Why Study With Us

A rich heritage

We are proud of our 50 year history of innovative teaching, world class research, and of over 4000 trained mathematicians that have graduated in mathematical sciences at Heriot-Watt University.

Global reach

We are one of Scotland's most international universities: around a third of our students in Edinburgh are from outside the UK.

A world class reputation

We are world renowned for excellence in teaching and research. Mathematics and Statistics at HWU is highly rated by students; ranked 1st in Scotland and 5th in the UK for overall student satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2018.

Links to business and industry

A number of academics work directly with industry and government agencies. Some of this work can be accessed by students through final year projects. We also offer degrees with a diploma in industry.

Globally employable graduates

We have carefully created a programme of study that teaches fundamentals of modern mathematics, but also contains courses dedicated to skills, business awareness and careers. These range from giving presentations, researching a topic independently, working in groups on solving problems to writing your CV and practising job interviews. This has resulted in our graduates being highly employable with over 85% in employment or further study after 6 months.

Opportunities to study abroad

We have exchange agreements with universities in Germany, France and Spain. There is further opportunity for student exchange with Waterloo, Canada.

World changing research

The Departments of Mathematics and Actuarial Mathematica and Statistics have pooled their research activities with the School of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Edinburgh in the Maxwell Institute for Mathematics Science. The Maxwell Institute is an internationally recognised centre of research excellence and was rated 5th in the UK for research power in the 2014 research evaluation exercise. Some of our research has informed government decisions and conservation plans.

World-wide network

All of our staff members have extensive international research networks and regularly give invited keynote lectures at international conferences.

Pre-sessional English:50% discount

If you are an overseas applicant, joining our pre-sessional English summer programme is an excellent way to meet our English language entry requirements without having to study for an external examination such as IELTS. We offer a 50% pre-sessional English programme discount to all applicants who progress to one of our degree programmes.

For more information on this great opportunity have a look at the pre-sessional English webpage or email english@hw.ac.uk