Postgraduate, Mature or Returning Student? Your MenB Vaccine Options in Edinburgh

This year NHS Scotland is offering a free MenB vaccine to many first-year students. If you are a postgraduate, a mature student, or back for your second, third or fourth year, you have probably noticed that the offer does not include you. That leaves a fair question: should you get vaccinated anyway, and how?

This page explains who the free programme leaves out, how your risk compares with a first-year undergraduate, the things worth weighing up, and how private vaccination works for students anywhere in Edinburgh. For the full picture, see our guide to the MenB vaccine for students in Edinburgh.

Who the free NHS offer leaves out

The free offer, which runs until early 2027, is mainly for under-25s starting a first course and last year's school leavers. That means these students are usually not included:

• postgraduates, including taught master's, research and PhD students
• students aged 25 or over, including mature undergraduates
• undergraduates returning for a second or later year
• students starting a second undergraduate degree
• college students under 25 who live at home

Should you turn out to qualify for the free vaccine, we will say so before you pay.

Why the programme is aimed at first years

Meningococcal disease is most common in babies, then rises again in older teenagers and young adults. Among students, the risk is highest in the first months after moving into shared accommodation, when large numbers of people meet and mix for the first time. A time-limited programme focuses on the people at greatest risk. That does not mean the risk is zero for everyone else.

How your risk compares

Meningitis B is rare at any age. In general, the risk is lower for people in their mid-twenties and older than for an 18-year-old fresher, and lower for students who live with a partner or family than for those in large shared flats. But several things can raise it again:

• Living in halls or a large shared flat, which many postgraduates do in their first year in Edinburgh.
• Being new to the city, with a big new social circle.
• Working in close contact with young people, for example as a tutor, a hall warden or a residence assistant.
• A medical condition such as no working spleen or a complement disorder. If that applies, your GP or specialist team should vaccinate you on the NHS.

Things worth weighing up

There is no single right answer. The questions people find useful are:

• How closely will I be living and socialising with other people this year?
• How long will I be in shared accommodation?
• Do I have a health condition, or take a medicine, that affects my immune system?
• Would the cost of two doses be manageable?
• How would I feel about having the protection, or not having it, if there was a case in my building?

A pharmacist can talk this through with you without any obligation to book.

Postgraduates in halls and shared flats

Many postgraduates, especially those new to the UK or to Edinburgh, spend their first year in university accommodation alongside undergraduates. In practice your living situation may be closer to a first-year undergraduate's than your age suggests. If you are under 25 and in halls, that is one of the strongest reasons to consider a private course.

Mature students

If you are 25 or over, you are less likely to get meningococcal disease than a teenager, and many mature students live at home or with a partner. Some still choose the vaccine, for example because they live in shared accommodation, have young children at home, or simply want the protection. Children born since 2015 should already have had MenB as babies through the NHS.

Returning students who missed out last year

If you started university before 2026/27, the free programme came too late for you unless you are in the date-of-birth or S6 group. Students in their second year often move from halls into shared flats, where they keep living closely with others. If you never had the vaccine in first year, a private course now covers the rest of your studies.

Tutors, wardens and staff who live or work with students

Some postgraduates also work as tutors, demonstrators, hall wardens or residence assistants. If your role means you live in student accommodation or spend a lot of time in close contact with first-year students, it is reasonable to consider a private course. Your employer's occupational health team may also have a view, so ask them too.

Whatever you decide, knowing the signs of meningitis is part of looking after the students around you.

International postgraduates

International postgraduates are in the same position as UK postgraduates: not included in the free programme unless they fall into another group. If you had MenB doses in your home country, bring the record, because the MenB vaccines are not interchangeable. Our guide to the MenB vaccine for international students explains how to finish a course started abroad.

How a private course works

Most adults need a two-dose course with at least a month in between, and protection is only complete after the second. Current UK guidance does not recommend a booster for healthy adults. If you also want MenACWY or a flu jab, they can normally be done at the same visit.

1. Book in the calendar below, by phone on 0131 225 7770, or in person at 45 Forrest Road in the city centre.
2. Health check with a pharmacist: allergies, previous reactions, medicines, pregnancy, and which meningitis vaccines you have had.
3. Vaccine in the same appointment, if it is suitable and you agree.
4. Second dose booked for at least a month later. You leave with a record of each dose.

You pay per injection, and a full course is two injections; today's fee is on our price list. You do not need to live near the pharmacy: students come to us from all over Edinburgh.

Book a private MenB vaccine

Choose General Vaccination (Initial) in the calendar below and pick a time. The pharmacist checks suitability at the start of your appointment.

Calendar not showing? Use our online booking form or phone 0131 225 7770.

If you decide not to be vaccinated

That is a reasonable choice for many adults. What matters then is knowing the signs of meningitis and sepsis and acting fast: fever with cold hands and feet, severe headache, stiff neck, dislike of bright lights, vomiting, confusion or drowsiness, and a rash that does not fade under a glass. Call 999 if you suspect it. Our guide to meningitis symptoms for students explains more.

Frequently asked questions from postgraduate and mature students

I am 23 and starting a master's degree. Am I eligible for the free vaccine?

Not as a postgraduate. You would only be eligible if you were born between 1 March 2008 and 28 February 2009 or were in S6 in 2025/26, which is unlikely at 23. You can have it privately.

I am 26 and starting my first degree. Can I get it free?

No. The university group is for students under 25. You can have a private vaccine.

I am a PhD student who tutors first years. Should I have it?

It is worth considering if you are in close contact with first-year students or live in halls. A pharmacist can help you decide.

Is a private dose the same vaccine the NHS uses?

Each targets group B. Ask the pharmacist which MenB product Forrest uses and whether it matches anything you have had before.

Do I need a GP referral?

No. Book straight in; being on our books or an Edinburgh GP's list is not required.

Can I spread the cost?

Each dose is paid for on the day, which spreads the cost over two visits. The price per dose is on our price list.

Related reading

For timing around term, side effects and what the vaccine does and does not do, read our guide to the MenB vaccine for students in Edinburgh.

• MenB vaccine for students in Edinburgh: the 2026/27 guide
• Meningitis symptoms: what students and flatmates need to know
• MenB vaccine for international students in Scotland
• Meningitis B vaccination at Forrest Pharmacy

Reviewed by Ather Diab, Superintendent Pharmacist and Independent Prescriber (GPhC 2233707). Forrest Pharmacy, 45 Forrest Road, Edinburgh EH1 2QP. Last reviewed: 30th October 2026

This page is for general information and does not replace an individual assessment. MenB vaccines are prescription-only medicines and are only given after a check that vaccination is suitable for you. In an emergency, call 999.

Sources: NHS inform, Meningococcal B (MenB) vaccine for young people, checked 26 October 2026; NHS Lothian, Meningococcal B (MenB) vaccine for young people, checked 26 October 2026; UK Health Security Agency, the Green Book, chapter 22, Meningococcal.