The Cheat Sheet: The easiest courses in first year

Freshers, you need to get one thing straight. You are here to play.

And to make playtime permanent you need to choose the right courses.

Or, rather, the easy ones.

Eager Beaver…

This is a game changer.

This will guarantee an incredible two years that is sure to leave your aspirations untarnished. You’re welcome.

The Uni’s wonderfully obscure system allows us to choose a couple of subjects per semester from outside our degree programs, that do in fact contribute to the credits you need to reach the Honours years – the ones that actually matter.

So your friends at Leeds and Manchester who have ‘the sickest house parties’ can pop both their smugness and their pills back in their pockets and do one.

Inevitably, their debauchery will be short-lived and before they know it, they’ll be sauntering past lectures that they should actually go to and August re-sits will come a calling.

Edinburgh much prefer a quiet pint

Doing it right

Statistical literacy (SCIL07001)

The requirements for this little gem comprise two lectures per week with a few wee multiple choice questions (40 per cent), tutorial attendance (10 per cent for going to one hour a week) and a 24 hour open book take home exam (50 per cent).

Self proclaimed by its own course description on the Degree Programmes and Regulations website as “the sexiest science of the 21^st century”.

It also advertises that the course entails a study on the statistics surrounding alcohol and gambling. And its piss easy.

Sorry Gaelic speakers, this one might not be for you

Mapping Health and Illness Across Societies (SHSS08001)

Pretty self-explanatory. But more importantly, three lectures a week and no tutorials AKA zero obligatory hours a week.

And to top it off, there’s no final exam. You only need to submit a 2000 essay for which you’d have to be a doormat to fail. Boom 20 credits.

Learning from the Lives of Others (SHSS08003)

Two lectures, a short presentation and a 2000 word essay, no exam.

If you don’t pass this one you may want to have a re-think

 Identity and Experience in health (SHSS080022)

Two lectures, a poster and a take home ‘writing assessment’, no exam – grab ya crayons.

Thinking through Japan (ASST08040)

One hour lecture a week, one essay, one group project, no exam.

And you get a badass lecturer

Politics and Economics of Japan (ASST08040)

One lecture a week, one essay, one group project, no exam

Sociology 1a and 1b (SCIL08004) and (SCIL08005)

This course has actually gained some credibilty as one student has even called this first year course “interesting”, and if you like a good debate the tutorials can be entertaining.

And the course is assessed on an essay and a 24 hour open book take home exam.

Business Studies 1 (BUST08001) or Business Economics BUST08005 and Applications of Finance (BUST08018)

Yes, there’s an exam, but it’s generally thought of as an easy course for several reasons: It’s a huge course with massive amounts of people so attendance isn’t checked, and allegedly, the professors just don’t give bad grades.

Beginners Languages (if you’ve done it before)

Generally if you have taken a language to As/A level/Scottish Highers you’re supposed to do intermediate languages.

But if you’re a real cheeky chap and feeling pretty damn sneaky you’ll be able to sign up to beginners language with ease, providing yet another easy 20 credits.

If you can read a wine label, you’re probably going to be fine

Or you know, you could put down the VKs and actually study something that you enjoy and will enrich your lives…