FAQs

There are plenty of experiences you could choose e.g. volunteering, an internship you have organised, an independent research or creative project, some summer employment etc.

For example, it could be an activity already established for you, around which you are able to identify a topic you wish to explore. Past examples of this have been:

• an internship with a company, through which the student focussed on how skills or knowledge acquired at University could be applied to an environment beyond it
• an organised field trip, such as the Widening Horizons programme, where students chose a specific topic e.g. multicultural awareness or community engagement, and investigated and considered this topic before, during  and after the field trip.

Or perhaps the activity could be entirely self-created, where you are able to reflect on the process of your learning around a particular theme. Past examples of this have been:

• a self-organised research project, through which the student explored academic essay-writing skills and developing these
• an explorative creative project focusing on the development and creation of a book of illustrations, through which the student looked at the process of honing artistic skills gained at University in an applied manner

What can you do for your SLICC?

Unfortunately it is not possible for you to use the same experience for both an Edinburgh Award and a SLICC at the same time.

Yes! All the materials you will need access to are online, as well as your tutor and SLICCs support.

That should still be fine! Let the SLICCs team know, and have a think about different ways you can record your experiences. For example, past students have chosen to keep a hand-written diary for their reflections, and uploaded this material later when they had internet access again. You can also download the app 'PebblePocket' which lets you create, edit and save materials in PebblePad, both online and offline.

Anything that helps bolster your reflections, and you are able to reference when you write your interim and final reports. We encourage you to explore different media, for example photographs, video, collage, academic/research papers, scans of relevant documents.  However your main form of evidence for your Interim and Final Reflective Reports will be your reflective blogs captured throughout.

It’s common knowledge that simply graduating with a degree alone will no longer guarantee you immediate employment. The world of the graduate can be very uncertain and competitive. To help you stand out from the crowd and position yourself better in the world beyond higher education, the University of Edinburgh has several initiatives to help you develop an edge in areas alongside your academic environment.

SLICCs focus on how you approach the experiences you undertake in life – the uncertainty of embarking on a new venture and being able to register its impact on you. The rationale behind the course is that every student possesses the potential to qualitatively assess what they’ve done, what they’ve learned and how they can apply this learning in the future. These reflective questions embody the entire SLICCs process and aim to help you develop the capacity to apply the learning you have gained to other situations in the future. In other words, actively and routinely reflecting in this manner will help you to hone your development outside the classroom.

Yes you can!  These are different courses in years 1 and 2, with different course codes.  However, you can't have the same focus and learning outcomes again in year 2 and you must choose different themes in learning outcomes 3 and 4.  Remember that SLICCs offer 'elective' credit that can be 'additional' to your existing courses.  You still have to achieve all the required credits in your 'core' courses.

This will depend on: 

1. whether you are permitted to enrol on the SLICC, and  
2. whether any academic credit received is counted as an elective credit or as additional credit. 

You will find more information at the FAQs below: 

FAQ:  Am I permitted to enrol on a SLICC during my degree? 

FAQ:  How can I use the academic credit gained through a SLICC? 

• For credit gained through the centrally-run Summer SLICCs discussed on this website, please see the page below for information on your options. 

Academic credit gained through a Summer SLICC  

• For credit gained through a SLICC offered by your own or another school, you should be able to use the credit in the same way as any other Course Option, but you can always contact your Student Adviser to check. 

For further information on whether you are permitted to enrol on a specific SLICC during your degree, please see the FAQ ‘Am I permitted to enrol on a SLICC during my degree?’. 

This will depend on what is permitted in your Degree Programme Table.   

Every degree has a Degree Programme Table (DPT) that specifies what courses are permitted or required as part of the degree, at what level, and how many credits must be achieved at each level (Level 7 or 8 courses are typically pre-honours, Level 9 or 10 courses honours, Level 11 masters, and Level 12 doctoral).  The courses will typically be a combination of Compulsory Courses that must be taken, and Course Options that can be selected from, sometimes called ‘electives’ or ‘elective courses’.    

In the earlier years of an undergraduate degree, students often have greater freedom and can choose Courses Options from outside their degree subject area, sometimes called ‘outside courses’.  In the later years of an undergraduate degree and in postgraduate study, students are generally expected to focus more on the discipline(s) of their degree title and so may only be able to select from Courses Options linked directly to their subject area. 

Your Courses Options will either be a list of individual courses you can choose from and/or groups of courses, for example ‘40 credits from Level 8 courses in Schedules A-Q, T, W and Y’.  The ‘Schedule’ letter refers to which School/unit provides the course as listed in the DRPS Course Catalogue. 

There are multiple SLICCs offered across the University: 

• Some are open to any student whose Degree Programme Table permits it; others are designed only to be taken by students from a specific subject area.   
• The centrally-run Summer SLICCs discussed on this website are all open to students from any discipline whose Degree Programme Table permits Course Options from Schedule C.  Schedule C relates to courses provided by Moray House School of Education and Sport, who host the centrally-run Summer SLICCs.  Summer SLICCs are available at Levels 8, 10, and 11 (pre-honours, honours, and masters). 

If your Degree Programme Table does not currently list the option to do a centrally-run Summer SLICC – either listed individually or generally as part of courses in ‘Schedule C’ – but you are keen to complete a SLICC, speak to your Student Adviser and your Degree Programme Director as early as possible and let the SLICCs Team know too (sliccs@ed.ac.uk).  It may be an option they are happy to support and permit.   

• If you are in the later years of your undergraduate degree or are a postgraduate student, for the credit to count towards your degree you will probably need to demonstrate the relevance of your SLICC activity to your degree area, alongside receiving permission from your Degree Programme Director.   
• If you wish to complete a SLICC even though the credit will not count towards your degree (called ‘additional credit’), you will need to request permission to from your Student Adviser so that they can ensure you are not creating too large a workload for yourself. 

You can find your Degree Programme Table (DPT) on the Degree regulations and Programmes of Study (DRPS) website.   

Degree regulations and Programmes of Study 

Often you will be able to do a centrally-run Summer SLICC, and we have versions available at Levels 8, 10, and 11 (pre-honours, honours, and masters).  However, the academic credit may not count towards your degree (sometimes called ‘additional credit’) but will still appears on your Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR). 

Please see the FAQ ‘Am I permitted to enrol on a SLICC during my degree?’ to check if the academic credit will count towards your degree, and for options if it does not. 

Often you will be able to do a centrally-run Summer SLICC, and we have versions available at Levels 8, 10, and 11 (pre-honours, honours, and masters).  However, the academic credit may not count towards your degree (sometimes called ‘additional credit’) but will still appears on your Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR). 

Please see the FAQ ‘Am I permitted to enrol on a SLICC during my degree?’ to check if the academic credit will count towards your degree, and for options if it does not.