Seeing Double: Identical twins graduate from UHI Inverness with same degree and grade
Identical twins Teegan and Courtney Cowie shared a remarkable success today when they graduated from UHI Inverness with the same degree and classification after achieving the exactly the same final mark.
The 23-year-olds from Buckie gained an upper second-class BSc (Hons) Psychology degree after studying the same course online for four years. They achieved the same grade, despite writing their final-year dissertations on entirely different topics.
Teegan said:
“It makes graduating even more special knowing we have both worked hard to achieve our degrees and now get to celebrate that milestone together. Most people don’t get the opportunity to graduate alongside their twin, so I feel very grateful that we can share this experience. We are like best friends, so we were able to support each other through the stressful times, especially with assignments and deadlines. It was comforting knowing we were going through the same experience together. In the future, it will be lovely to look back and reminisce about our university days together, remembering all the experiences, challenges and memories we shared.”
Courtney and Teegan have a shared passion for understanding human behaviour and developed their own separate areas of interest throughout the course.
Teegan’s dissertation was an investigation on psychological factors influencing support for vigilantism and Courtney explored the relationship between parenting styles, personality traits and anxiety.
Teegan said:
“Although we studied the same subject, we ended up researching completely different topics, which shows how broad psychology is and how you can take different interests from the one degree. What makes it even more unique is that we somehow managed to come out with the exact same grade and the exact same percentage in our final marks, so I suppose the identical twin thing really does have some truth to it.”
The sisters are grateful to their family for helping them through their studies, particularly their gran who was their biggest cheerleader. She sadly passed away in the final weeks of their degree.
Courtney said:
“The thought of her and how much she wanted to see us succeed gave us the motivation to keep going and we pushed through and achieved an upper second-class honours degree."
They both studied Social Science at Level 6 then at HNC level at UHI Moray and were inspired to pursue psychology at degree level.
Courtney said:
“I was particularly drawn to studying psychology at UHI Inverness because of the flexibility and accessibility of the course. The opportunity to study online and revisit recorded classes whenever needed was a major benefit, as it allowed me to learn at my own pace and revisit topics to strengthen my understanding. Living in Buckie, studying online also meant I could pursue my degree without the need to travel to campus every day. My biggest highlight was completing my dissertation, as it gave me the opportunity to conduct my own research into a topic of interest. Being able to work independently, develop my research skills and complete such a significant piece of work gave me a real sense of achievement.”
Courtney plans to progress to Master's study once she has gained more practical experience working with children.
She said:
“For now, I am excited to explore different opportunities, learn from others and gain experience that will help shape my future career."
Teegan has secured a position as a nursery practitioner to gain experience supporting the development of children before progressing onto her long-term career goal of play therapy or educational psychology.
Teegan said:
“Studying psychology has helped me understand people, their behaviour and the challenges they may face on a deeper level. My degree has strengthened my desire to work with children and young people.”