Scotland

The other wonderful thing about QMU is the opportunity to enjoy Edinburgh - Scotland's beautiful capital city. Edinburgh is jam packed full of historical sites, the most popular being Edinburgh castle.

The city is never quiet. Its bustling atmosphere attracts people from all over the world and its entertainment and opportunities for fascinating cultural experiences are second to none. Edinburgh hosts the famous International Festival, The Fringe, Hogmanay Street Party - one of the largest New Year street parties in the world, The Book Festival and the Film Festival.

For students, Edinburgh has lots to offer: countless tourist attractions, libraries, cinemas, clubs, pubs, restaurants, concert venues, theatres and a wide range of fantastic shopping and sports facilities. You really couldn't choose a more interesting city to study in.

From our campus we are a 6 minute train journey from the city centre, giving you everything the city has to offer right on your doorstep. Edinburgh has fantastic transport links, with bus, tram, train and air linking you to the rest of Scotland, the UK and the entire world. From Edinburgh airport, you will find regular flights to the Highlands, Western Isles and Northern Isles. We are easily accessed by road and rail, with bus and trains to Glasgow, Dundee, Perth, Aberdeen, Inverness and many in between connecting you to the Edinburgh city centre.

Our purpose built campus is located by Musselburgh, on the east side of Edinburgh and features high-tech facilities including an innovative learning resource centre combining IT and library services, along with a great variety of learning spaces. There are also on-campus sports facilities and en-suite student accommodation.

Our campus is just a short walk away from local shops and close to Fort Kinnaird retail park where you’ll find an Odeon cinema complex and a range of restaurants including TGI Friday’s, Frankie & Benny’s, Five Guys, Nandos, Chiquitos and Pizza Express. Fast food options include McDonalds, Burger King and KFC. You will also find lots of shops including H&M, New Look, River Island, TK Maxx, M&S, Argos, Curry’s PC World, Next and many more.

Close to the campus you will find a 24 hour ASDA Walmart Supercentre which includes a café, post office, hair dresser and opticians. The nearby historic town centre of Musselburgh offers a large Tesco supermarket, a post office, banks, a swimming pool and an award-wining ice cream parlour!

Living on campus provides a fantastic opportunity to settle into university life, meet new people and make lifelong friends. As the accommodation is just a stone's throw away from the University, you can virtually roll into class each morning! You’ll also find many great facilities on your doorstep including the Students’ Union, Gym and Sports Centre and the Learning Resource Centre.

Our Student Village accommodates 800 students in a choice of standard or premium rooms, grouped into self-contained flats with shared kitchen/communal areas. All of our rooms are en-suite. There is campus-wide WiFi and 24/7 security and pastoral care so you are safe and supported. The halls are ideal for anyone moving away from home for the first time, or for those who like the easy access to university facilities, and rental costs include all utility bills. To find out more, or take a virtual tour of the accommodation, visit the Accommodation section.

Our Sports Centre includes indoor an outdoor facilities, and use of all facilities is included in our membership packages. We have outdoor Astroturf pitches, an indoor sports hall, exercise studios, fitness suite and separate weights room. The Fitness Suite uses state of the art cardiovascular equipment supplied by Life Fitness including exercise bikes, treadmills, X-Trainers and rowing machines. The CV machines redefine the workout experience with the most advanced tablet console technology featuring an abundance of entertainment options. The machines now allow you to create your workouts at home, so they are ready for you when you come to the gym. To find out more, visit the Sports information.

Student life is an important part of the decision to study at university, and at QMU you will find numerous ways to get involved. The Students’ Union help run the clubs and societies with everything from Anime to Comedy, Drama to Good Food and many in between. There are also sports teams including football, rugby, netball and camogie to name a few. Joining a club or society is a great way to meet lots of new friends, but is also really social with many events organised throughout the year.

As well as running the clubs and societies, the Students’ Union is most commonly known for Maggie’s, the on-campus bar and café with plenty of space to chill out and relax. Maggie’s has a café for your morning coffee or breakfast roll, pool tables, and the bar with a great range of food options. But that’s not all the SU do! They also provide support for students, be it pastoral care, welfare needs or academic support, the SU have representatives in all areas. They are there to make sure your student experience is the best it can be. To find out more, visit the Students’ Union website.

We have a dedicated Employability Centre on campus which can offer student support and advice with job searches throughout their studies. The Centre advertises numerous employment opportunities from part-time work, summer placements, internships and international opportunities. The Careers Advisors are also on hand to offer CV writing support, provide mock interviews and much more. They also offer ‘Careers Advice for Life’ so even after graduation, our alumni can continue to access the specialist support from QMU’s Careers and Employability Service.

Taking part in an exchange program may be one of the most exciting and rewarding challenges students can face during their studies. The opportunity to travel and live in another country, learning different customs and traditions, meeting new people and building your future career draw thousands of students into the exchange programs offered by Universities across Scotland. At Queen Margaret University we want our students to be part of this experience too.

With great links across the world, you can choose to study part of your degree in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada or the USA. Living in another country and studying with another institution will allow you to meet new friends from across the world and acquire invaluable life skills as well as a greater feeling of independence and confidence. Not only does an exchange program allow you stretch your wings, it will bring you benefits for years to come. Employers are impressed with students who take on the challenge, and a higher level of cultural awareness is considered an important factor when hiring employees, particularly for a global role. You may also learn another language, which is always a good addition to a CV. If you still need convincing of the benefits, see our Exchange pages for even more reasons to take on the challenge.

For students studying at university level, you may be eligible to apply for funding support towards tuition fees and livings costs. As a Scottish student, you would be applying for support through the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS), and more information on the levels of support you can get can be found on our Fees and Funding page.

Our commitment to providing accessibly priced courses

Reflecting the centrality of social justice to QMU’s ethos and the value we place upon diversity in the classroom, we aim to keep our courses affordable to international students, wherever they come from. You might be pleasantly surprised by our fee rates. See the Fees and Charges section of our website to view international fees per course.

Looking for information for careers libraries or to arrange a talk for your students? The Recruitment & Outreach teams can offer a range of information, advice and guidance options. Find out more on our ‘For Schools’ services.