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University of Aberdeen

UCAS Code: X120 | Master of Arts (with Honours) - MA (Hons)

Entry requirements

A level

B,B,C

A minimum of 3 A Levels at BBC. Mathematics and English are required, as stated below.

One FA is equivalent to a Higher at A. It cannot replace any required subjects.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

32

32 points at 5, 5, 5 at HL. Maths and English required, as stated below.

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H2,H3,H3,H3

A minimum of 4 subjects at Higher Level with one subject at H2 AND three subjects at H3 minimum. Must include English mininum of H3 and Maths minimum O4.

Qualifications such as Early Education and Childcare will be accepted as one subject alongside 3 additional subjects at Higher Level or equivalent. We require a minimum of 4 separate SCQF Level 6 subjects. So an HNC or an HND in any subject counts as one. Three more SCQF Level 6 subjects are required. This must include Higher English at Grade B (or an equivalent as detailed below), plus two further separate subjects at SCQF Level 6. If these are Highers, grade C or above is required. Where a Foundation Apprenticeship is presented, this will count as an SCQF Level 6 subject at grade A. In addition, a Maths qualification, as detailed below, must be achieved.

Scottish Higher

B,B,B,B

A minimum of 4 Highers at BBBB from S4 and S5. Those seeking to qualify over S5 and S6 will be expected to exceed this minimum. Higher English required, and Nat 5 Maths or Nat 5 Application of Maths required as part of your entry qualifications.

UCAS Tariff

108-112

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

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About this course

Course option

4years

Full-time | 2025

Subject

Primary teaching

The MA Education (Hons) degree in Primary teaching at Aberdeen produces creative, confident, motivated and reflective primary teachers. You will benefit from opportunities to engage with placement learning from year one whilst on-campus learning develops your understanding of theory and research. Your academic studies will be supported by exceptional staff within the School and the wider University so that, with experience in school each year, you can become equipped to inspire and guide young minds in the 21st century.

The School of Education has a long and distinguished record in the education of teachers with a culturally stimulating creative environment within the School, the University and across our wide networks. Our MA Primary Education programme is accredited by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS), so on graduation you can apply for provisional registration as a primary teacher. You will be embarking on both an academic degree and a professional qualification from the start and consequently, part of the application process will be an opportunity to attend an interview. There are also many exciting professional learning and development opportunities with us beyond graduation.

Teaching is an exciting and demanding job that requires a range of personal and professional qualities. You will gain an in-depth understanding of what motivates younger students. You will explore teaching methods and issues not only within the core curriculum areas of literacy, numeracy and health and well-being but in terms of contemporary and global issues such as inclusion, social justice, diversity, sustainability and creativity.

Our highly qualified, experienced staff bring a wide range of expertise in learning and teaching. Many are recognised locally, nationally and internationally for research and development work in their particular specialist fields and you will benefit from the partnerships built over many years with communities, education authorities and other professionals.

**Graduates wishing to apply for primary teaching training, should apply for the Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE)**. PGDE courses in both primary and secondary education are available and are professionally accredited by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS).

More information on the PGDE, can be found at **abdn.ac.uk/pgt/secondary** and **abdn.ac.uk/pgt/primary**.

**PVG Check**
A Protection of Vulnerable Group (PVG) check through Disclosure Scotland will be conducted by the University prior to final acceptance. The PVG check will also evidence residency in Scotland. This is required of all applicants who accept an offer of admission for PGDE Online Primary, even those who have been checked previously. For UK applicants, resident in Scotland, who have lived outside the UK for any period of time, in accepting an offer of admission, an Enhanced criminal record check through Disclosure Scotland will be conducted and in addition, it will be necessary for the applicant to obtain a criminal record check from the country they are from/lived in. **The PVG check is paid for by the applicant and is processed after an applicant confirms their firm acceptance of their place.**

Modules

View all modules on the programme page to find out more about what you will be studying and when. University of Aberdeen modules are designed to give you breadth and depth to your degree. The range of modules you study will allow you to become proficient in all subjects which are directly relevant to your degree giving you greater career options.

Assessment methods

The use of various forms of assessment and learning environments facilitates the development of generic transferable skills enhancing student employability.

Students are assessed by any combination of three assessment methods: coursework such as essays and reports completed throughout the course; practical assessments of the skills and competencies they learn on the course; and written examinations at the end of each course. The exact mix of these methods differs between subject areas, years of study and individual courses.

Honours projects are typically assessed on the basis of a written dissertation.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,535
per year
England
£9,535
per year
EU
£20,800
per year
International
£20,800
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,535
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,535
per year
Scotland
£1,820
per year
Wales
£9,535
per year

Extra funding

Students from England, Wales and Northern Ireland, who pay tuition fees may be eligible for specific scholarships allowing them to receive additional funding. These are designed to provide assistance to help students support themselves during their time at Aberdeen.

International Students: The University of Aberdeen is delighted to offer self-funded international on-campus undergraduate students a £6,000 scholarship for every year of their programme. This scholarship is in the form of a tuition fee waiver. To be eligible students must be registering for a full-time, on-campus programme and cannot be in receipt of external scholarships or other University of Aberdeen scholarships, except for awards granted by the University of Aberdeen Development Trust. Please note that the scholarship does not apply to the DPLP or Medicine.

View the University of Aberdeen Online Prospectus programme page to find out about any scholarships and funding you may be eligible to apply for.

The Uni

Course location:

University of Aberdeen

Department:

School of Education

Read full university profile

What students say

We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

88%
Primary teaching

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Teacher training

Teaching and learning

70%
Staff make the subject interesting
79%
Staff are good at explaining things
73%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
92%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

73%
Library resources
80%
IT resources
77%
Course specific equipment and facilities
51%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

98%
UK students
2%
International students
8%
Male students
92%
Female students
74%
2:1 or above
5%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
A
A

After graduation

The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Teacher training

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£32,000
high
Average annual salary

Top job areas of graduates

99%
Teaching and educational professionals
1%
Welfare and housing associate professionals

The stats above mainly cover teaching degrees for training and qualifying in primary school education. These tend to be three or four-year courses — check with course tutors about how long you will need to study to get your Qualified Teacher Status. Most graduates go into teaching roles — usually primary school teaching, so these courses have good employment rates and starting salaries. We have a shortage of teachers of all kinds, which is deepening, and whilst many of the most severe are at secondary level, the prospects for this degree are not likely to take a downturn any time soon.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Teacher training

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£28k

£28k

£33k

£33k

£35k

£35k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here