Background

 

The University of Aberdeen has undertaken Curriculum Reform (CREF) in order to reflect on the services that we offer to our students, and our current provision.

What and how should we really be teaching in the 21st century? To answer this we’ve spent the last two years looking at ground-breaking models elsewhere in the world at leading universities such as Harvard, Yale, Melbourne and Hong Kong. We’ve talked to employers and professional bodies, educators and students past and present, along with their parents, to ensure that our provision is distinctive, places Aberdeen in the forefront of international developments in undergraduate education, but also best meets the needs and expectations of our students, future employers and the needs of wider society.

Our overarching aim is to enhance the learning experience for our students at the University, and we are confident that the results of the reform process will ensure that our graduates are better informed and more intellectually flexible, but also have the opportunity to enhance their understanding of their degree programme.

When you study at Aberdeen, your degree will still have all the quality and depth of the traditional Scottish degree, but from 2010 it will also offer you:

  • more choice – so you can study around your core subject to gain breadth and context; add a language, a science or business study as an extra subject during the first two years of your degree; or choose from a range of new multidisciplinary courses based on real world problems

 

  • wider opportunities – so you can broaden your experience and skills through a choice of activities such as overseas study, work placements and voluntary work, all overseen by the University

 

  • better support – including more scholarships, new ‘one-stop’ student support shops that bring together different support services, and new flexible learning spaces on campus to complement lecture theatres and labs

 

  • more flexibility – so you can fit your studies around other life demands and take study breaks if you need them; we’ll award formal qualifications for the study you’ve already completed, so you can easily pick up where you left off when you decide to return