Oxford
Welcome to your fourth step to Educational Enlightenment. An explanation of British education would not be complete without some tales from Oxford. As an former Oxford University student I would like to give you some insight life at an oxford college....the education, the formalities, the loyalties, the differences, dining, drinking and the rivalries....
My first evening in the grand Arlosh Hall of Harris Manchester College was filled with exhilaration, the sense of being overwhelmed by the prestige, asking myself the question.....Who is the smartest person in the room? Do I belong here or was this just a mistake? Which great figure of history has dined in this seat before me? All doubts fade away, eventually.
The UK is blessed with a rich history, and with this, an array of top universities steeped in tradition. However, Oxford can be seen as the definition of tradition, formalities and education its self!
Oxford was the first University in the English-speaking world, and is now a truly global institution with one third of its 22'000 students arriving from over 140 countries world-wide, with close to 1'000 representing the great nation of China. The majority of Oxford’s Chinese students are studying for degrees in Mathematics, Science or Social Science. Many Chinese students have gained prestigious Oxford scholarships, such as the Clarendon Scholarship, now open to all postgraduate students and funded by Oxford University Press. They also benefit from scholarships created specifically for Chinese students by the China Oxford Scholarship Fund, the KC Wong Education Foundation, and the Chinese Ministry of Education together with the University of Oxford. I mention these scholarships, as in my experience, people are put off applying to Oxford not only due to its elite reputation, but also the financial burden. Of course you will come up against the best students, but if you perform to the highest standards academically, achieving excellent A level results, and if you present yourself as an intelligent person with passion and a serious interest in life, beyond your studies, then you present yourself with every opportunity of making the grade and becoming part of that elite club.
However, the cost of Oxford can be a deterrent. Again, this is understandable, as a UK education is not cheap. And yes, Oxford can be more expensive, as you have university fees AND college fees to pay. Your university fees at Oxford cover your tuition, as is the case with all other universities in the UK. However, Oxford has a collegiate system, which means that you also have to pay college fees. These fees can range from anywhere between £2'000 and £4'000 per year. This is obviously a massive extra burden, but don't be disillusioned just yet! Before dismissing Oxford as a possibility on financial grounds, you must consider that Oxford colleges, in general have far greater wealth than many other UK institutions, and as such, there are far more opportunities to apply for and receive scholarships and bursaries. I myself, was a recipient of such a scholarship, without which, I would never have been able to attend Oxford, and that would have been a terrible turn of events! So before you decide that Oxford is too expensive on such grounds, be sure to thoroughly research all available bursaries .This will take time, as each of the 38 colleges (and the University its self), will offer different levels of funding. But this is time well spent, and the experience of being a student at Oxford, is not something that should be underestimated!
So what is the collegiate system? Well, this is what makes Oxbridge unique. Where as in other universities, your loyalties will tend to be with your academic department, for example the Physics Department, or the School of Medicine, or the School of Mathematics....at Oxford your loyalties lie firmly with your college! Please do not underestimate the power of this bond. Your college is where you will eat in the grand halls, it will be the place where you live and make life long friends. It will be the place where you will spend most of your days (and nights) as an oxford student, in the JCR bar (Junior Common Room), discussing politics, life, football, studies, exploits and all other manner of things. You will play sport for your college, and your exam results, and those of your college mates will be placed competition with all of the other 37 colleges in the Norrington Table. And yes, you better believe it, your grades will be considered as important as the next persons, so you better not let your college down, as if you do, much like in the army, you will be placed on kitchen duty and be emptying the rubbish bins as punishment for a poor academic showing - shaming the great name of the college! Competition and rivalry is high between colleges. However, when it comes to Oxford vs Cambridge in any Varsity event, we are all on the same team, and Cambridge are our age old and most worthy enemy.
It is believed, (and to some extent I agree) that it is the collegiate system that is at the heart of the success of Oxbridge. What is meant by this, is that in most Universities, ones academic circles are relatively small. If you are physicist, then you tent to mix with other physicists, usually working at the same level as yourself (for example undergraduate). The problem being that, in any given conversation, discussion or debate, there is a limited amount of expertise in the room. The beauty of the collegiate system is that when you take breakfast, and lunch, and dinner, you do so in a dinning hall with all your college friends. This is where the wine will flow (often at breakfast!) and thoughts become questions, which in turn become discussions, and as history has taught us- conversations become answers. The reason for this, is that as an undergraduate in such a college, your questions and discussions are with students from all other disciplines and at all other academic levels. For breakfast, you may well be seated next to a Dr of Chemistry, for lunch a group of philosophy masters students, and in the evening, the Dons and Drs of all and every discipline, each and every discussion twisted and pulled, torn to pieces and reassembled in the vision of another and another and another.
There is only one thing that I will guarantee, and that is that an application to Oxford will cost you little, but if you succeed, your life will be forever enriched, and you path forged towards greatness or obscurity. Either way, you will etched and carved into the walls of history.
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