William and Mary Geography Summer School

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• Arrival Information

  Getting to St Andrews

  Please be aware that we do not schedule transport to/from St Andrews for students. 

  The closest international airports to St Andrews are Edinburgh Airport and Glasgow Airport. If flying to London, you also have the option of taking the Caledonian Sleeper service, an overnight train (London Euston to Leuchars). Leuchars is the closest railway station to St Andrews, situated approx. 6 miles outside the town. From Leuchars, St Andrews is easily reached by bus or taxi. See more details on how to get to St Andrews.

  Checking into your accommodation

  You will be able to check in to your accommodation at the David Russell Apartments on Saturday 4th July 2026 from 3pm onwards. If you arrive in St Andrews before 3pm you will be able to store your luggage at the David Russell Apartments reception.

  The final teaching day of the course is Friday 31st July 2026 and you will need to check out from your accommodation by 10am on Saturday 1st August 2026.

  What to pack?
  

  All bed linens and towels are provided in your accommodation and refreshed in line with the housekeeping standard practice. We would recommend bringing an additional towel just in case. 

  We'd also recommend bringing a backpack or equivalent day bag/weekend bag and suitable shoes for any fieldtrips or travel you may do during your stay.

  West Highlands field expedition

  The course includes a field expedition to the West Highlands and staff and students will stay for two nights in a local youth hostel in Oban. We encourage you to bring a suitable backpack or equivalent day/weekend bag and comfortable strong footwear (eg. hiking/walking shoes). 

  Suitable footwear - many of the fieldtrips involve a significant amount of walking or sections where the terrain is uneven. Therefore, we encourage you to bring comfortable strong footwear (eg. hiking/walking shoes). 

  While there is no specific packing list in terms of clothing, the weather in St Andrews is changeable, with average temperatures of 10° to 20°C (50° to 68°F) in summer and 0° to 10°C (32° to 50°F) in winter. Snow is rare, but wind can often make temperatures feel lower than they are. You should take this into account when packing and may want to bring a waterproof jacket and weatherproof boots.

• Visa and Health advice

  Visas

  Electronic Travel Authorisations (ETAs) have now been introduced worldwide for visitors to the UK who do not currently need a visa for short stays, or who do not already have a UK immigration status (e.g. Student route visa) prior to travelling.

  If you are coming to the UK for study for fewer than six months this means you are visiting the UK as a Standard Visitor. Check on the UK government visa pages whether you need an ETA or Standard Visitor Visa, and what you will need to show at the border. Please refer to the information provided about visas and travelling to the UK on the University webpages for international students.

  Healthcare

  Students are strongly advised to ensure they have the adequate medical and travel insurance for the duration of their stay in the UK to insulate themselves from costs that they may otherwise be responsible for paying. If students have health insurance coverage, they must check if their health insurance covers the costs beforehand.

  For more information, please see our Healthcare webpage. Please be aware that the University does not provide travel insurance of any kind. 

  The National Health Service (NHS) is the primary medical service in the UK. Information about the NHS is available on the NHS inform website. Arrangements for international students are dependent on your visa status and any reciprocal health arrangements which the UK has in place with your country. Some NHS services are free of charge for everyone, these include:

  • accident and emergency services
  • family planning services
  • diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections
  • diagnosis and treatment of certain infectious diseases
  • compulsory psychiatric treatment.

  Using your phone abroad

  All international students will need to change to a UK SIM card for their mobile phone while studying in St Andrews to access NHS services, including urgent medical care. Find out more about mobile phones. 

• Online Matriculation

  You will receive an email when the online matriculation portal opens, 2 weeks before the course starts. At this point you will be asked to complete some tasks such as updating your personal details and completing the University's Training in Good Academic Practice.

  All students must attend an in-person formal ID check during the first week so it is essential that you complete all of the online matriculation tasks prior to your arrival in St Andrews to ensure you can be registered. 

• Document ID check

  All students will be required to attend an in-person formal ID check that is expected to take place during the first week of the programme. At the appointment you will need: 

  1. Your physical passport
  2. Proof of entry into the UK which means either of the following.
     1. A stamp in your passport on arrival in the UK
     2. Your boarding pass for the flight on which you arrive in the UK.

  You will need to bring a physical copy of your boarding pass which will be scanned at the appointment so please ensure you hold onto this after you have landed in the UK. 

  If you have an electronic boarding pass, please email this to casugadmin@st-andrews.ac.uk with your ID in the subject line prior to your arrival in St Andrews. 

  This section will be updated with further information (eg. time/location) once available. The Global Office will also issue a reminder via email with all the details around two weeks before the start of the programme. 

• Programme Information

  The St Andrews Summer Study team will issue further information regarding your course schedule, social activities and events during the few weeks leading up to the start of the programme. 

  As our standard method of communication is email, please ensure you add our email address: shortcourses@st-andrews.ac.uk to your Email safe sender list to ensure you receive our emails. 

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• Open your computer account

  Open your computer account and activate your University email.

  Your University email address is yourusername@st-andrews.ac.uk. Your username is included in your entrant email and should always be lowercase. You will create your password when you open your account. 

  Once you have opened your email account, you will be able to access it using Office 365. We will use this account to contact you, so please check your University email at least every 48 hours. 

• Apply for your student ID (matriculation) card

  Apply for your student ID (matriculation) card

  Please note that card processing takes between 2-3 working days so we recommend applying as soon as possible to allow time for it to be produced ready for your first day. 

  This card is also your library borrowing card and will give you access to University buildings, such as the open-access computer classrooms.

• Inform us of your dietary requirements

  Please complete the Special Dietary Requirements form as soon as possible. This should take around 2 minutes to complete.