A Brief Ode to St Andrews’ Multicultural and Highly Global Student Body
Picture this: a sunny Saturday in September, exactly one year ago today (or very nearly that), in a bustling cafe situated in a small town on the southern central coast of California, I am meeting my high school college counsellor, who also happens to be the closest thing to a fairy godmother I had while at boarding school. Together, we entertain two hypotheticals: a university in America or a university in Scotland.
“Well”, I say, “after four years in this country, I have grown tired of Americans”, and proceed to elaborate on my fears that the latter option would have far too many Americans to really ‘feel’ international. “Ah”, my fairy-godmother countered, “you are forgetting that this school is, nevertheless, international”. At the very least, it’s more international (and less American) than its counterpart, which happened to be a small liberal arts college in the Upper West Side. “Fair point”, I concede, and take another sip of my latte.
Despite my excitement about the upcoming move, I couldn’t help but wonder: was the school I had chosen simply another American outpost, masquerading in Hunter boots and obscured by the grey ocean mists?
Upon my arrival in this weatherworn Scottish town, I felt — albeit uncomfortably — justified in my previous apprehension. The Union was overcrowded by the children of expatriates and future finance bros, American teenagers who had swapped their LL Bean for Barbour. At most of the coffee shops around town, you find yourself being served by Californians, New Yorkers, and the like, while many midwesterners fill the university sports teams.
Interestingly, according to the Times’ interview of one student here, while on paper St Andrews is only twenty or thirty percent American, “it definitely feels like quite a lot more”.
Our Principal, Professor Dame Sally Mapstone proudly states that we are “a truly international university [and] our ambition is to be a beacon of inclusivity.” Indeed, St Andrews leads as the most international of Scotland’s universities and is amongst the most international in the entire United Kingdom. According to the school’s website, more than 135 countries were represented in the 2024-2025 cohort. St Andrews employees are also international – 25% of our staff are from outside the UK, including Europe, the USA, India, China, Canada, and the Republic of Ireland.
Alongside these figures, it’s worth noting that the University of St Andrews remains the top university in Scotland, according to The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026. Now, to claim that these two data points (St Andrew’s internationality and its success as an institution) are interrelated is perhaps a far-reaching claim; I would need to conduct many more surveys, investigations, you name it, to reach a supported conclusion. However, I can’t help but feel that they are related, and ultimately that St Andrew’s multicultural and highly global community is what makes it so special, and one of the top universities in the world.
As the world continues to become increasingly globalized, it’s inevitable that, no matter where in the world you study, you will meet and get to know new groups of people from various cultures and backgrounds. This cultural diversity is one of the most significant aspects of studying abroad, or at a university that attracts students from around the world, such as St Andrews. The idea of ‘internationalization’ is woven into almost every curriculum. Although it’s important to appreciate how internationalization is relevant to your studies, it’s equally important to understand how it’s relevant to you as an individual away from academics. As a student of anthropology, I argue that connections — professional or personal — are often far deeper, more profound when you’re empathic to cultures that contrast your own.
As I make my way each day to the Buchanan Lecture Theatre, I cannot begin to explain how mesmerising it is to catch snippets of friends conversing in Spanish, German, Arabic, Punjabi, or French. How special is it that scholars from across the globe flock to this blustery outpost on the northern isles to hear each other, learn together, teach one another?
Ultimately, yes, there may be a higher percentage of American students at the University of St Andrews compared to Edinburgh, Exeter, or Durham, but that is simply because we are not only a Scottish or British school; we are an international school, and we are proud of it.