Mathematics and Physics BSc (Hons)

Level: Undergraduate

Subject: Mathematics

Year of entry: 2026

Key facts

UCAS Code

GF13

Award

BSc (Hons)

Duration of study

4 years

Delivery

Full-time

Study location

King's Buildings campus

Start date

September 2026

School

School of Mathematics

College

College of Science and Engineering

Study abroad

Available

Placement

No

Open days and events

About the degree programme

Studying mathematics at university encourages you to think in an entirely different way. Through the introduction to new mathematical concepts not explored at school level, you will develop a rigorous mindset, and gain invaluable problem-solving skills and analytical skills.

Physics is the study of the fundamental processes of our universe, and its laws underpin the other natural sciences.

This programme allows you to study these closely related subjects in equal depth. You will split your time evenly between both mathematics and physics, and you can:

  • specialise in particular aspects of mathematics or physics
  • examine the links between the two subjects
  • study a broad range of topics

How long it takes to complete this degree programme

This programme is studied over 4 years.

A key benefit to studying a 4-year degree programme is that you have the flexibility to study a range of subjects, outside your chosen degree programme, in Year 1 and Year 2.

This allows you the opportunity to study other courses that interest you or enhance your degree. By the end of Year 2, you can decide which of these subject areas you want to focus on in the honours years of your programme.

How long it takes to complete our degree programmes

How a joint degree programme works

A joint programme allows you to gain a well-rounded learning experience. You will have more exposure to different disciplines, allowing you to expand your knowledge and expertise.

Teaching on joint programmes is split across the two subject areas, and teaching will take place in locations associated with both subjects.

You will gain a different perspective through studying more than one subject and have a wider skill set that is highly attractive to future employers.

Programme rankings

  • 5th in the UK for mathematics and statistics (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025 by Subject)
  • 5th in the UK for mathematics in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025

Programme benefits

  • Enhance your knowledge of both mathematics and physics by studying them together in this joint degree programme.
  • Our teaching fosters interactive engagement that promotes long-term understanding.
  • Our programmes focus on employability skills. Our Student Development team and the University's Careers Service give students employability support. This includes presentations from industry employers and alumni career showcases, which demonstrate the range of careers open to mathematics graduates.
  • We host regular workshops to help you prepare for applying to internships, jobs and further study.
  • Both schools have expertise in a variety of research areas, allowing you to tailor your degree to your area of interest.

Find your entry requirements

Use the dropdowns to find out your entry requirements.

  1. Select the country where you are studying or where you studied your qualification.
  2. Select the qualification you are studying or studied.
United Kingdom,

Tuition fees for BSc (Hons) Mathematics and Physics

View the tuition fees for one academic year of BSc (Hons) Mathematics and Physics.

Tuition fees for this programme

Additional costs

You should expect to buy the necessary textbooks for some components of your programme.

Accommodation and living costs

You need to cover your accommodation and living costs for the duration of your programme.

We estimate that a single student can potentially spend a maximum of £920 to £2,257 on living costs each month, depending on your accommodation.

This estimate covers the costs of:

  • accommodation
  • food
  • utility bills
  • travel within Edinburgh
  • health and wellbeing costs

See a breakdown of living costs

Scholarships and funding

Funding information

You can find detailed information on financial support available, based on where you are living, in our funding section.

Funding

Featured funding

School of Mathematics Scholarships

Scholarships are available for full-time undergraduates studying in the School of Mathematics. These are offered to students of outstanding ability and cover the duration of their studies, subject to satisfactory academic progress each year.

What you will study

The compulsory mathematics and physics courses allow you to develop as a well-rounded mathematician and physicist. It also widens your options for specialisation later on.

In later years, you can begin to specialise more and pursue areas of interest, alongside the core compulsory courses.

The courses listed for the individual years of study may be subject to change.

Mathematics courses

You will take 60 credits of compulsory mathematics courses:

  • Introduction to Mathematics at University
  • Introduction to Mathematical Analysis
  • Linear Algebra 1

These courses are designed to build on your knowledge of mathematics from school, introducing you to more rigorous ways of mathematical thinking required at university level. They cover a wide range of mathematics, including some applications of mathematics, so you can make informed choices at honours level.

Physics courses

You will also study 60 credits of compulsory physics courses:

  • Physics 1A
  • Mathematics for Physics 1
  • Mathematics for Physics 2, which develops your mathematical and problem-solving skills in the context of algebra and calculus, with increasing emphasis on physical applications
Find Year 1 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

In Year 2, you will spend roughly equal amounts of time on mathematics and physics.

You will take compulsory mathematics courses that will extend your knowledge of analysis and calculus and generalise what you have seen in linear algebra. They also introduce you to probability and statistics, as well as to computational mathematics, motivated by examples from applied mathematics and optimization.

You will also study topics in modern physics, plus physics of fields and matter.

You will study:

  • Linear Algebra 2
  • Elementary Probability and Statistics
  • Further Analysis and Several Variable Calculus
  • Modelling and Computing
  • Introduction to Modern Physics
  • Introductory Fields and Waves
  • Computer Simulation or Modelling and Computing
Find Year 2 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

In Year 3, you will study courses in both mathematics and physics. These have been chosen to emphasise and develop the close relationship between the subjects.

Mathematics courses

You will study at least three compulsory mathematics honours courses, and also start to specialise. 

The mathematics honours courses provide an excellent grounding in advanced mathematics and prepare you for the options available later on. 

Each mathematics honours course contains a skills component. This enables you to develop valuable employability skills such as:

  • programming
  • group work presentation skills
Physics courses

For your compulsory physics courses, you will study Electromagnetism and Relativity alongside one of the following:

  • Thermal Physics
  • Principles of Quantum Mechanics
Option courses

You will spend the rest of your time studying courses of your choice within the School of Mathematics and or the School of Physics and Astronomy. You can begin to specialise and narrow your mathematical focus, or continue to study a wide range of mathematical topics.

Previous mathematics option courses have included:

  • Financial Mathematics
  • Introduction to Number Theory
  • Statistical Computing

Physics option courses currently include:

  • Thermodynamics
  • Cosmology
  • Nuclear and Particle Physics
Find Year 3 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

In Year 4, you will complete a significant research project in either mathematics or physics. This allows you to research a topic in-depth, and you can do this as a group or individually. 

You will also choose from a wide range of mathematics and physics courses to create a programme that suits your particular interests and career aspirations. Our course offerings are influenced by the varied research interests in each school. 

As a result, we offer a large selection of mathematics courses in:

  • pure mathematics
  • applied mathematics
  • statistics
  • operational research
  • financial mathematics
  • mathematical physics
  • mathematical education

Current mathematics courses include:

  • General Topology
  • Symmetry and Geometry
  • Stochastic Modelling
  • Mathematical Education
  • Entrepreneurship in the Mathematical Sciences

As in Year 3, the School of Physics and Astronomy offers a large selection of courses, of which you have free choice.

Find Year 4 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

Study abroad

You will have opportunities to study abroad through exchange programmes. Students have recently completed placements in:

  • California
  • Sydney
  • British Columbia

Exchanges are typically taken in Year 3, before returning to Edinburgh to complete Year 4. 

What are my options for going abroad?

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

You will be taught through a combination of:

  • lectures
  • tutorials
  • practicals
Lectures

In Year 1, lectures are usually interactive, and lecturers use online voting systems and encourage small-group discussions to improve your understanding of core material. 

These lectures are linked to your subject reading, so you will be familiar with the content before you attend. Lectures in later years follow a more 'traditional' lecturing style but occasionally include the voting system or other innovative teaching methods.

Workshops and practicals

Lectures are supported by small-group workshops. These sessions give you the opportunity to apply the concepts you have learned in lectures and to develop your understanding. You will work with five to six other students, with a tutor on hand to support you and answer your questions. 

Physics learning is supported by practicals. These use the latest teaching technology and help you to develop your problem-solving skills. 

Interactive learning

Our teaching fosters interactive engagement that promotes long-term understanding. Teaching is enhanced by technology, including voting systems and online quizzes, and we actively encourage collaborative learning.

Assessment

Mathematics courses

Mathematics courses are mostly assessed through exams.

In your first and second year, these exams are primarily 'open book' exams, where you can use your textbook and notes. This allows you to concentrate on understanding and using the ideas and concepts involved, rather than memorising procedures.

In later years, there is a mixture of open and closed-book exams, depending on the course.

Most mathematics courses have regular assessments throughout the year, both written and online, so you can get feedback on your progress. These typically count for a small part of your course grade.

Later in the degree programme, there are some courses available which are entirely assessed by coursework, usually in the form of reports, posters, projects or presentations.

Physics and computing courses

Physics practical and computing courses have laboratory write-ups and checkpoint assessments.

Support for your studies

You will have access to broad-ranging support from within the School of Mathematics, including:

  • drop-in Year 1 mathematics support
  • the option to take part in our peer-assisted learning scheme, MathPALS
  • Mathematics Student Services team
  • Student Development team

Our academic staff

The School of Mathematics has expertise in a variety of research areas, allowing you to tailor your degree programme to your area of mathematical interest. To find out more about our research and its applications, take a look at our Researchers on Record video series.

Researchers on Record

Where you will study

Study location

The School of Mathematics and the School of Physics and Astronomy are based in the James Clerk Maxwell Building at the King's Buildings campus. Your mathematics and physics teaching will take place at the King's Buildings campus throughout your degree programme.

Academic facilities

Mathematics facilities

Undergraduate students in the School of Mathematics have access to dedicated study spaces, MathsBase and MathsHub.

MathsBase is a drop-in study space staffed by tutors on weekdays during the semester.

MathsHub is a suite of rooms in the James Clerk Maxwell Building for the sole use of undergraduate mathematicians as a study space.

Physics facilities

In Years 1 to 3, you will use the undergraduate physics laboratories in the James Clerk Maxwell Building. 

From Year 2, you will have access to the Computational Physics Laboratory.

Career paths

Our programmes focus on employability skills.

As a mathematics graduate, you will have a wide range of careers open to you. 

Studying a joint honours degree enables you to develop a wider range of transferable skills, and opens up more varied employment opportunities. 

You will develop skills that are highly sought-after by employers like:

  • logical and analytic abilities
  • programming
  • data analysis
  • presentation skills
  • practical problem-solving

Our graduates

Recent graduates have gone into fields including:

  • finance (accountancy, actuarial, banking, insurance, risk, tax)
  • data science and statistics
  • IT (for example, software engineering and programming)
  • operational research
  • education

We regularly invite alumni back to share their experiences and showcase the range of careers available to you.

Enhance your CV

Both schools offer many opportunities to develop your skills and enhance your CV. For example, you can:

  • share your love of your subject by working with the wider community as a member of an outreach team
  • join a team of Student Ambassadors and inspire prospective students
  • become a peer learning mentor and support Year 1 students
  • apply for a project scholarship and work with a lecturer during the summer

Employability support

Working in partnership with the Careers Service, academics, alumni and the business community, the Student Development Team provides activities, events and resources focused on developing skills, engaging with opportunities and building networks:

  • applications support (for example, CV writing, interview preparation, how to network)
  • specific career advice (for example, insights into actuarial careers, how to apply for PhDs)
  • interactions with recruiting organisations and alumni (for example, annual careers showcase and presentations with employers)

Careers Service

Our Careers Service can help you to fully develop your potential and achieve your future goals.

The Careers Service supports you not only while you are studying at the University, but also for up to two years after you finish your studies.

With the Careers Service, you can:

  • access digital resources to help you understand your skills and strengths
  • try different types of experiences and reflect on how and what you develop
  • get help finding work, including part-time jobs, vacation work, internships and graduate jobs
  • attend careers events and practice interviews
  • get information and advice to help you make informed decisions

Visit the Careers Service website

Further study

Further study is also a popular option. You can progress from this programme into masters or PhD level study in mathematics or physics, or apply your training to postgraduate study in another subject.

Graduate profiles

Read stories on our blog from recent graduates who shared their memories of studying in Edinburgh and how it shaped their careers.

Mathematics graduate profiles

How to apply

You must submit a full application through UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) before the relevant deadline.

Guidance on applying through UCAS

Apply to one Mathematics degree  

Apply for only one degree in the School of Mathematics as we are only able to consider one application to this subject area. You will have the opportunity to switch between degrees in later years provided the required courses have been passed.

What you need to apply

As part of your application, you will need:

  • your academic qualifications
  • a personal statement
  • evidence of your English language skills (with relevant qualifications)
  • a reference

How we select

If you have met, or are predicted to meet, all our entry requirements by the relevant deadline, then your application will go into our selection process.

As part of this selection process, we will review all the information you submit in your UCAS application when we decide who to select for this degree programme.

How we select applicants

When to apply

  • 2026 entry UCAS deadline: 14 January 2026 (6:00pm GMT)

This is the deadline for all UK, EU and international applicants to non-medicine and veterinary medicine programmes.

To find out if any degree programmes have spaces after 14 January 2026, search the University of Edinburgh on the UCAS website.

Search degrees that are open on the UCAS website

Key application dates and deadlines

After you apply

After you have applied for your degree programme, we suggest you have a look at the following information to help you prepare for university:

Applying as an international student

As an international student, you apply for this degree programme through UCAS.  

Find out more about applying through UCAS  

Visas and immigration 

If you do not have the right to live in the UK, you will need to apply for and secure a Student visa before the start date of your degree programme.  

Our Student Immigration Service can help you with the Student visa application process. 

Applying for a visa  

Agents  

An education agent is someone who can help you with the application process as an international student. 

We work with education agents around the world and have a list of local offices you can contact.  

Find contact details for an education agent

What our students say

Hear from some of our current undergraduate students about their experience studying in the School of Mathematics.

Accommodation

We guarantee an offer of University accommodation for all new, single undergraduate students from outside Edinburgh. To be eligible, you need to meet all criteria and apply for accommodation by 16 August in the year of your entry to the University.

University accommodation website

Accommodation guarantee criteria

If you prefer to live elsewhere, we can offer you advice on finding accommodation in Edinburgh.

Accommodation information from the Edinburgh University Students' Association Advice Place

Societies and clubs

MathSoc is the University’s Mathematics Society. The society hosts a mixture of both academic and social events throughout the year, including quizzes, bitesize lectures and collaborative events with the School of Mathematics.

Learn more about MathSoc

The Physics and Astronomy Society hosts a wide variety of events from pub quizzes to academic talks. They also run observing nights and observatory tours throughout the year.

Learn more about the Physics and Astronomy Society

The city of Edinburgh

Scotland's inspiring capital will form the background to your studies — a city with an irresistible blend of history, natural beauty and modern city life.

Find out more about living in Edinburgh

Health and wellbeing support

You will have access to free health and wellbeing services throughout your time at university if you need them.

The support services we offer include:

  • a student counselling service
  • a health centre (doctor's surgery)
  • support if you're living in University accommodation
  • dedicated help and support if you have a disability or need adjustment

Health and wellbeing support services

Contact us

Contact us through our enquiry team if you have any questions about this programme.

Open days, events and visits

Find out when our next open days will be taking place

Open days, events and visits

Chat to our students on Unibuddy

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It is one of many sources of information which will enable you to make an informed decision on what and where to study.

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