Archaeology

Archaeology is the study of human history and prehistory through the material traces that people have left behind, from ancient monuments and buried settlements to everyday objects and environmental remains. It is a discipline that combines the humanities and the sciences, asking both interpretive questions about meaning and identity and empirical questions about chronology, environment, and technology. At its heart, archaeology is about recovering and understanding the full depth of human experience, including the many thousands of years before written records begin.

At the University of the Highlands and Islands, studying archaeology part time gives you the flexibility to engage with the subject alongside other commitments, taking course units progressively rather than all at once. The Highlands and Islands region is one of the richest archaeological landscapes in Europe, with an extraordinary concentration of prehistoric sites, Norse settlements, and early medieval monuments, and the university's location gives you direct access to this material. You will develop skills in excavation, finds analysis, landscape survey, and the interpretation of archaeological evidence, alongside a grounding in the theoretical frameworks that make sense of the record.

Archaeology graduates work in field archaeology, heritage management, museum curation, historic environment consultancy, and the public sector. Many roles in professional archaeology are accessible with an undergraduate degree, and there is a well-established route from degree-level study into contract field archaeology. Others move into museum and heritage careers, local authority historic environment teams, or community archaeology projects.

For those who wish to pursue research, postgraduate study in archaeology, environmental history, or heritage studies is a natural continuation.