School of Social and Political Science

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As part of your degree at Edinburgh, you have the opportunity to select optional courses to take alongside those that are compulsory for your degree programme. Below is guidance on choosing optional courses to fulfil the requirements of your degree programme. 

Please note, course enrolment for 2024/25 will begin from the week commencing 5th August 2024. Please continue to check your University of Edinburgh email address for up to date information.

Steps to choosing your course

1. Use DRPS to view your degree programme and what optional courses you can take. 
    
2. Note which optional courses you want to take. 
   Consider your first choices as well as backup options. We recommend providing six optional course choices to ensure you have enough backup options, the minimum you can provide is four.
    
3. Ensure there are no clashes in your timetable. 
   Check the timetabling information for each optional course choice using the new timetabling system, Timetabler, which can be accessed through MyEd (in the 'Studies’ tab, under ‘My Course’  column).  

4. Submit your course choices via our online course choice form by the 4th of September.   

   Please note that we have extended the deadline to the 12th of September.  We advise you to submit your choices as soon as possible to ensure you are enrolled in your courses for the start of the semester.
   You should only submit your course choices once, so take your time.
    

Submit your course choices here

 

Frequently Asked Questions 

How many credits should I choose?

Normally, as a taught MSc student, you will take courses amounting to:

• 60 credits in Semester 1
• 60 credits in Semester 2

In exceptional circumstances, and with your Programme Director’s agreement, it may be possible to change this weighting; for example take 40 credits in one semester and 80 in another.

Will I always receive a place on my chosen course?

Based on the pre-enrolment information gathered from you, the Teaching Office will seek to ensure you are given your first or second course choices.

However, due to high demand, there is a possibility you may not be given a place on a course of your preference.

When will I be signed up to my courses and how can I check?

You can check on MyEd which courses you have been signed up for. 
We aim to have you signed up for all of your courses no later than the 13th of September. 
Once signed up to your courses, you will be able to view your personal timetable and guidance on this can be found at Student Timetables 

MyEd login portal

Are my course choices final?

Course choices made at this stage are by no means final. Should you decide to change any of your elective courses, for instance, after talking to the Teaching Office or Student Adviser during Welcome Week, this will be possible until the end of Week 2 of the semester the course runs in.

In doing so, however, you will have to expect that some popular course options might be unavailable by that point.

Please contact us at pgenrolment.sps@ed.ac.uk if you have any questions about making a change to your initial course choices. 

Course changes

Course changes are subject to availability.

Course changes and course audit requests can be requested between Monday 9th of September and no later than Friday 27th of September (by 4pm BST).

You should complete a new form for each course change required, using our Course Change Request Form. 

Submit your Postgraduate Course Change and Audits Requests for 2024/2025

What happens after I have made a Course Change Request?

We will aim to make the requested course change within three working days of receiving the completed form. 

Please be advised that students may be placed on a waiting list for courses that are full.  

Due to the high volume of forms being processed, the Teaching Office is not always able to contact students individually to advise on the outcome of a course change request. If a course change or audit request has been approved, you will receive an automated email informing you of this change. 

Please ensure you check your timetable to view any changes to your student record; the confirmation email will advise you on how to do this.

Course change requests can be made up to the end of week 2 of the semester in which the course is taught.

The deadline for course change requests during 2024/25 is:

• Semester 1 - 4pm on Friday 27th September 2024
• Semester 2 - 4pm on Friday 24th January 2025 (TBC)

Auditing courses

As an MSc student, you may be able to audit the equivalent of one 20 credit course per semester, in addition to your standard requirement of 120 credits of taught courses.

What is auditing?

Auditing means that you sit in on a course you are interested in without being formally assessed for your performance.

Auditing is at the discretion, and by approval of, the Course Organiser. 
Some courses might not accept auditing students, for example, if the course is already full.

Some may only allow auditing students to attend lectures, while others may expect you to play a full role in seminar discussions.

How do I request to audit a course?

It is each student’s own responsibility to contact course organisers before signing up for their course to clarify whether auditing is possible and under what circumstances. Note that not all courses will be able to accept auditing students due to space constraints, even with the permission of the Course Organiser. Spaces 

Request Process

The process for requesting to audit a course is below:

1. Email the Course Organiser to obtain written permission. 
   The course information on DRPS (link will open in a new window) will include the Course Organiser's contact information at the bottom of the page.
    
2. If permission to audit the course is given, please forward the email confirming this to pgenrolment.sps@ed.ac.uk or attach it to the Course Change Request Form before submitting.
    
3. Once received, the Teaching Office will update your student record accordingly. Note that auditing requests will not be actioned until Week 1 of the semester.
    
4. The course will appear on your student record as "class only"

Please note, it is your own responsibility to check your course record on MyEd to ensure that you are signed up in the correct study mode for each course.

Advice on academic matters?
Please email your Programme Director or Student Adviser in the first instance. 
If you are unsure of who to speak to contact the Student Advice and Support team and a Student Adviser will be able to help you.