University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI)

The University of the Highlands and Islands is an integrated university encompassing both further and higher education.

We are not a traditional university. We are different. We are part of a new breed of tertiary institutions, the only one in Scotland and one of only a few in Europe.

Based in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, our distinctive partnership of 13 independent colleges and research institutions is locally based and rooted in communities, but with national and international reach, as part of a regional university structure.

Our reputation is built on our innovative approach to learning and our distinctive research and curriculum – all enriched by the people, natural environment, economy, culture and heritage of the Highlands and Islands and its communities.

We have 40,000 students at the heart of our university partnership and we are measured by their success. Our curriculum portfolio across both further and higher education is designed to meet current and future local and regional needs and to attract other students to the Highlands and Islands to study.

The University of the Highlands and Islands gives you the chance to do something different, something special.

We are the only university based in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and we're a little different - we offer you the choice of studying at one of our 13 colleges and research centres, over 70 local learning centres, or online from wherever you are.

We offer a diverse range of courses, many taking advantage of our region's unique environment, landscape and culture.

Hear from students and staff studying and teaching from home

"Lecturers are very friendly and have been contactable before and during the Covid-19 pandemic which has helped ease the transition from face-to-face lectures to studying at home, which as you can imagine with three kids hasn’t been easy, but the lecturers have all been very understanding and provided support and encouragement."
- Iona Milne, HNC Administration and Information Technology student

"Flexibility has been absolutely key to the way that we teach, both in terms of our Virtual Learning Environment and in the way that we teach by Video Conferencing and there’s been an element of continuity despite all the challenges that people are facing just now. Our taught postgraduate students have always studied from the safety and comfort of their own home, it’s the way we’ve taught them for a number of years so we’ve produced hundreds of graduates who have learnt in this flexible way with us."
- Professor David Worthington, Head of the Centre for History