriculated students.

St Andrews is a small town situated on Scotland’s picturesque east coast. The campus lies in the heart of the town, mingling with shops, offices, and houses. Distant hills and the sea are seldom out of view when at St Andrews. When the university is in session, the students make up approximately one third of the town’s population. Nearby attractions include St Andrews Castle; the Old Course, a world famous golf course; and the many local beaches. St Andrews is 10 miles from Dundee and 30 miles from Edinburgh, which are both accessible by bus and train and are accessible connections for more distant travel.

Course Information:
Students will receive 6 credits through the St Andrews program. Course subject areas include history, geography, and/or Environmental Science. The local St Andrews course will focus on geography and sustainable development. The W&M faculty-taught course will be announced soon.
 

• ENSP 249 - Scotland’s Evolving Landscape (3 credits) 
  • ​The University of St Andrews course will focus on Geography and Sustainable Development. This course will address themes of broad interest relating to the interdisciplinary study of Scotland’s Evolving Landscape. Course themes of knowledge and understanding will include “physical landscapes,” “cultural landscapes,” “climate change,” “population change,” “landscape management,” and “sustainable development”. Students will enjoy an extensive program of field trips to gain first-hand experience of Scotland’s breath-taking landscapes and a deeper understanding of the forces that have shaped and continue to shape the land and its people. Students who complete this course will be able to analyze and synthesize the process (physical, social, and economic) that shape landscapes over time and will be able to critically “read” (evaluate) a landscape through the lens of interdisciplinary scholarship. 
• W&M's course ENGL 465  - Scottish Gothic Fiction (3 Credits) 
  • This course will explore the genre of Scottish Gothic, concentrating on the major nineteenth-century practitioners of the genre: James Hogg, whose Confessions of a Justified Sinner satirizes Scottish religious fanaticism, and Robert Louis Stevenson, whose short story “The Body Snatcher” was based on real-life murders in Edinburgh by William Hare and William Burke. We’ll study the ways in which Scottish Gothic develops in other nineteenth- and twentieth-century works of fiction by Scottish authors, including the strange novel Poor Things by Alasdair Gray. We will also investigate accounts of ghost sightings and spiritualist practices in Scotland. Throughout the course, we’ll consider how Scottish Gothic fiction reinforces and interrogates constructions of gender, sexuality, and Scottish nationality. Visits to sites associated with the fictional texts will give students first-hand experience of the settings of Scottish Gothic.

Courses are taught by W&M faculty and faculty at the University of St Andrews. Grades will appear on the W&M transcript and will be included in GPA calculations.

Housing:
Students are housed in the University of St Andrews student residences.

W&M Faculty: Professor Kim Wheatley

Term: Summer 
Arrival date: June 7th, 2025
Departure date: July 5th, 2025

Deadlines:

Priority Deadline ($75*): December 2nd, 2024
Deposit ($750): March 7th (Friday before Spring Break)
Final Payment: April 1st, 2025

Application Fee Information:
The application fee ($75) is due by the deadline and should be paid online at the GEO Marketplace Store. Whoever is making the payment will need student 93#, email, and phone number. The application fee is refundable in the event that you are not accepted into the program or the program is canceled by W&M. 

Program Fees:
2024 program fee: $8,550
* 2025 program fee still being determined

*Students are responsible for airfare, visa fees, and some meals.

To view the estimated costs for the 2024 program and important payment information, please visit here. 2025 estimates will be posted as soon as they are available.

Reves Summer Scholarships are available for this program. 
If applying for a Reves Summer Scholarship, please apply to the W&M faculty-led application BEFORE applying to the Reves Summer Scholarship. 

Program Features: 

• Welcome Dinner
• On-site orientation
• Ground transportation while on program
• Funds provided for roundtrip ground transportation to St. Andrews from airport 
• Farewell Dinner
• Re-entry programming
• Some excursion admissions tickets
• Some day or weekend excursions: Scottish Highlands overnight
• CISI Insurance
• Housing
• WiFi
• On-site support services
• W&M credits
• Strong academic partnership with St Andrews to offer reputable and rigorous academic coursework 

Eligibility:

• Students must be an active W&M undergraduate student in good standing, not on academic or disciplinary probation during time abroad, and eligible to take classes at the W&M Williamsburg campus to study abroad. 
•  Students currently on-campus must successfully complete 1 credit spring course. 
• For more information about eligibility, please visit our Policies that Affect You page.

Handbook: 

Click to view the Summer Abroad Handbook 2025