Contact us

The Study and Work Away Service (SWAY) supports those participating in a broad range of international activities:

European exchanges - for queries relating to outbound study exchanges in Europe, contact:  europe.outgoing@ed.ac.uk

International exchanges - for queries relating to outbound study exchanges outside of Europe, contact:​​​​​​ international.outgoing@ed.ac.uk

Placements ​​​​​​- for queries relating to outbound work and research placements, placement-based dissertations, and study at language schools, contact: swayplacements@ed.ac.uk

Incoming students - for queries relating to incoming study exchanges and other study-abroad experiences in Edinburgh, contact:  studyabroad@ed.ac.uk

Projects - for queries relating to the Go Abroad Fund, the NICE Programme, or the INCiTE Summer School, contact the Projects team at:  ​​​​​​goabroadprojects@ed.ac.uk


If you are currently participating in a study exchange or placement, have recently returned, or are considering applying and would like to chat to a member of our Study and Work Away (SWAY) team you can book a 1:1 Virtual Appointment. 

Please note that these appointments are available for current University of Edinburgh students only. 

Use the links below to access our booking forms and book an appointment with either the European/International Programmes or Placements teams:

  • European Programmes - our European team specialise in study exchanges in Europe, including the EU, EEA, Switzerland and Turkey. 

Book an appointment with the European Programmes team 

  • International Programmes - our International team specialise in study exchanges outside of Europe. For current exchange students booking an appointment with our International team, we encourage you, where possible, to select the member of staff with whom you have had the most contact throughout your exchange process. For general enquiries and those newly considering exchange, please select ‘no preference’ or ‘any member of staff’.

Book an appointment with the International Programmes team  

  • Placements  - our Placements team specialise in supporting credit-bearing work, research and language school study placements which are based outside of the UK, for students from the Schools listed below:

Which Schools offer placements?

​Students applying for or participating in a placement-based dissertation from the School of Social and Political Science should contact the Placements team direct to arrange an appointment.

All other students should book an appointment with the Placements team 


You can contact the relevant exchanges team with any questions about your exchange or placement from 2pm to 4pm on Tuesdays.

  • European exchanges - for queries relating to outbound study exchanges in Europe, contact:​​​​​ 0131 650 3017
  • International exchanges - for queries relating to outbound study exchanges outside of Europe, contact: 0131 650 4621

Visit us during a drop-in support session

Tuesdays 2pm-4pm

SWAY staff will be running weekly drop-in sessions for current students who would like guidance on exchange and/or placement opportunities. No appointment is required.Drop-in support sessions will take place either in Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI), Central Campus or James Clerk Maxwell Building (JCMB), King’s Buildings Campus.
 
In January, you can find us at the following locations from 2-4pm: 
  • 14 January - EFI, Room 3.43
  • 21 January - JCMB, Room 3211
  • 28 January - EFI, Room 3.43

Before getting in touch

In some instances, SWAY may not be best placed to answer your enquiry, or there may be additional resources needed to help you in advance of your appointment:

Read our Before You Go pages for information about visas, accommodation, funding, risk assessment, insurance and more:

View Before You Go pages 


Our Academic Matters page will hopefully provide some answers to your questions in the first instance, but for more detailed information about the academic implications of your study placement, you should speak to your Exchange Coordinator.

View Academic Matters page

They will be able to advise on things like course selections, how your study placement will count towards your degree, how many credits or courses you need to take abroad, what happens if you fail a course abroad, and so on.

Get in touch with your Exchange Coordinator


Contact your School to find out if they offer any additional study or placement opportunities abroad which are not outlined on these pages.  


Like and follow our Facebook page for application deadlines, new opportunities and helpful tips and join our Facebook group to connect with past, present and future exchange students.  

UoE Go Abroad Facebook page

Join UoE Go Abroad Facebook group


Read our Before You Go pages for information about visas, accommodation, funding, risk assessment, insurance and more:

View Before You Go pages 


Emergencies

Should an emergency situation occur whilst you are abroad, your first action should be to make contact as soon as possible with your nominated contact at your host institution, organisation or place of work, and your family. Your local contact often has the local knowledge and “know how” to advise and support you.

It is also very important for you to contact the University of Edinburgh. If you need to speak with a member of the Study and Work Away service during office hours, regarding an urgent situation that requires immediate attention, you can call the SWAY helpline on +44 (0)131 651 5999.  Find more information below:

SWAY helpline

The Study and Work Away service helpline is available for urgent situations that require immediate attention and cannot be resolved by email or by calling during drop-in hours - please call:

+44 (0)131 651 5999

​This line is open during our core office hours (Monday-Friday, 10am-4pm).

 

Please note we will not be able to respond to your enquiry on this number if it is not a critical situation. Please email us or call us during drop-in times instead for all other issues including visa issues, flight delays, late documents etc. Please refer to the “Drop-ins and appointments” section above for more details.

 

Please contact the SWAY helpline if you have:

  • Immediate concerns about your personal well-being or safety in your host country
  • Immediate concerns about the general safety in your host country (e.g. heightened risk of conflicts, terrorism, natural disasters, sudden border restrictions)
  • A medical emergency, or serious health concerns that will impact your activity abroad

The staff member on rota will do their best to support you and ensure your call is passed on to the relevant department, if applicable.

University of Edinburgh phoneline - Out of hours emergency contact

If you need to get in touch with someone at the University in an emergency outside of our core office hours (Monday to Friday, 10am - 4pm), please use the following number: 

University of Edinburgh phoneline - Out of hours emergency contact

Contact details

Data protection and privacy

Details of how we use your information can be found in the University's Privacy statement:

Read the University's Privacy statement

 

If contacting us about, or on behalf of, somebody else then please note that the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) prohibit us from divulging any information in regards to students of the University of Edinburgh without an individual’s consent. This is with the exception of situations where disclosure is urgently required to prevent immediate, obvious or urgent risk to the student.

 

The Study and Work Away service is unable to discuss or pass on information about a student, even to their parents, unless the student has given explicit consent for us to do so.  We would encourage students to make contact with us themselves at all times regarding their Study and Work Away activities and arrangements.

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