Degree programmes

Traditionally, Scottish degree programmes take four years. Occasionally referred to as 'broad programmes', Scottish degrees allow time in the first two years to study additional subjects alongside your main degree subject. These subjects are known as outside subjects. You can use them to continue studying subjects you enjoyed at school, explore new areas of interest or get knowledge in a field related to a future career.

From Year 3 of your degree, you will just study your degree subjects i.e. mathematics, or mathematics and another subject (if on a joint honours degree).

Outside subjects are additional subjects you can take in Years 1 and 2 alongside your main degree subjects.

Popular choices which fit well with mathematics (and are required on certain joint honours programmes) include business, informatics (computer science), economics and physics. Languages are also a popular option and can be studied at an introductory level, and occasionally at a higher level. Generally, the outside subjects taken in Year 2 do not have to be the same as those taken in Year 1.

On mathematics programmes, a maximum of half your time will be spent studying outside subjects, and you will typically only take outside subjects in the first two years of the programme. If you are studying a joint honours degree you may have less time for outside subjects, due to the fact you are already studying two subjects. From Year 3, you will just study your main degree subject(s).

To see some examples of subjects and courses that our students have taken, click the button below.

Outside Subjects

The Year 1 compulsory mathematics courses are the same across all of our programmes, so it is relatively easy to change between programmes within the School of Mathematics.

By taking outside subjects, this can also create some flexibility within your degree. If you have taken the right outside subjects, it is sometimes possible to transfer to another degree programme. This is most commonly going from a single honours programme to a joint honours programme or vice versa. Note that a transfer between programmes isn't always guaranteed, particularly if the programme belongs to another School, and depends on many factors including capacity and performance.

MMath flexibility

Many students move between the MMath and the BSc versions of our degrees, and our students can change between the two up until the start of Year 4 subject to a strong academic performance.

The BSc programme is our typical undergraduate mathematics degree.

The MMath programme is our five-year integrated masters programme. This adds an additional year on to the BSc programme, in which you will study masters level courses. We recommend you consider this programme if you want to use advanced mathematics as part of your career, or if you want to go onto further study. It is easy to switch between the BSc and MMath until the beginning of Year  4, subject to a strong academic performance.

MA (Hons) is a historic and traditional Scottish degree title. The MA Mathematics is another undergraduate mathematics degree (not a masters!) and is very similar to the BSc programme. The only difference with this programme is that your outside subjects in Years 1 and 2 must be chosen from the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. You will typically study the same outside subject in Years 1 and 2. From Year 3 onwards, it is the same as the BSc.