Culture, Heritage and Politics BA (Hons)
Course code V90P
What is special about this course?
Most of our humanities subjects can be studied as joint honours as well as single honours. Joint honours programmes give you the opportunity to combine two subjects, which complement your interests or career goals. You will usually concentrate on both subjects equally. It can be possible to transfer between single and joint honours options, usually during your first or second year, and advice will be available from your personal academic tutor.
This course covers:
- Culture and heritage: cultural identity of the Highlands and Islands, its communities and issues affecting the region, within the context of Scotland, the British Isles and internationally
-
Politics: how political structures and ideologies shapes our lives and are organised differently around the world
Please see our FAQ sheet for further information on this course.
Special features
- Gain a unique understanding of Scotland and the communities of the Highlands and Islands: the customs, traditions and values
- Choose from a range of interdisciplinary subjects to suit your own interests and career path
- Study full-time or part-time to suit your personal circumstances
- Individual modules can be studied for personal and professional development
Entry requirements
Entry to year one:
- 3 Scottish Highers at grade BBC or above OR
- 2 A levels at grade BC or above
- At least two should be from the list of relevant academic subjects
- Applicants with other relevant qualifications or experience will be considered on an individual basis
Advanced entry to year two:
- HNC Social Sciences (12 SQA credits) with 3 additional SQA credits at level 7, which is equivalent to 120 degree credit points, and at least grade C in the Graded Unit will be considered for direct entry to year two
Access routes
SWAP Access courses
If you are eligible to undertake Scottish Wider Access Programmes (SWAP), please visit our SWAP access list for further information on grade profiles and available subjects.
Year 1 - CertHE
You will study the following modules.
Culture and Heritage
- Scotland the brand OR What is culture? (S1)
- Culture. Heritage. What? OR Scotland's music (S2)
Politics
- Introduction to politics OR Ideas and ideologies in politics
- The evolving politics of the British Isles OR Conflict and the balance of power in Europe 1789-1945
Plus two option modules from across the university's humanities portfolio.
Year 2 - DipHE
You will study the following core modules.
Culture and Heritage
- Tradition, custom and belief OR Folklore (S1)
You will also choose one of the following (S2):
- Golden mead and burning hearts
- Languages on the edge
- Displaying the past: museum studies
Politics
- History of political ideas
- Scottish politics before and after the independence referendum
- Comparative politics OR Inside US politics
You will also choose two option modules from across the university's humanities portfolio.
Year 3 - BA
You will study one core module:
- Interdisciplinary project (culture and heritage) OR
- Advanced social research methods (politics)
You will also study two options from your chosen core module subject plus two option modules from the other discipline.
Culture and Heritage
- Perceptions of heritage (S2)
- Scotland in film (S1)
- Celtic and Celtic Revival Art in Scotland 600-2000 (S2)
- The Scottish Enlightenment and Highland society (S2)
Politics
- Challenging liberal democracy: political ideas in a changing world
- European politics
- Devolution, federalism and territorial politics: a comparative perspective
- Hot wars and cold wars: Britain and the military instrument, 1914-1989
- Wars in the promised land
Year 4 - BA (Hons)
You will complete a dissertation in Culture and Heritage or Politics. You will also study one option module from your chosen dissertation subject, plus three option modules from the other subject.
Culture and Heritage
- Scottish tradition in philosophy (S1)
- Faeries and fables: the story of Gaelic literature (S1)
- Highland journeys (S2)
- Vikings and Valkyries (S2)
Politics
- Geopolitics: territory, security, strategy
- Political theory
- Terrorism and unconventional warfare
- Transforming regimes in Eastern Europe
How will I study my course?
- Full-time
- Part-time (structured)
- Part-time (unstructured)
- You will learn through a combination of scheduled video conference lectures and tutorials, and online study via the university’s virtual learning environment (VLE), with support from your tutors. There is normally a weekly two-hour timetabled video conference lecture for each module.
How long will my course last?
- Full-time: 4 years @ 40 hours per week
- Part-time (structured): 8 years @ 20 hours per week
Number of hours per week indicates the total number of hours you should dedicate to the course, which includes time spent in lectures and your own time spent on individual study and research.
Where can I study my course?
- Argyll
- HTC
- Inverness
- Moray
- North, West and Hebrides
- Orkney
- Perth
- Shetland
- This fully online course can be studied from anywhere in the world
- Students based near to one of the listed campuses should apply to, and be enrolled and supported by, their local campus
- All other students should apply to, and will be enrolled and supported by, UHI Orkney
Start date
- September
Fees
For students normally domiciled in Scotland, with a term-time address in Scotland, the following fees apply:
This includes
- EU nationals with settled or pre-settled status in the UK,
- EEA/Swiss nationals with settled status in the UK
- EEA/Swiss nationals with pre-settled status who are self-employed or migrant workers in the UK.
| 2024-25 | 2025-26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time (120 credit modules) per year | £1,820 | £1,820 |
| Part-time (structured) (3 x 20 credit modules) per year | £915 | £915 |
| Part-time (unstructured per module) (per 20 credit module) | £305 | £305 |
Rest of the UK students
For students normally domiciled in the rest of the UK (England, Wales and N. Ireland) or assessed as rest of the UK for fee status the following fees apply:
| 2024-25 | 2025-26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time online per year (120 credit modules) | £6,120 | £6,420 |
| Part-time online (per 20 credit module) | £1,020 | £1,070 |
International students
For students who do not normally reside in the UK studying online from their home country, or living in the UK but assessed as international for fee status, the following fees apply:
This includes EU/EEA and Swiss nationals without settled status in the UK and EEA and Swiss nationals with pre-settled status who are not self-employed or migrant workers in the UK.
| 2024-25 | 2025-26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time online per year (120 credit modules) | £6,960 | £7,080 |
| Part-time online (per 20 credit module) | £1,160 | £1,180 |
A no fee increase guarantee is available for self-funding full-time and structured part-time rest of the UK and international undergraduate students for continuous study for the same award, up to the permitted standard time limit for the relevant award.
Funding
UHI has a number of scholarships, bursaries, awards, and discretionary fund opportunities available to new and current students. Please use the A-Z of funds or use the filter to see which ones may be relevant to you. All students are welcome to apply.
Further information on funding your studies is also available, please see the attached link or contact the relevant UHI partner.
What can I do on completion of my course?
Once you have successfully completed your BA (Hons) Culture, Heritage and Politics, you might like to consider careers in:
- Primary and secondary teaching in english, history and modern studies
- Journalism and the media
- Tourism
- Museums and archives
- Research
Can I progress into further study?
For information about further study options, please see our list of Postgraduate progression routes from Humanities degrees.
We also offer a range of postgraduate research degrees: MRes, MPhil and PhD.
Is there more information available online?
You can use the above QR code to connect directly to the course details.
I can’t speak highly enough of the staff who have supported me through my journey at UHI. From the very first day there has been help available. The relationship between the teaching staff and the student is so important and that’s one of the reasons I’m considering further study at UHI. The Culture and Heritage team have been utterly fantastic.
That flexibility also means that fellow students are based all over Scotland but that has not been a barrier to forming friendships and supportive study groups, in fact, fellow students are also one of my favourite things – there has been a mix of students, all different ages, nationalities and backgrounds and that has really added to the experience for me.
Margaret is studying culture and heritage at UHI Inverness.
Apply for Culture, Heritage and Politics BA (Hons)
We are delighted that you are thinking about studying at the University of the Highlands and Islands. We operate a fair and open admissions system committed to equality of opportunity and non-discrimination. We consider all applications on merit and on the basis of ability to achieve, without discrimination on grounds of gender, age, disability, ethnicity and socio-economic background. We welcome applications from all prospective students and aim to provide appropriate and efficient services to students with disabilities.