Additional information

The Highlands and Islands of Scotland

The operational area of the University of the Highlands and Islands includes over half of the land area of Scotland and one sixth of the United Kingdom. It includes Shetland, Orkney, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Highlands, Moray, Perthshire, and Argyll. Of the fourteen universities in Scotland, UHI is the only one based within this region.

Over half a million people live in the University of the Highlands and Islands operating area (100,000 on the islands), ranging from urban centres to small communities in sparsely-populated parts of the Highlands and Islands. Gaelic language and traditions are strong in the west, with the Nordic heritage prominent in the north and Doric in the east. However, there are many other cultural influences within the region - some historic and others more recent.

Traditional industries include fishing, farming, forestry, food and drink and tourism. More recent developments include life sciences, creative industries, call centre operations and IT based businesses. The region benefitted from the oil boom of the latter part of the 20^th century and still has strong links with the oil and gas industry. To this has been added, more recently, the potential for new land- and sea-based renewable energy developments. The public sector is also a major employer within the region.

The area is well served by hospitals and health centres and the traditional excellence of Scottish education continues to be pursued within its schools. There is a wide choice of residential accommodation in both the urban centres and in the rural and island communities. Recent development has extended the choice of modern housing in addition to more traditional properties. There has been much investment in transport infrastructure and in telecommunications and developments and improvements in these areas continue.

Countless visitors come to the Highlands and Islands each year to enjoy the unparalleled range of recreational activities and facilities. To those who are lucky enough to live and work here, such attractions are part of everyday life. In addition to the range of outdoor activities, there are thriving amateur sports leagues, a wealth of music, song and dance, and a variety of performing and visual arts events throughout the year. These, in addition to low crime and a strong sense of community, lead to the region’s reputation for a high quality of life.

For a welcome pack and more information on living in the Highlands and Islands see: http://highlandlife.net

The University of the Highlands and Islands

The University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) operates through a partnership of thirteen colleges and research institutions (known as the academic partners), located throughout the Highlands and Islands, Moray and Perthshire.

The UHI mission is:

To be a distinctive and innovative regional university of national and international significance; a university with a pivotal role in the educational, economic, social, cultural and environmental infrastructure of its region and which reaches out to the people of the Highlands and Islands and the rest of the world through its research and teaching.

Originally established as the University of the Highlands and Islands Project in the early 1990’s, UHI was designated a Higher Education Institution, as UHI Millennium Institute, in 2001. The first degree courses were offered in 1998 in association with Open University Validation Services and the arrangement with the OU continued until 2008 when UHI was granted its own taught degree awarding powers. University title was achieved in February 2011. Since 2005 UHI has been supported in its development by the universities of Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Strathclyde and close links with these three institutions, as well as with others, continue. UHI is now working towards research degree awarding powers and, in the meantime, UHI research degrees are awarded by the University of Aberdeen.

In November 2011 the university announced the appointment of HRH The Princess Royal as its first Chancellor.

UHI receives recurrent annual funding for its research and its teaching from the Scottish Government through the Scottish Funding Council. It has benefitted also from significant support from the Millennium Commission, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, local councils and the European Union, amongst others.

Through the academic partners, UHI delivers a wide range of higher education opportunities across the Highlands and Islands, including research degrees, undergraduate and postgraduate taught degrees and higher national certificates and diplomas. Currently, there are over 7,500 students enrolled on university-level courses with UHI.

UHI serves a diverse student body, many of whom are mature students and/or study on a part-time basis. UHI provides an opportunity to develop new and innovative solutions to post-compulsory education, and areas of development include widening access, lifelong learning, e-learning, and progression from further education to higher education.

Academic leadership comes from the UHI principal and vice-chancellor, two vice principals (academic and research and enterprise) two deans of faculty, a dean of learning and teaching, a dean of research and eight subject network leaders, the latter based within the UHI academic partners.

The executive office undertakes many administrative and professional duties and co-ordinates and supports work across the UHI network.

Other than as noted above, and in one or two specialist areas, UHI employs no academic staff. Instead, UHI draws on the talents and experience of the staff employed within its academic partners for its teaching and research activity.

Further information on UHI can be found on our website at www.uhi.ac.uk.

UHI academic partners

Of the UHI academic partners, nine are regional further and higher education colleges. These are:

• Argyll College UHI
• Inverness College UHI
• Lews Castle College UHI
• Moray College UHI
• North Highland College UHI
• Orkney College UHI
• Perth College UHI
• Shetland College UHI
• West Highland College UHI

All are independent institutions except for Shetland and Orkney colleges which are operated by the respective local authority. While all higher education teaching and research within these partners is delivered as part of UHI, each college remains individually responsible for the further education provision within their local communities. In the three largest UHI colleges – Perth, Inverness and Moray – higher education represents 25%-30% of their activity.

Other UHI partners are more specialist in nature. They are:

• Sabhal Mòr Ostaig UHI, on Skye, is Scotland’s Gaelic College, delivering a varied curriculum from access level through to postgraduate research degrees, through the medium of Gaelic.
• The Scottish Association for Marine Science UHI (SAMS) at Dunstaffnage is UHI’s most prominent research partner. SAMS delivers an honours degree in marine science and hosts a number of postgraduate research students in addition to undertaking research of international significance.
• Highland Theological College UHI in Dingwall offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in theology as well as being involved in research activities. The college provides students with the opportunity to study the Christian faith, on a full-time, part-time or open-learning basis, from an evangelical and reformed perspective.
• NAFC Marine Centre UHI, based at Scalloway in Shetland, undertakes fisheries research and provides training for the fisheries and maritime industries and also was the base for UHI’s first successful PhD student.

Corporate governance and structures

Within UHI, the university court is ultimately responsible for the effective conduct of all UHI affairs and for its strategic direction, reputation, financial health, the well-being of its students and for establishing and maintaining high standards of academic conduct and probity. The court includes representation from each academic partner, through the chair of their own board of management, or equivalent, plus a majority of independent members, including a representative, each, of the universities of Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Strathclyde.

The executive board comprises the UHI principal and vice-chancellor and the principals or directors of each of the academic partners. It shares responsibility for strategy development with academic council and the university court and deals primarily with resource and management issues including providing co-ordination between the executive office and the academic partners.

Academic council has the highest academic authority for higher education and has overall responsibility for quality assurance and enhancement.

The university court, executive board and academic council discharge their responsibilities through sub-committees, where appropriate.

The two deans of the UHI faculties report to academic council and work closely with subject network leaders and staff within the academic partners on issues such as academic standards, student experience, curriculum development and staff development. Subject networks are broadly similar to departments in a traditional university structure but draw together staff working in cognate areas from across the academic partners. The deans also chair their respective exam boards. The faculties are:

• Arts, humanities and business
• Science, health and education

Executive office

The executive office comprises approximately 180 direct employees of the university. The majority of the executive office staff is based in Inverness, although it is practice to disperse posts to academic partner sites, where feasible. Within Inverness the executive office operates three sites. Ness Walk, a 200 year-old listed building near the city centre and on the banks of the River Ness, houses the university principal and vice chancellor and a number of executive office functions. Synergie House, in the Fairways Business Park just off the southern distributor road, houses learning and information services and research support staff. The Centre for Health Science on the Raigmore Hospital campus, just off the A9 trunk road, is the base of the Dean of Science, Health and Education as well as home to some health related research and teaching.

Executive office undertakes executive and professional duties and co-ordinates and supports UHI network functions. These include curriculum and staff development, quality assurance and enhancement, development of learning and information services, management of the information technology infrastructure, promotion of research, provision of information for statutory and planning purposes, fundraising, marketing and public relations, administrative and financial services. These services support the teaching and research functions carried out by academic partners and work closely with colleagues in equivalent roles in academic partners to co-ordinate functions and activities.

Within the executive office, the senior executive team is chaired by the secretary and includes the UHI principal and vice-chancellor, the two vice principals and directors of finance, learning and information services and of marketing, communications and planning. The senior academic team is chaired by the UHI principal and vice-chancellor and comprises the two vice principals, the two deans of faculty, the dean of learning and teaching, the dean of research and others in academic and research management.

Teaching and learning

The majority of UHI students are campus based with others studying in learning centres and at a distance through video-conferencing and online materials and communications.

Within UHI is there is a strong emphasis on supporting the student as an individual whilst encouraging the development of independent learning skills.

Many students, especially those studying for higher national qualifications, will encounter a traditional learning experience. Others, especially those studying for undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, will join with other students elsewhere within the UHI network, and sometimes beyond, through the use of video-conferencing and on-line learning.

Research and enterprise

The development of research is an essential component of a university in Scotland and, for UHI, integral to the pursuit of its mission in relation to the economic, social and cultural development of the Highlands and Islands.

In the most recent UK-wide research assessment exercise (RAE), UHI was judged to have elements of world-class research in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences, Archaeology and Celtic Studies. Other areas which performed strongly, showing degrees of international recognition and international excellence, were Pre-clinical and Human Biological Sciences, Agronomy, Town & Country Planning (in a rural context), European Studies and Theology. We are continuing to develop research, in health such as lipidomics, clinical research and rural health, and in renewable and sustainable energy, social sciences, culture and heritage.

There are also strong links with employers within the region and knowledge transfer is well established within UHI.