Taron Hansen: My experience of studying at UHI Centre for History
We chatted to Taron Hansen, one of our international Undergraduate students from Canada and this year's winner of the Directly Enrolled Student of the Year to learn how their first year at UHI has gone and why they chose UHI Centre for History.
Early August 2024 I decided to take a huge step towards my future by applying for a History and Archaeology BAH at UHI. I had been working and saving money since 2019 and every year I had plans to start my education, yet life got in the way. While still living in Canada, it was hard to make plans to start the university education I knew I wanted to get from overseas. I went into a week-long research spree into schools and what I wanted for my education and when I came across UHI it felt like the perfect first step in my journey. I was drawn to UHI for a multitude of reasons – for the accessible study mode, relatively affordable international student fees, and a delightful variety of modules available.
I was nervous about applying since it was August and classes start in September, but I thought I would give it a try thinking 'maybe they have spaces open'. When I got the notification from UCAS and saw an unconditional place in my chosen course I was ecstatic and scared simultaneously. All these years of only planning to start my studies but never doing it had ended, and I was officially a university student.
Taron featuring their UHI hoodie which has quickly become their favourite sweater. Taron's cat, Olive, who religiously stays by their side during their studies. Beautiful mountains from hikes around Vancouver.
'I feel like the staff are on my side the whole way there and want nothing but for me to succeed in my passions and career.'
How would you describe your study experience at UHI?
Presently residing in Canada presents me with unique challenges while studying at a Scottish university. The time difference has been difficult to overcome with some of my classes taking place at 1-3am. I persevere knowing it is only temporary before I move overseas. Despite the time difference, I love attending my classes. The lecturers ensure classes are engaging and give plenty of opportunities for questions and comments from the students. I prefer these virtual classes over a physical classroom as I overcome my shyness. I find the presence of a text chat easier to ask questions I would otherwise feel silly asking over the microphone. The chat function also allows for us students to reply and talk to each other in a non-disruptive way.
What are some of your personal highlights about studying Humanities at UHI?
A huge benefit to studying a humanities degree at UHI is the sheer amount of access to journals, archives, and libraries. There have been very few journals I have come across that UHI does not have institutional access to. It makes researching for assessments much easier. The online UHI library is incredibly extensive in its search tools. Additionally, the Brightspace virtual learning environment is very easy to navigate, and I love how easy it is to switch between my different courses when I am working on multiple assessments at once. My computer will never look the same with how many PDF’s and bookmarked articles I have. Finding the little things to appreciate makes such a difference in my studies – such as getting to close my 25 open tabs after submitting an assessment or a quiet fist pump when I find access to an article or book I have been looking for. I think one of the most important things as a student is to find a way to “romanticise” your studies.
UHI assigns a Personal Academic Tutor (PAT) to their students, and having someone I can talk to about almost anything, whether it's assessment help or personal struggles, has really elevated my experience. Along with PATs, many lecturers encourage students to have meetings with them after assessment grades are released to discuss the feedback. My experience at UHI has gone far beyond what I expected and it feels the same if not better than an in-person learning environment. I feel like the staff are on my side the whole way there and want nothing but for me to succeed in my passions and career.
Directly Enrolled Student of the Year
Each year UHI and its academic partners celebrate all the amazing students, and we were delighted to learn that Taron is the 2025 winner of the title of Directly Enrolled Student. Directly enrolled students are not registered with one of UHI’s academic partners but instead enrol directly with the university itself and are supported by a UHI department or centre. The win acknowledges Taron's exceptional academic performance, dedication and leadership as some of the key reasons they have earned this award. You can find more information on the awards and Taron's win on the UHI website.
If you are interested in studying at UHI Centre for History, have a look through our website for further information on both Undergraduate and Postgraduate study. In recent student satisfaction surveys, Undergraduate History at UHI scored 100% for student satisfaction (National Student Survey, NSS) and our Postgraduate programme MLitt History of the Highlands and Islands achieved 100% in overall student satisfaction in the 2024 Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES).