Outdoor Education

Postgraduate Diploma in Outdoor Education

PGDOE'A life-changing course for many; a life-affirming course for me'
—Postgraduate student 2005-6

For 35 years the Postgraduate Diploma in Outdoor Education has been the world's foremost graduate training programme for those wishing to enter the profession. The mix of academic, practical and professional training is unique and the reputation of the programme unrivalled. Most academic courses have a practical focus and are taught from our Edinburgh base as well as our residential outdoor centre in the Cairngorms National Park and on the Island of Rùm (National Nature Reserve) in the Western Isles of Scotland.

Graduates are employed throughout the world in all aspects of the sector (e.g. residential outdoor education centres, organisations working with youth at risk, management development, and schools, colleges, and university outdoor education programmes). Whilst the programme does not offer a formal teaching qualification, it is highly regarded for its breadth and depth of training and its suitability for training for the field. As a result, some recent graduates have been successful in gaining accreditation by the General Teaching Council of Scotland to teach Outdoor Education in schools. This is a very positive indication of both the quality of our graduates and their training and also the increasing recognition of the value of outdoor education in schools.

Academic courses

Assessment

Academic courses are assessed by 4000 word assignment or equivalent.

Professional Development Programme

Progression diagram for the Postgraduate Diploma in Outdoor Education

These three Postgraduate Certificate in Outdoor Education courses:

Diagram 1

Plus the following three courses:

Diagram 2

Plus the Professional Development Programme:

Diagram 2

Admission requirements

Applicants for our postgraduate programmes normally hold an undergraduate university degree or equivalent professional qualification. Those who do not hold first degrees but whose employment or other educational experience provides evidence of intellectual and professional ability of an equivalent standard are also encouraged to apply.

Cost

Please contact the Postgraduate Office for information on fees.

Duration

Full-time or part-time, 12-48 months.

Application procedure and deadline

There is no fixed deadline, but applications should be submitted as early as possible because places are limited. For general information and application forms the main point of contact is:

College of Humanities and Social Science
Postgraduate Office—Education
Room 1.11, First Floor, David Hume Tower
George Square
Edinburgh, EH8 9JX

email: linda.danczyszak@ed.ac.uk
tel: 0044 (0)131 650 3571
fax: 0044 (0)131 650 6536

Please direct any informal enquiries about this postgraduate programme to Dr Robbie Nicol.

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