University of St Andrews

Overview

St Andrews describes itself as Scotland's first university: teaching began in 1410, and it was formally constituted by papal bull in 1413. It sits in the town of St Andrews on the coast of Fife, northeast of Edinburgh, and the university and town are closely woven together: medieval buildings, student residences and the beaches are all within walking distance. It is a much smaller place than Edinburgh or Glasgow, which shapes social life around halls, societies and the town itself.

Like other Scottish universities, St Andrews usually awards a four-year honours degree, and its flexible structure lets many students take several subjects in their first two years before choosing what to specialize in.

Three ways to apply

St Andrews is one of the few UK universities where North American students can choose their application route:

• UCAS, the standard UK route, which also covers your other UK choices.
• The Common Application, open from 1 August 2026 to 1 May 2027 for 2027 entry, with a writing supplement and a US$75 fee.
• A direct application through the university.

Whichever route you use, St Andrews counts as one of your five UK choices, and you must apply through only one route. The deadline for full and equal consideration is 18:00 GMT on Wednesday 13 January 2027; after that, applications are assessed depending on space in the course. Medicine cannot be applied for through the Common App; check the Medicine pages for its route and deadline. Most applicants are not interviewed; interviews are used for Medicine, supported pathway programmes and part-time study. Applicants who meet the equal consideration deadline receive a decision by May of the year they apply.

What US applicants need

St Andrews looks for a rigorous college-preparatory record with A or B grades in honours level courses, or three AP subjects at 4 or higher. Some programmes ask for an AP score of 5 in a related subject, for example AP Calculus BC for Mathematics, Physics or Computer Science.

SAT and ACT scores are optional for the 2026 to 2027 and 2027 to 2028 cycles, and applicants are not penalized for leaving them out. If you do submit, St Andrews considers an SAT of 1320 or more or an ACT of 28 or more, superscores both, and accepts unofficial reports at the application stage. IB Diploma applicants are typically expected to score 36 to 38 points, depending on the course.

Canadian applicants should use the province pages linked from the university's Canada entry requirements page, since the requirements are set out province by province. Our article on IB and AP courses is useful when planning Grade 11 and 12 courses with UK applications in mind.

Costs, visas and settling in

Current fees are on the undergraduate fees page. Students who need a visa apply for the UK Student visa after receiving a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies. Our United Kingdom guide explains how Scottish four-year degrees compare with the rest of the UK, and our study skills deck helps with the independent study that a tutorial-based system expects.