Archaeology has the potential to create more high-quality jobs across the Highlands and Islands, one of the region’s leading specialists has said.

Orkney-based Dr Jane Downes will be the course leader on the new undergraduate archaeology degree starting at the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) in September.

 She said it will open up careers in teaching, research, tourism and museums, among other professions.

“We are justly proud of our archaeology here in the Highlands and Islands – and we have a range of programmes that live up to it. Undergraduates can study archaeology to BA honours, or as part of joint honours degrees with Scottish history or environment, and then move on to postgraduate study. Archaeology has the potential to create more high-quality jobs across the region.”

Virtual learning will enable students from across the region to enrol for the new degree. Already a leader in postgraduate archaeology degrees, UHI is making the new course available through a variety of study methods – including face-to-face at home base Orkney College UHI, video-conferencing seminars, and the tutor-supported online virtual learning world. Team tutor Dr Simon Clarke, from Shetland College UHI recently won a students’ award for greatest expertise in video-conferencing delivery.

Campus sites for the new BA honours in archaeology are in Argyll, Dingwall, Inverness, Lewis, Moray, North Highland, Orkney, Perth, Shetland, West Highland, and selected learning centres in the Highlands and Islands.

Subjects covered will include archaeological method and theory; digital heritage; excavation skills; past and present sustainability, and archaeology and interpretation. Among the options for years three and four are studies in Viking and Norse archaeology in the North Atlantic; maritime archaeology; geophysics and remote sensing; the Iron Age of Scotland, and Neolithic Orkney.

In years one and two, students can also choose modules from the UHI history, Scottish cultural studies, and environmental sciences degrees. Part-time study for those with other commitments is available.

For further information, see www.uhi.ac.uk

Source: UHI