Study Abroad Information and FAQ for Informatics students
Please note: this is not an official site for student exchange programmes.
It is maintained by Yuvraj Patel (Informatics exchange coordinator), for Informatics students and staff, aiming to
answer frequently asked questions and give some guidance.
The information provided here may be outdated or inaccurate.
It is important that you check the latest information provided by
SWAY (Edinburgh Global's Study and Work Away Service), see the links below.
SWAY will host a Q&A on Instagram (@uoegoabroad) on 21 Mar 2025 for current first year students with information about applying for exchange in Autumn 2025.
SWAY will organise a Go-Abroad Fair, an in-person FAQ session, an online FAQ session, online regional sessions, and application support drop-in sessions in October 2025. Dates are normally announced on the SWAY website at the beginning of the first semester.
Informatics will also organise an information session in October 2025.
Applications for exchange studies for 2026/2027 will open near the end of October 2025 and close in mid-November.
The Informatics Go Abroad Meeting will be held on Wed 31 Oct. This information session was for first and second year Informatics students who are considering studying abroad.
There was a short presentation by the Informatics Exchange Coordinator and by students who are studying abroad this year and/or last year:
The meeting was recorded and the recording (and the slides) are here
for students who were not able to attend. You can watch last year's
(2024's) talk by Prof. Don Sanella here
SWAY will hold two Drop-in sessions on Tuesday, 4 and Tuesday, 11
November, 2025 at Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
in Room 1.60. Please attend the sessions if you need help with your
application.
Where can I find information on application (e.g. timelines)?
See the web pages of SWAY.
Can I study abroad in my 4th year rather than in 3rd year?
No, it is not possible for either 4-year or 5-year degree programs.
I'm a direct entry student to second year. Am I eligible?
Yes.
I'm on a joint honours degree programme. Am I eligible?
Basically yes. Assuming you belong to Informatics, you are eligible for subject-specific exchanges through Informatics. You will also
be eligible for subject-specific exchanges through the other school of your programme
if the exchange coordinator permits.
Note that you need to make sure that a sufficient number of
courses are available for your programme at the host university -
see some possible restrictions.
Some Informatics exchange partners don't allow students on certain joint degrees.
Can I go abroad for a semester only rather than a whole year?
No.
Do the course grades for the year abroad count for my final
degree classification?
No, but you need to secure credits equivalent to 120 Edinburgh
credits for progression to 4th year.
(See
Informatics studying abroad page
)
I'd like to talk to previous studying-abroad students to ask
questions. How is that possible?
The Informatics Go Abroad meeting held in October offers such opportunities.
This also seems to be possible during the regional sessions run by SWAY in October.
Besides, there is a Piazza forum where information from previous exchange students, including some who were on exchange last year and are back in Edinburgh now, is available.
Can I apply for studying abroad via both the university-wide route and the subject-specific route?
Yes, you can, and you are encouraged to do so.
Where can I find the list of host universities?
You can find it in
Where can I go?
Can I go to a university that is not on the list?
No.
Can I go to a university that appears on the list of
subject-specific exchanges for another subject (School) rather
than Computing/Informatics?
If the subject area is relevant to your degree programme
(for joint degree programmes), it would not be
impossible. Contact me if it is the case.
How many universities can I apply for?
Five for the university-wide route, and five for the subject-specific route.
Which universities did Informatics students go to for
international exchanges?
[Canada]: McGill U., Queens U., U. British Columbia, U. Toronto,
[USA]: Barnard C., U. California, Caltech, U. Connecticut,
U. Mississippi, U. North Carolina, U. Pennsylvania,
U. Richmond, U. Texas at Austin,
[China]: U. Hong Kong,
[Korea]: Korea U., Seoul National U.,
[Singapore]: Nanyang Technological U., National U. Singapore,
[Australia]: U. New South Wales, U. Queensland,
[New Zealand]: Massey U., U. Auckland
(NB: this list is not exhaustive)
How can I choose a campus of the University of California?
You cannot choose a campus. This applies not just at the point of application, but also after you are offered a place. They assign a campus to you.
How can I find universities that suit me?
You are supposed to research this by yourself, but the Exchange Coordinator may be able to help.
How can I find what courses are available for the university?
You should research it by yourself.
Please note that it is not uncommon that students discover that the courses
they originally planned to take are full and unavailable after
they arrive at the university. This suggests that you should consider
backup plans of course choices, and consider only those
universities that offer a sufficient number of courses that are relevant to
your programme.
Is my second-year record counted?
Only the first-year record is considered due to the timing of
selection process. But coursework marks for some second-year Informatics courses will be taken into account if they are available in time.
However, to proceed with your exchange you must pass all your
year 2 courses at the first sitting. Students who have not
passed a full 240 credits of courses by June will not be permitted
to proceed with their exchange. For details, see the Undergraduate Degree Programme
Regulations.
What course grades are required to be successful?
No statistics are announced, but my experience suggests:
For the university-wide route, A on average, some B's are ok,
but having more than one C would be a problem (but not impossible).
For the subject-specific route, generally B+ on average,
but A on average will be required for partners in
Switzerland and the USA.
I encourage you to apply via the university-wide route even
if you are not confident about the strength of your academic
performance.
I've got an offer for one of the universities I chose, but
now I would like to go to another one. Is that possible?
I don't think it's possible normally, but you could contact
SWAY for advice.
I've got an offer, can I decline it?
Yes, but there is a deadline in January. See the application procedure for details.
I cannot find courses that correspond to Edinburgh
courses. What should I do?
It is sometimes not possible to find
courses that correspond to Edinburgh ones,
so flexibility is allowed. For example, you may well not find courses at the exchange partner that are equivalent to our
ILP or SDP. But a course in Computer Security is normally available, and you should take it if your degree programme lists it as a requirement in 3rd year.
Note that
it is common that some of your initially planned courses
turn out to be unavailable after you arrive at the host university and you will need to consider alternatives.
Thus, you should avoid considering universities that do not
offer many course choices.
Any advice?
The bottom line (though not mandatory) is that you try to choose courses to fulfil the
prerequisites of the Edinburgh courses that you will take in
the following years after the year abroad. This means that
you should plan your course choices not only for 3rd year abroad, but
also for 4th year in advance.
Note that this is not strictly mandatory - please see
the FAQs after a year abroad section below
regarding course choices in Year 4 after a year abroad.
Students at US universities usually take a mixture of courses: some from their major subject and some from other subjects. Can I do that too if I am at a university in the US?
No, you need to take all or almost all of your courses in Computer Science (and your other subject, if you are on a joint degree).
Where can I find the normal credit or course load for the
host university?
Please read the section "How many courses and credits should I take?" on
this page at SWAY, in which you will find a link to a table of
credit/course loads. For universities in Europe, the normal load is 60 ECTS.
Can I take courses whose grades are given in terms of
pass/fail rather than marks or letters (e.g. A,B,...,F)?
No, but contact me if you think you have a strong reason to take such a course.
Can I take courses for 1st or 2nd year students?
Not really, but this is acceptable if it can be justified - e.g. they
correspond to our courses for 3rd or upper year students.
Do I need to submit a learning agreement (which lists
courses to take) in advance to my studying abroad?
Yes, you need to submit it by late July.
Note that you need to have the form signed by the exchange coordinator (from both Schools if you are on a joint degree).
What if I need to change courses after having started
studying abroad?
See the corresponding question in FAQs - during
studying abroad section.
Do I need to pay tuition fees?
You do not pay tuition fees at the host university, but you may
need to pay some Edinburgh fees depending on your fee status -
if you are a Scotland/EU student supported by SAAS, your fees
will be waived.
For details, see this UoE page:
Study away fees
I'm receiving a student loan/scholarship. Am I still eligible
during the exchange-year abroad?
Probably yes, but you should check it yourself.
Is there any financial support available?
Please see
this page at SWAY.
Do I need to keep contact with my Student Advisor?
Yes. Soon after you arrive at the host university, contact your
Student Advisor and attach your signed Certificate of Arrival so
that they can confirm your attendance. They will also contact you
once each month to confirm that you are engaging with your studies.
I need to change courses. Are any actions required?
Yes, you should always send a modified learning agreement to
the coordinator for approval with an explanation of the change, and upload the signed new
agreement to the Mobility Online system.
If you change courses without approval, there is a risk that
your progression to fourth year will not be approved.
What if I fail to secure the required credits during the
year abroad?
Please contact the Exchange Coordinator for advice as soon as possible.
You should avoid the situation, but progression will be allowed
if you secure at least two thirds of the full credit load.
For MInf students, a slightly stricter rule will be applied.
Is my transcript automatically sent to Edinburgh?
It depends. You are responsible for making sure that your
transcript is sent to the SWAY office.
Some universities (e.g. HKU) may require you to arrange it by yourself.
If your transcript arrives late, there is a risk that your
progression decision is delayed.
When do I know if my progression to Year 4 is approved?
The progression board will be held in early September, and you
will hear the outcome in due course.
Fees
-
Small fees you need to pay to CMU are
Student Activities Fee,
Transportation Fee,
Media Fee, and
Technology Fee.
In addition, Health insurance also is invoiced.
Number of places available: 1
Cornell University
In Ithaca (population 30k) in northeastern New York; 3
hours from Niagara Falls and Canadian border, nearest big airport is
Syracuse. Ivy League university, ranked 21st for CS and 6th in the
US for UG education in CS.
In College Park (population 30k), 30 min from
Washington DC. "Public Ivy” university (public university regarded
as competitive with the private Ivy League universities), ranked
39th for CS and 16th in the US for UG education in CS.
In Philadelphia (population 1.6m) in eastern
Pennsylvania, 1.5 hours from New York and 2 hours from Washington
DC. Ivy League university, ranked 34th for CS and 19th in the US for
UG education in CS.
There seems to be a course choice constraint -
a maximum of two courses can be taken from Computer Science
per semester,
which implies that students with a single degree may not
fit very well.
NB: On returning home to UK, your transcript will not be issued
nor sent to UoE automatically. You need to arrange it by yourself.
Universities in Japan
Unfortunately, we have no exchange agreements with Japanese
universities for Computer Science. This is mainly because
of the unavailability of a sufficient number of Computer Science courses taught in
English. However, the situation seems to have been improving,
and there is a possibility that we can establish new agreements.
If you speak Japanese, it would be possible to find some
universities via existing channels of other schools. If this is the
case, contact me.
Non-Informatics courses are taught in Spanish or Catalan, so this exchange is not open to joint degree students except for those having an excellent command of Spanish at least.
University of Saarlandes (Germany)
Many courses in Informatics are taught in English, so that a
language proficiency certificate for German will not be required.
Number of places available: 1
Non-Informatics courses are taught in German, so this exchange is not open to joint degree students except for those having an excellent command of German.
University of Amsterdam (Netherlands)
Although shown on the list for the university-wide route, only a very
limited number of CS and Maths courses are available for visiting
students. Thus, this should be avoided as a destination.
Students on exchange at EPFL are eligible for a SEMP grant from the Swiss government.
The amount for an incoming SEMP grant is 1900 CHF per semester. There is an extra payment of 100 CHF if you travel to/leave Switzerland using train, bus, or ferries as a part of an environmental scheme.
In Zurich (population 400k) in a German-speaking part of northern Switzerland.
Ranked 9th for CS.
A reasonable number of UG courses in CS are taught in English, but lower level courses are taught in
German. Most MSc courses are in English.
At least 2/3 of the course credits should be sought in the
department of enrolment.
This suggests that joint-degree
students may not fit very well unless the exchange coordinator
for the minor degree gives special permission of taking a
CS-intensive course choice.
Students on exchange at ETHZ are eligible for a SEMP grant from the Swiss government.
The amount for an incoming SEMP grant is 1900 CHF per semester. There is an extra payment of 100 CHF if you travel to/leave Switzerland using train, bus, or ferries as a part of an environmental scheme.
