Courses

You will take a total of 15 credit hours, typically divided over three to six classes.

•  Please review your courses with your academic or study abroad advisor to ensure they will transfer back to your home school and that you are following your home school’s policies.
• Please be flexible – we can’t guarantee specific courses. If your participation in the program depends on a particular course, be sure to make a note on your online preferences form.

Academic Structure at Strathclyde

Course modules are divided amongst four Faculties: Engineering; Science; Humanities and Social Sciences; and the triple-accredited Strathclyde Business School – a distinction which is only held by 1% of the world’s business schools.

You’ll generally take 60 SCOTCAT/30 ECTS credits per semester, which is 15 US semester hours of credit. This breaks down to roughly 3 classes in Business, Humanities, or Social Science; or 4-6  courses in Engineering and Science.

You can take a combination of courses from different Faculties; however, 50% of your classes should be taken in a single department for timetabling reasons. Both representatives at Strathclyde and the team at Arcadia will work with you to ensure you are registered for the appropriate number of courses and credits.

You’ll be assigned an academic coordinator in your host department. This coordinator can assist with any course you are taking, regardless of department, and will serve as your main academic contact at Strathclyde.

Special Considerations

All academic areas are open to Study Abroad students, but there may be restrictions in particular departments. For example, some courses run for the entire year and cannot be taken for one semester. This is more likely to happen in the Sciences. Some education classes involving school placements may be unavailable due to immigration regulations.

Courses are provisional at application and finalized upon arrival.

Choosing Your Courses

For details of available courses, please consult the Strathclyde Guide to Choosing Courses.

Guidance on selecting courses for your application:

• Study abroad students will normally select classes/courses from levels 1 to 3. Level 1 classes are usually at an introductory level and may not require much previous knowledge or study in the subject.
• Level 2 and 3 classes will normally require some previous study in the subject.
• Level 4 classes are not usually available to study abroad students unless you have significant background in the subject and meet the prerequisites for the class. It also depends on class capacity. (Admission to level 4 classes will normally require the permission of the individual department which runs the class).
• Study abroad students should take at least 50% of their courses from a single Faculty (department/subject area). You may take one or two classes from another department if you meet the prerequisites, if the other department approves the classes, and if the class timetable fits around your main classes. 
  • NOTE: It may not be possible to obtain confirmation of any secondary classes until you arrive.

Enrollment Process

Submit your Academic Preferences Form through your Arcadia Portal.

List all course choices and alternates in order of preference. Your first choices may not be available due to timetabling, prerequisite, or availability issues. List about 10 classes on your course form.

This form is used only to determine your eligibility for admission and for the pre-registration process at Strathclyde. You will receive provisional approval for the classes listed in your application prior to arrival, however you may be required to make some changes or adjustments upon arrival to account for timetable restrictions or other program adjustments. It is therefore very important for you to be flexible and have some reserve classes identified which can be substituted as necessary.

Grade Scale

The following information is vetted and provided by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) on the Electronic Database for Global Education (EDGE).

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY COPYRIGHT AACRAO EDGE.