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What is it like to study at Oxford?

Hi there,

I have a few questions about student life at the University of Oxford:

1. How easy was it for you to make friends?
2. Do the colleges offer self catered accomodation as well as catered?
3. How easy is it to stay in employment whilst studying for an Oxford degree?
4. I've heard that the terms are shorter at Oxford than at other universities; is this true? How does it affect your studies?
5. Do you feel you have enough time to socialise and relax? What do you do?
6. Any pros and cons of studying at Oxford that you can think of?

Thank you for reading this and I look forward to your responses.

Have a good night!

Reply 1

notastampcollector

1. No easier or harder than anywhere else. Like a lot of people you will probably have an initial moment when you feel a bit like you don't fit in but you will always find people like you that you get on with.
2. Yes. I think every college also has kitchens that you can use if you want.
3. Not very easy at all. Obviously it varies from course to course, but everyone has a lot of work to do and it's hard to fit a regular job around that. Summer jobs are fine though.
4. Much shorter. 8 weeks at Oxford, then 6 week holidays. It makes it more intense while you're there, but obviously it's good to have a longer break.
5. Yes - I play pool, go to the pub, go to talks and debates at the Oxford Union, go to bops and did do a little rowing in the first term. Oh, and I am a member of the Guild of Assassins.
6. Plenty. Biggest pros - tutorial system and reputation (both things that aren't, however, exclusive to Oxford), biggest con - workload, I guess, but it's not too bad (at least not in the first year)

Reply 2

bcrazy

1. Personally I think easier than elsewhere because the college system ensures you will see the same group of people a lot!
2. Some do, not all- Queen's (where I went) didn't have ANY self catering facilities until your 4th year.
3. During term time? I would say extremely difficult (and I think officially you would need to get permission). Definitely not something I would recommend.
4. Yep, as mentioned have three 8 week terms...so yeah, pretty hardcore during term but its short enough that you don't burn out.
5. Thought it was going to be a problem when I was feeling stressed out at the start of 1st year but just decided what I'd rather spend my time doing and ended up representing my college at 14 different things, one for uni, and even took part in 3 plays. Wasn't really one for going clubbing though so most of my work got done in the early hours of the morning!
6. For me, the big pro was the college set-up in that its cosy and there is loads of stuff that is easy to get involved in. Probably in the minority but wasn't really blown away by the course or the tutes though- the course always seemed too rushed (never really had a chance to build up a good understanding of what was going on) and the tutes were generally with unenthusiastic grad students after the 1st year (this is for maths, other subjects not necessarily the same). Extremely happy with my choice though, wouldn't change my time there for anything!

Reply 3

tuesday91

1. Same as everywhere else I imagine, but I do like the way in which you are a member of a college so there are loads of people you'll see around for your entire degree length, and are around at meals/down the bar and stuff so close by a lot of the time.
2. Not all colleges, in first year at Brasenose there is no access to any sort of kitchen facilities (this changes later on). But in some I think yes.
3. Not easy, I can't imagine anyone would seriously have time for a job without it seriously affecting their work. I think you need to have special permission from tutors. But they are very generous with grants if you are running low on money.
4. Yes they are shorter as was said above, makes things more intense but yeah lots of holiday time to go over what you've done in the holidays.
5. I have time to do things usually, mainly the general uni going out sort of thing. And the Union is always good to go to. I'm not really involved in many official societies but I could be if I wanted. We also started our own unofficial film society. As long as you are organised there is time. What you don't get is what people at other universities seem to get which is long periods of time of absolutely nothing. It is almost impossible to be bored.
6. Pros and cons as said above really, the tutorial system is amazing. And people are really keeping an eye out for how you are doing, which is both comforting and motivating. The workload is obviously much bigger than many places, but it has to be if you want to get that reputable good degree, but it's not unmanageable and you're definitely getting a good deal for your money!
4.

Reply 4

bysshe

1. Easier than if I'd gone to another university, I think. The college system definitely helps.
2. My college has kitchens (although some of them are pretty terrible), so you can cook for yourself if you want to.
3. Virtually impossible? People can earn extra money in college working in hall or the bar, but I don't know of anyone who would even attempt to have a real job during term-time. But Oxford are meant to be quite good at helping with grants.
4. Yes, 8 week terms. It just means everything's very intense. I don't think I'd be able to cope with the same level of work for more than eight weeks, so in some ways it's good that they're not too long, but it also sometimes feels too short - time passes so quickly!
5. I do have enough time, although I'd like more. I have much less free time than I did last year. I'm not involved in any regular things or societies, really - I just spend time with friends, go to the cinema, to plays, the Union, going out for food/drinks etc.
6. Pros - I love it here, the tutorial system is great, and I feel like I've had a lot of encouragement from my tutors (although I guess it depends a lot on the individual tutor). Cons - I think if you're a highly-strung, anxious person it could be quite difficult just keeping up with everything. I definitely know of people who aren't happy here. Sometimes the workload just seems ridiculous...but for me, it's all worth it.

Reply 5

AnonymousPenguin

Original post by IQ Test

Hi there,

I have a few questions about student life at the University of Oxford:

1. How easy was it for you to make friends? I didn't have any issues and I'm from a different country. Very easy.
2. Do the colleges offer self catered accomodation as well as catered? Not really, you really want to go to hall to get the full college experience at my college. It's quite cheap anyway, I spend less than 150GBP a term on hall food.
3. How easy is it to stay in employment whilst studying for an Oxford degree? Not possible.
4. I've heard that the terms are shorter at Oxford than at other universities; is this true? How does it affect your studies? It's intense and it sucks at times, but then again you get too sleep again sooner.
5. Do you feel you have enough time to socialise and relax? What do you do? I have enough time not to be miserable.
6. Any pros and cons of studying at Oxford that you can think of? I love it. Now I just need to get a merit at the end of the year (unlikely) so I won't worry about clinical school admissions.

Thank you for reading this and I look forward to your responses.

Have a good night!

replies in quote.

(edited 13 years ago)