As I walked across campus several times during the last week, I was struck by the carnival atmosphere. Hundreds of people were lining up outside the historic McEwan Hall, while excited conversations filled the air from crowds under marquees. You would be forgiven for thinking I’m describing a scene from the Edinburgh Fringe , but this marked our week-long celebration welcoming new students to the University, which we call “Welcome Week”.
Around 18,000 students were invited to take part in their choice of 1,600 events throughout the week. That’s 18,000 individuals, each commencing what may be the most formative years of their lives. And history has taught us that many will go on to have a huge impact on the world .
Roughly 60% of those students will be matriculated within Arts , Humanities and Social Sciences (AHSS). This is by far our most populous College at the University of Edinburgh (the others being Science & Engineering, and Medicine & Veterinary Medicine). Last year, more than 57% of all those studying – 28,255 of 49,485 students – were pursuing AHSS degrees.
To provide an idea of scale: that means this College’s student population is higher than that of Aberdeen and St Andrews Universities combined. (Image: PA) These students are beginning at Edinburgh following a summer of change: a new First Minister, new UK government, and a new candidate for the US Presidential elections have been installed since the previous semester concluded. This is set against a.
