The University of Edinburgh.

TheUniversity of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is now one of the largest universities in Great

Britain. It is grouped on three main sites. Around Old College and George Square, adjacent to the Old Town of Edinburgh, are the faculties of Arts, Law, Medicine, Music and Social Sciences. The Faculty of Divinity is also in the Old Town, close to the Castle. Two miles to the south from the King’s Buildings is the location of the Faculty of Science, while the principle students’ residences are located some 20 minutes walk from both George Square and the King’s Buildings. Veterinary Medicine is at Summerhall, not far from George Square, with a Field Station at Easter Bush, 7 miles from the city centre.

While offering undergraduate courses in virtually all subjects taught at university level, the University is one of the major research centres in Britain, and as such, offers unparalleled opportunities to the postgraduate student. On account of its present size and the reputation, which it has risen up over the centuries in all fields of study, and because of its location in a city, which is a centre of government and commerce, the University is an exceptional centre at which to conduct research. At present here are about 3, 000 postgraduate students studying alongside some 9, 700 undergraduates. The students come from some 90 countries around the world.

Many research centres and units are established within and in association with the University. The European Institute, which collaborates with departments in Arts, Law and Social Sciences, is an instance. There are also research organizations sited in and around Edinburgh with which the University has close working relations, such as the Royal Observatory for Scotland. Standing on Blackford Hill, adjacent to the King’s Buildings, is a laboratory of the Science and Engineering Research Council, which accommodates the University’s Department of Astronomy. The King’s Building is also the base of the Edinburgh University Computing Service which provides the University community with very powerful computing service, whilst, separately, offering computing services for the universities of central Scotland on a network basis.

While it has long enjoyed an international reputation for academic excellence in the traditional subjects of study, in recent years the University offers a range of studies in the latest disciplines. In the sciences, it deals with major developments in microelectronics, biotechnology and computer-based disciplines such as Artificial Intelligence. In the arts it houses Linguistics as well as the School of Scottish Studies.

It is a great advantage in any area of study to have ready access to a wide-ranging and well-maintained collection of library material. The University Library is one of the largest university collections in Britain. Rich in rare books, manuscripts and maps, and well provided with modern texts, it now contains over two million items. The catalogue of the whole library is steadily being converted to machine-readable form, which maybe accessed via the usual national and international online networks.