A SCOTTISH university is to shed 100 jobs as part of moves to cut £6 million.

Robert Gordon University, in Aberdeen, is to open a voluntary redundancy scheme on Friday with the aim of securing £4m in savings. A further £2m in operational costs will also be targeted.

A university spokeswoman said the institution was facing "challenges" as a result of the pressure on public finances and uncertainties over wider university revenues.

She added: "A downturn in the regional economy due to the falling oil price has also affected the university’s income from commercial opportunities, and there has been a reduction in demand for courses from students from oil producing countries."

Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski, the university principal, added: "The university will embark on a period of re-profiling of its workforce to address the financial challenges and our strategic needs allowing us to pursue ambitious targets for the successful, sustainable development of the university.

"We will continue to make a leading contribution to economic growth here and across Scotland, widening access to higher education, and the availability of high value knowledge and skills for the economy and society."

Last week, staff and students at Dundee University were told to expect cuts after the institution forecast a deficit of up to £10m by the end of 2017.

The university said the latest funding settlement from the Scottish Government - which will see a 3.3 per cent reduction - combined with increases in staff pay, pensions and national insurance contributions was "a real threat to our financial sustainability".

The University and College Union (UCU), which represents lecturers, warned that cutting staff numbers would threaten teaching quality and undermine efforts to recruit more students. Union leaders also said the university had failed to rule out compulsory redundancies.

Mary Senior, the union's Scotland official, said: "Cuts of £4m is a devastating blow for the dedicated staff who work to deliver world-class education at Robert Gordon University. It will lead to a huge loss of expertise, undermining efforts to improve quality and attract more students in the future.

"The university needs to recognise that hard-working staff are the backbone of any successful university and rethink its plans. UCU will be happy to work with the university to identify further savings in other areas instead of looking to cut staff numbers."