University of Oxford Speciality : Politics
programme: Political Science

The first week has been busy. I had a great time meeting new people and there was a fantastic range of activities to try, but it was hard to juggle it all when you had to do your first academic work at the start of the semester to deliver. It really varies from university to university. I’ve been lucky enough to live in exceptionally beautiful rooms with fireplaces, desks and views of the deer park, but again, accommodation in Oxford is not standardized. You can expect beauty, but not always the newest furniture/accessories. There are more libraries in Oxford than almost any other university in the world – you’ll never run out of books. The classrooms are fantastic and all central. I was lucky enough to live close to the sports center which meant I got a free college gym membership which was great. All facilities tend to be doubled and many are offered at university level eg. sports fields, student cafes, societies and at the university level. I also did an honors course with history and politics. Because I was torn between two departments, the organization wasn’t always great and I had to keep track of things myself. The width was phenomenal though, I’m about 50/50 but I have hundreds of modules to choose from. The tutoring system is the best part of the Oxford class because I don’t learn really well just from lectures. I had great one on one sessions with an expert on my topic once or twice a week – much more effective learning since I could ask as many questions as I wanted. Oxford has a friendly urban energy, but urban fun. Students go to the clubs there as much as anyone else and there are plenty of cool bars. As the prices are close to London it was a bit pricey but on the other hand the colleges have a lot of their own parties or “bops” with heavily subsidized alcohol etc.