University of Dundee guide: Rankings, open days, fees and accommodation
Overview
Dundee is one of the powerhouses of Scottish higher education and our Scottish University of the Year. It is now one of three Scottish universities to be ranked in our UK top 10. The university has a formidable reputation in medicine, biomedicine and the life sciences and plays a key role in the economy of its home city and turns out high-calibre graduates ready to make an impact. It is estimated that the university supports one in 12 jobs in the wider city. Occupying a central campus in Dundee, the university has further outposts at Ninewells Hospital (the medical school) and Kirkcaldy, 30 miles away in Fife, which is home to some of its nursing and midwifery provision. Scores in this year's National Student Survey have recovered after a few lean years, with students scoring teaching quality particularly highly. However, applications fell by more than 10% for admission in September 2023. Against this background, the university created an education academy last year to put delivering an outstanding education and student experience front and centre. Among its objectives are carrying out a review of student services, further embedding employability and enterprise in degree programmes, and developing Dundee's digital campus.
Paying the bills
With no tuition fees for students resident in Scotland - who account for more than 90% of Dundee's UK-based intake - most bursary and scholarship support is aimed at those recruited from the rest of Britain. The most eye-catching is an Academic Excellence bursary for non-medical students who achieve at least AAB at A-level (or equivalent), which is worth £3,000 in each year of study. If you don't achieve those grades, don't worry. With a few exceptions, so long as you get a place at Dundee and qualify as a 'rest of UK' (RUK) student, you will get a £2,000 Discover Dundee bursary in your first year only. Medicine, dentistry, nursing, health science, education and social work courses are excluded. A separate RUK bursary worth £2,000 in each year of study is open to all students from households with an annual income of less than £25,000. There are just under 2,200 places in university-owned accommodation, with all first-years guaranteed a room if they apply by the deadline. Prices range from £6,825 a year for a 39-week contract in West Park Villas to £8,362 for a 39-week undergraduate tenancy in Heathfield.
What's new?
Dundee has moved with the times and accepted that the genie is out of the bottle in terms of pandemic-inspired changes to teaching and assessment. While in-person written exams remain, they are now combined with in-person online exams, remote online exams and open-book assessments. Essential face-to-face learning has been retained, but there is now a balance between in-person and synchronous online learning, with wider use of lecture capture and a better range of online learning resources. The top floor of the university library has been completely refurbished, and enhanced workstations, standing desks, individual semi-enclosed study booths with acoustic panels, and silent study spaces have been introduced. There are also kitchen facilities and a calming space to help students study longer and better. The university's new education academy (see also Overview, above) will ensure a constant focus on the quality of education and student experience, with key priorities being the programme portfolio, academic development and scholarship, employability and enterprise, digital provision and keeping student services under review.
Admissions, teaching and student support
As a high-tariff university, Dundee has significant hurdles to overcome to ensure a diverse intake of students. It is seeking to admit 350 students each year from the 20% most deprived postcodes in Scotland, which the university believes would be the second highest number in any Scottish university. Contextual offers will help it make progress. Last year, one in seven entrants received a contextual offer, which typically sits at BBBB at Higher, down two grades from the standard offer of AABB. Most courses are included in the scheme, although there are separate widening participation arrangements for medicine through Dundee's Gateway to Medicine programme, a one-year course that prepares students for a full five-year medical degree. Students in need of same-day mental health and wellbeing support can get it from Dundee's enquiry centre, which can refer them on to counselling, mental health advisers and the university health service. Further support is available through the student-led listening service which runs through the night, while the Peer Connections buddying and mentoring scheme is designed to help students settle into university life. Dundee's SWITCH (Student Wellbeing Initiative Targeting Community Health) service directs students towards physical activity, volunteering or societies as a means of managing mental health, too. An online induction module is compulsory for all students moving into university accommodation, covering health and safety, respect, consent and information about welfare support.
