WELCOME TO SCOTLAND!

With a population of only 5 million, Scotland might easily be seen as England’s ‘junior partner’ in the political alliance which is known as the United Kingdom. Yet over the years Scotland has made a tremendous contribution on the world stage in its own right, in just about every field of human endeavour. Scotland is synonymous with innovation and invention across a wide range of disciplines, and many present-day items we take for granted – from pneumatic tyres, television and telephones to photocopiers, penicillin and pregnancy scanners, from blackboards to Dolly the sheep – are the products of Scottish ingenuity. This inventiveness continues unabated, and the modern Scotland excels in such diverse fields as biotechnology, keyhole surgery, astrophysics, optoelectronics and artificial intelligence.

One major reason for this outpouring of talent is Scotland’s pride in her education system. Scotland has 4 ‘Ivy League’ universities - Aberdeen, Edinburgh, St.Andrews and Glasgow – dating from as far back as 1411, and education has been compulsory for all since 1496. Together with her 10 further universities, Art Schools, extensive network of Further Education colleges and a Primary and Secondary school education system which are both the envy of, and model for, education systems throughout the world, it is perhaps small wonder that Winston Churchill was once moved to say that “Of all the small nations on earth, perhaps only the ancient Greeks surpass the Scots in their contribution to mankind.” Useful Links : www.visitscotland.com

Photo courtesy of rampantscotland.com