University of Stirling

After acceptance to study abroad as an Illinois student to a Stirling program, you will need to submit an application directy with the University of Stirling. Navigate to Stirling's Applications (please be sure to apply to the correct term):

Stirling International Summer School Application (summer)

Please complete the Summer application form once you have been nominated by IAGE. You will be asked to submit supporting documents to iss@stir.ac.uk . This is something that your IAGE advisor can assist you with, since you have submitted passport information, transcript, and a recommendation through our program application. For summer applicants Stirling aims to make a decision within one week of receiving a complete application.

University of Stirling Application (semester or academic year)

Please complete the Stirling application form, then submit all supporting documents to study-abroad@stir.ac.uk. Once accepted, you will receive an email with further information, including an accommodation application guide, registering for courses, and study abroad student handbook. For semester and full year applicants Stirling aims to make a decision within 4 weeks of receiving a complete application.

Further details of what is required for the application process can be found here .

Stirling offers a range of scholarship funding based on program term, country of origin, and academic area.

You'll need to complete an application to be considered. For more from Stirling on funding opportunities, view their scholarship web page.

Semester Program Dates

• • Spring Semester 2021: January 18 - May 28, 2021

  • Fall Semester 2021: September 13, 2021- December 20, 2021

  • Academic Year 2021-22: September 13, 2021 - May 27, 2022

See Official Term Dates

International Summer School Program Dates:

• • Summer 2021: Students can choose to study for four weeks (Block I or II) or a full eight weeks.

    • Block I: June 6- July 4

    • Block II: July 4- August 1

Scotland's two main international airports, Edinburgh and Glasgow, are less than an hour away by car from the University of Stirling. Students can get from the airports to city centers by coach or tram, then access the train service to get to Stirling city center. Bus or taxi will connect you from Stirling city center to campus.

Your first week at Stirling will include welcome events, information sessions, and general orientation procedures.

See "Getting to Stirling" about getting to the University by various modes of transport (bus, train, etc.).

Stirling Housing

For Academic Year 2020-2021, including Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 semester session, University of Stirling offers one off-campus and two on-campus accommodation options for incoming exchange students. The on-campus options include Alexander Court and Juniper Court, while off-campus housing is located on Union Street, near Stirling city center.

Read more about Accommodation for Visiting Students at Stirling.

Important Notes on Housing & Meals:

• • • Housing application forms can be found in the Stirling student portal after accepting admission to the University. Visiting students will have access to the accommodation portal starting in mid-April. Once you have applied for housing, you will receive an accommodation offer from Stirling and will need to accept it within seven days.

    • Accommodation costs for the on-campus and off-campus visiting student options will be updated in March to reflect current pricing.

    • A bedding pack (2 each of sheets, duvet covers and pillow cases) will be provided for each student in their room. The bedding pack can be taken away with the student upon move out. A pillow and duvet are also provided, but must be left in the room when vacated.

    • Payment options for Stirling housing include direct debit, online payments, bank transfers, debit or credit cards, Stirling cheques, or cash. Find information about payment methods, paying in installments, and more at Stirling's How To Pay.

    • On-campus housing options usually have a shared kitchen and showers, a communal living room, as well as laundry access and wifi included. The off-campus option offers the same, often with fewer bed spaces per flat, and a cheaper monthly installment.

    • Meals are not included, so you will have to budget for groceries and prepare your own meals; see our Estimate of Additional Expenses for each semester, under More Info. See this Stirling Student blog on Where to Eat on Campus for more meal options.

Student Voices on Housing

• • Willow Court is a great place to live

  • Alexander Court was the farthest on-campus location for student accommodation, but the fifteen-minute walk to the union was not that bad, aside from when the snow was heavy. The walk is also beautiful, so it is worth it. From the union, lecture and class rooms were ten minutes away at most.

  • Get your accommodation early, do not wait because there were some dorms/flats that were in good locations, but very old and not as nice as some.

  • I recommend getting student housing off campus and in Stirling. The advantages of living on campus is that you are surrounded by beautiful nature, have the opportunity to frequently hike in the hills next to campus, have convenient access to the student union (which has restaurants, a bar, a grocery shop, and a few other amenities), and be in walking distances to the academic buildings. A major disadvantage of living on campus, however, is that it gets pretty boring. Stirling's city center is the hottest destination for students. The closest major grocery stores and shops, restaurants, taverns, and clubs (two of them), are located either in or near Stirling city center. Students do not receive free bus fare and monthly buses passes are a bit expensive, thirty pounds during the 2017 fall semester, but I definitely had no regrets choosing to live off campus. There are also a lot of historical places in the town: Stirling Castle, Stirling Bridge, the Shed (a railroad museum), to name a few. Living there also gave me a greater sense of Scottish culture.

  • I lived in the university accommodation halls. In my flat there were seven of us, with our own individual rooms. We paid for our own food, but it was easy with a cheap grocery store nearby. Most of my flat mates ordered food online to be delivered every two weeks or so. It was an older accommodation that was about fifteen to twenty minutes away from the class halls, but there were other options for newer buildings right across from the classrooms. The university and its accommodation halls are a bit far from the main city center of Stirling, but there's easy access with buses. It was situated in a perfect location with hills and a forest behind it, and I felt perfectly safe at all times. The rooms were small, but that does not matter when it's for a single person. The environment was ideal.

  • If you want to live on campus, choose Alexander Court. To be honest, most people don't like because it is older, but it's the perfect way to meet people. If you are concerned about the quality, and have some money to spare, other accommodation halls are very nice and only a two minute walk from your classes. In Alexander Court specifically, most people are international students. While that thought discouraged me at first, it's actually incredible to find people who are there short term, and want to explore Scotland as much as you do. You also meet so many people from so many different cultures and backgrounds who will become your best friends and travel buddies. It's a bit farther walk to classes, but it's so beautiful there that no one minds it. The cheapest option might be to live in town, but then definitely buy a bus pass. It's about an hour of walking, and a bus pass doesn't come in the school fees. Some people lived in Bridge of Allen, the cute and small town next door. That's also a cheap option, and closer to campus than the walk from the city would be. But it's mostly graduate students living there, and it's harder to meet people.

  • I highly recommend buying second-hand kitchen supplies and towels at Green and Blue Space which is a student-run environmental club on campus that re-sells things students donate. Everything is super cheap and recycling used kitchen supplies and towels help save the environment!

  • I chose the cheapest option which worked fine for the price. I heard good things about the off campus option as well though. Only thing I recommend would be to maybe chose the co-ed option those apartments seemed to have more outgoing people and they were much more fun to hang out in

COURSES:

• • Semesters & Academic Year: Students will select three modules (courses) per semester from over 25 subject areas.

  • International Summer School: Students will select 2, 3, or 4 modules for the summer term. 2 modules will be completed in Block I or Block II (four week sessions), while 3 or 4 modules must be completed in both Blocks I and II (full eight weeks).

  • International Summer School Internships: Students who wish to complete an internship as part of their International Summer School term will need to register for both Block I and Block II terms. The student will then select 2 modules to complete during Block I, and carry out an internship for credit during Block II. Find more information here about International Summer School Internships.

ENROLLMENT:

• • Students should include their module choices on their application form, and will be enrolled in their approved modules prior to beginning their semester or term at Stirling.

  • Please review Stirling's What Can I Study? page for a complete listing of modules available for the International Summer School Block I and Block II terms for 2020.

  • Each module is credited by the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF), and is credited at 10 SCQF credits each. This is equivalent to 3 US credits per module. 2 modules will therefore be awarded 6 US credits, 3 modules for 9 US credits, and 4 modules for 12 US credits.

  • International Summer School term costs vary by module and internship option. See below for breakdown of tuition fees:

    • • Block I or II: 6 US credits,

      • block I and II (no internship): 9 US credits OR 12 US credits

      • Block I and internship: 9 US credits (internship is awarded 3 US credits)

  • Semester or academic year students should reference the Study Abroad Course Catalog for course listings for the coming terms.

  • Flexibility is built into the Stirling curriculum - students can register for their chosen modules prior to arrival to ensure placement in modules that best suit their academic degree at the host institution.

All program transcripts will be sent to Illinois automatically after the end of the program. However, the time for receipt and processing can take a few months. Be patient, and you can track to see when your transcript is received by the Office of the Registrar by when the digital copy is uploaded into your My Study Abroad documents.

Student Voices on Academics

• • The work was very independent, something I wasn't used to.

  • They use a percentage grade scale unlike here. A 50% was considered a C, a 60% a B-, 65% a B, and so on. Hardly anyone got above an 80% and if they did, this would be considered incredible.

  • I really enjoyed the class structure and workload. In Stirling, there was not much time spent in the classroom, and the grades were centered on more specific assignments. I appreciated not having to rush to do meaningless assignments scattered everywhere on the calendar, and I had the independence to choose how and when to study. Essays were graded harshly compared to the feedback received, but the grading system is also different in the UK. Overall the workload wasn't the heaviest, but it made the material easier to digest and analyze without additional distractions. There's a lot of independence and self-study required.

  • Modules, what courses are called at the University of Stirling, are divided into lectures, tutorials, and workshops. I took three history modules. One module had met once a week and had tutorial for two hours (Mondays). My second module had two one hour lectures (Mondays and Thursdays), a one hour work shop (Wednesday and only once during the semester), and a one hour tutorial (Fridays). My third module had two one hour lectures (Mondays and Fridays), a one hour work shop (Wednesdays), and a one hour tutorial (Fridays). All of my modules were graded just on three things: participation and two essays.

University of Stirling offers its students a range of on-campus activities and connections to city life as well as excursion options within Scotland. See Stirling's Student Life page and Stirling's Youtube Channel for more information about the Students' Union, clubs and societies, sports, and even a planning guide for exploring Scotland.

Student Voices on Engagement

• • I was able to immediately engage with the people in Scotland. I joined the soccer team and the hiking club at the beginning of the semester and it helped me get more involved with the locals and see more of what Scotland had to offer.

  • The university hosts a Ceilidh at the beginning of the school year, and many societies host them throughout the term, which is incredibly fun. There's also the Christian Union within the uni that offers a program where you get connected to a resident of Stirling. I took part in the program with a friend, and our host treated us to dinners and helped us explore Scotland and the culture. The Christian Union also offers free trips to nearby towns. The International Student Society is a club you can join, and they take you on trips around Scotland as well. There's many museum to explore, and in your everyday walks you can find boards describing the history that happened in Stirling. The city hosts events for special days, like St. Andrew's Day and Guy Fawkes Day. Everyone recommends to try Haggis and other traditional food. The Heartland Tour is well acquainted with the university, and takes students on weekend trips to explore the Highlands and Skye. The tour guide is incredibly informative and fun, and you learn a lot from the trip.

  • After my academic semester ended, I volunteered with the Youth Hostel Association of England and Wales. I submitted an application and was accepted as a volunteer at their hostel at Minehead in southwest England. For two weeks of work, a few hours each day from Monday to Friday, I had a small bungalow all to myself. My duties included housekeeping (doing beds, sweeping, and vacuuming) and gardening (raking leaves, tending to plants). I was able to hike in amazing Exmoor National Park, strolled on a beach alongside the Bristol Channel, and had transportation access to a a number of great tourists spots like the village of Watchet. The YHA has hostels all over the UK in cities and in nature. Volunteering with them is a great chance to explore a particular area in the UK while not having to spend too much money. The organization will partially cover transportation costs for volunteers, and housing is free.

  • I joined the history society on campus. Through the organization I was also able to meet some pretty cool people. There were two other American students in the society at the time, and one of them was also there for the semester like I was. Joining one of the university's societies and sports teams is really a great way to make friends.

• The hiking was something I will NEVER be able to experience anywhere else. I was so fortunate to see over the mountains of the Highlands, Lochness and in Stirling. I think it was one of the most traditional things to have been able to do there and being able to do experience it with local Scots was even more incredible. I will take my experiences hiking in Scotland around with me everywhere I go.

• Be open-minded about every experience and don't go into any host country with any expectations. Be mindful and careful of what you say because American "slang" and phrases we use here are going to be looked at differently there. Take everything into perspective as to not insult anyone.

• I was very impressed by the amount of knowledge that Scottish students had on world politics. It made me realize how little US students know about other parts of the world.

• Save up money for the Heartland Tour. It's going to be the best decision you make.