Primary Education with Gaelic (Learners) MA (Hons)

Level: Undergraduate

Subject: Education

Year of entry: 2026

Key facts

UCAS Code

3R67

Award

MA (Hons)

Duration of study

5 years

Delivery

Full-time

Study location

Multiple campuses

Start date

September 2026

School

Moray House School of Education and Sport

College

College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences

Accreditation

Available

Placement

Mandatory

Open days and events

About the degree programme

Our MA Primary Education with Gaelic (Learners) prepares you to teach the full range of the pre-school and primary curriculum for children through the medium of Gaelic, as well as in English.

The Gaelic language is a vital part of Scotland’s heritage, national identity and cultural life. As an official language of Scotland, Gaelic influences and shapes Scottish literature, music, art, film and TV, festivals and, of course, education.

Study with us, and you will be a part of a proud tradition of teacher education spanning nearly 200 years.

Our specialised programme was developed to help meet the national shortage of Gaelic teachers and to enhance the professional capacity of future Gaelic-medium education teachers.

By the end of the 5-year programme, you will help meet the need for Gaelic teachers in Scotland, ensuring your career viability and also the sustainable future of Gaelic in Scotland.

Our degree is an innovative programme delivered jointly between Moray House School of Education and Sport (MHSES) and the School of Literatures, Languages, and Cultures (LLC).

Mental health and wellbeing partnership

Student teachers at the University of Edinburgh can also engage with our mental health and wellbeing programme. 

This is provided through our unique partnership with children’s mental health charity Place2Be and helps you to support mental wellbeing in your classrooms and yourself. 

Place2Be at Moray House

How long it takes to complete this degree programme

This programme is studied over 5 years.

The programme includes a year's Gaelic immersion study at Sabhal Mor Ostaig on the Isle of Skye.

Programme benefits

  • Live and study for a year on the beautiful Isle of Skye, for an immersion experience at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, the National Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture
  • Take a full-year placement in a Gaelic-medium primary school setting, unique to the University of Edinburgh
  • Graduate with a qualification enabling you to teach in Gaelic or English
  • Dedicated courses on bilingualism and immersion education, with a focus on Gaelic and Scotland

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 MA (Hons) in Primary Education with Gaelic (Learners)

View the tuition fees for one academic year of MA (Hons) in Primary Education with Gaelic (Learners).

Tuition fees for this programme

Additional costs

All successful applicants will need to join Disclosure Scotland's Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme with the University of Edinburgh as the Registered Body. 

You must pay the cost of joining the scheme, which is currently between £18 and £59.

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

Bòrd na Gàidhlig Gaelic education grants

Bòrd na Gàidhlig’s core duties are set out in the Gaelic Language Act. In addition to these statutory requirements, Bòrd na Gàidhlig is involved in a range of projects and initiatives aimed at growing Gaelic language and culture. This includes working in partnership with various individuals and organisations to improve and grow Gaelic education and learning at all levels.

Find out more about the potential financial support you could apply for on Bòrd na Gàidhlig’s website.

What you will study

You will study:

  • Primary Studies
  • Primary Literacies
  • Educational Studies
  • Gaelic 1A or 1B (these courses are for learners with differing prior experience of Scottish Gaelic, including complete beginners)

Primary education courses include placements in schools.

Find Year 1 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

You will study:

  • Primary Studies
  • Educational Studies
  • Gaelic 2A or 2B (these courses include further practical language work, as well as the study of Scottish Gaelic history and literature)
  • Linguistics and the Gaelic Language
  • Mathematics in Primary Education

Primary education courses include placements in schools.

Find Year 2 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

In Year 3, you will:

  • spend a year at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on the Isle of Skye, focusing on developing your Gaelic
  • complete An Cùrsa Comais, an intensive language learning course designed for intermediate level learners whose aim is to become fluent in Gaelic
Find Year 3 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

In Year 4, you will:

  • complete a year-long school placement in a Gaelic-medium primary education setting
  • experience a range of school stages
  • work to develop the professional skills and abilities required for provisional registration with the General Teaching Council for Scotland
  • study Education and Gaelic in Scotland, and Primary Studies (with a Gaelic-medium focus) during the year, coming back into the University on specific weeks for classes, with other classes taken online
Find Year 4 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

In Year 5, you will study:

  • Primary Literacies
  • Educational Studies, including a dissertation
  • Theory and Pedagogy of Immersion and Bilingual Education
  • Additional Support for Learning

Primary education courses include placements in schools.

Option courses

You will select an option course from a suite of courses within Moray House.

Find Year 5 courses (2024-2025 academic year)

Placements

You will go on professional experience and practice placements throughout your programme. 

In Year 4, you will complete a year-long professional experience and practice placement in a Gaelic-medium primary education setting.

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

You will be taught through:

  • lectures
  • tutorials
  • workshops
  • independent small-group activities
  • e-learning and virtual learning environments

Language tutorials in Scottish Gaelic allow you to develop your linguistic skills in a range of real-world tasks under the supervision of an experienced language teacher.

These classes typically cover skills such as reading, writing, listening and speaking - all of which involve learning and applying grammar.

Assessment

You will be assessed through a range of methods, including:

  • exams
  • essays
  • portfolios
  • student presentations

You will be assessed by school staff and University tutors while on school placements.

Support for your studies

You will have access to a range of support services if you need them throughout your degree.

We will assign you to a student adviser, and this should be the first person to contact if you need help. They can guide you to other University service teams depending on what support you need.

Support for your studies

Where you will study

Study location

You can benefit from studying across two schools at the University of Edinburgh:

  • Moray House School of Education and Sport
  • School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC)

Over the first two years of the programme, you will access your language learning from the Celtic and Scottish Studies department of LLC and be based at MHSES for your Education courses. This allows you to build a firm basis from which to progress to your year-long immersion study at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig to develop your language fluency before undertaking your school placement and honours years.

Most of your teaching will take place at Moray House School of Education and Sport. The school is part of the Holyrood Campus in the University's Central Area.

School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC)

The School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC) is situated near the Main University Library in the University's Central Area.

Gaelic is based in the School’s department of Celtic and Scottish Studies. As well as language teachers and researchers in Gaelic, you’ll benefit from the expertise of the department’s Traditional Artist and Gaelic Writer-in-Residence. They are a composer/musician and a writer who work with staff and students on a range of projects and performances.

Through the Gaelic Algorithmic Research Group (GARG), LLC is leading an international team researching modern technologies for Gaelic, including the development of the world’s first working automatic speech recognition system for the language. They are also founding members of Faclair na Gàidhlig, a collaborative project to publish a historical dictionary of the language.

The School works 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.

Academic facilities

You will also have access to the University's libraries and computing facilities, including its outstanding resources for the study of Celtic.

These are largely held in three places in George Square in the Central Area:

  • the Main University Library and its Centre for Research Collections
  • the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC) and its Celtic Class Library
  • the School of Scottish Studies Archives and its Scottish Studies Library

Across these sites, you will find:

  • more than 400,000 rare books
  • six kilometres of archives and manuscripts
  • 33,000 recordings of songs, music, stories, rhyme and verse in Scots, Gaelic and English, as well as extinct dialects
  • thousands of works of art, historical musical instruments and other objects
  • thousands of photographs and rarely-seen historical documents which capture exceptional and everyday aspects of Scottish culture and heritage

Highlights for the study of Celtic include:

  • the Carmichael-Watson Collection
  • the Donald MacKinnon Collection
  • the David Laing Collection

Virtual tour

You can take a closer look at Moray House School of Education and Sport and explore our facilities and campus on the University's Virtual Visit site.

Take a virtual tour of Moray House School of Education and Sport

Accreditation

The programme is accredited by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) enabling students to teach in English and Gaelic.

After graduating, all UK students can register with the GTCS as provisionally qualified teachers and are guaranteed a one-year induction post in a Scottish school.

Career paths

Our graduates typically go on to teach in Gaelic-medium or English-medium primary schools.

Some graduates have gone on to teach internationally as part of their career pathway, having achieved their full registration.

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 qualifications can be gained through part-time postgraduate study for those who wish to enhance their knowledge of teaching and learning and/or pursue leadership roles.

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

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:

Join the PVG (Protecting Vulnerable Groups) scheme for a background check

If we give you an offer, you will need to join Disclosure Scotland's Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme before you start this degree programme.

We will send you information on how to join the PVG scheme.

PVG scheme information on the Scottish Government website

If you live outside the UK

If you live outside the UK, or have spent more than one year living outside the UK, then you will need to provide equivalent verification from the relevant national authority.

If you have a criminal conviction

If you state you have a criminal conviction, we will not ask for any more details until we consider your application and decide you are eligible for an offer.

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

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

Our societies and sports clubs will help you develop your interests, meet like-minded people, find a new hobby or simply socialise.

Societies

Sports clubs

The city of Edinburgh

The city of Edinburgh has a long-established Gaelic community and a lively contemporary cultural scene. For example, there are:

  • conversation groups for practising Gaelic socially
  • fèisean for performers
  • an annual festival, Seachdain na Gàidhlig

Our University of Edinburgh Gaelic officer runs lots of community events to support language and culture across the University, working in partnership with our programme Academic Cohort Lead to build a lovely Gaelic community on our programme.

Find out more about Gaelic at Edinburgh on our social media pages:

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

Related degree programmes

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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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