Celtic Studies MScR

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We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.

This programme includes access to training on research skills, methods and problems, while working with your supervisor to consider specific research methodologies in Celtic Studies using a combination of traditional and innovative methods.

You will be encouraged and supported to make direct contact with original sources and to gain hands-on experience, whether in reading medieval manuscripts or in handling electronically stored data.

Between the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC), the Careers Service and the Institute for Academic Development (IAD), you will have access to a further range of programmes and resources to help you develop your postgraduate skills, as well as to the University’s fantastic libraries, collections and worldwide strategic partnerships.

Join in

As part of our research community, you will be immersed in a world of scholarship, with lots of opportunities to share ideas, learning and creative work. Activities include:

• a regular seminar series (with talks by staff, research students and visiting speakers)
• annual lecture series in Celtic and Scottish Studies (O'Donnell Lecture, Alan Bruford Lecture and the John MacLeod Memorial Lecture)
• performances and traditional music sessions, coordinated by our In-Residence colleagues (Gaelic Writer and Traditional Artist)
• dedicated Gaelic language officer
• active student Celtic Society (Comann Ceilteach)

Our graduates tell us that they value LLC’s friendliness, the connections they make here and the in-depth guidance they receive from our staff, who are published experts in their field.

Our research resources and facilities are outstanding. Our research community works in close proximity to a wide range of specialist materials, medieval to modern, in a variety of media.

As a researcher, you will have access to the University’s many collections, including rare books and manuscripts, such as the Carmichael-Watson Collection, the Donald MacKinnon Collection, and the David Laing Collection, and to the wealth of resources curated by the National Library of Scotland.

Through the Gaelic Algorithmic Research Group (GARG), an international team researching modern technologies for Gaelic, we have led the development of the world’s first working Automatic Speech Recognition system for Scottish Gaelic. We are also founding members of Faclair na Gàidhlig, a collaborative project to publish a historical dictionary of the language.

• Read our feature on what Automatic Speech Recognition means for the future of Scotland’s Gaelic language

Passionate about music, literature, song and storytelling, we have strong links with the Scottish Storytelling Centre and the National Museum of Scotland, both of which are located close to our buildings in Edinburgh’s historic city centre.

We work closely with Bòrd na Gàidhlig, the national Gaelic development agency, of which Professor Rob Dunbar is a Board Member (2023 to 2027). Rob also sits on the Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages - the only treaty in the world designed to protect and promote regional and minority languages and to enable speakers to use them both in private and public life.

These entry requirements are for the 2025/26 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2026/27 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2025.

MScR: A UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent, in a related subject.

International qualifications

Check whether your international qualifications meet our general entry requirements:

• Entry requirements by country

English language requirements

Regardless of your nationality or country of residence, you must demonstrate a level of English language competency which will enable you to succeed in your studies.

English language tests

We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:

• IELTS Academic: total 7.0 with at least 6.5 in each component. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
• TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 100 with at least 23 in each component. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
• C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 185 with at least 176 in each component.
• Trinity ISE: ISE III with passes in all four components.
• PTE Academic: total 73 with at least 65 in each component. We do not accept PTE Academic Online.
• Oxford ELLT: 8 overall with at least 7 in each component.

Your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start date of the programme you are applying to study, unless you are using IELTS, TOEFL, Trinity ISE or PTE, in which case it must be no more than two years old.

Degrees taught and assessed in English

We also accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration:

• UKVI list of majority English speaking countries

We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries (non-MESC).

• Approved universities in non-MESC

If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old at the beginning of your programme of study.

Find out more about our language requirements:

• English language requirements

Funding for postgraduate study is different to undergraduate study, and many students need to combine funding sources to pay for their studies.

Most students use a combination of the following funding to pay their tuition fees and living costs:

• borrowing money

  • taking out a loan

  • family support

• personal savings

• income from work

• employer sponsorship

• scholarships

Explore sources of funding for postgraduate study

Search for scholarships and funding opportunities:

• Search for funding