A Day in the Life of an Oxford Student in 2024
What is it really like at Oxford?
Places at Oxford are some of the most sought-after in the world, but what is it really like to go there? Here’ll I’ll discuss what I do in a day at Oxford, to give you a sense of what a student’s daily routine is like. Hopefully it’ll inspire you to apply; Oxford is a wonderful place, and all the hard work it takes to get there is worth it!
8am: I wake up, have a shower, and make breakfast in the college communal kitchen. I’m lucky because my college, Oriel, is both self-catered and catered, so I have the choice of eating in the historic dining hall or making my own food.
9-12am: Lectures! I study English, and there’s a wealth of different lectures on offer every day. They’re usually all in the morning, so each morning I head to the English Faculty. Oxford is a small city, so it’s only a ten-minute walk from my accommodation. Depending on which course I’m studying at the moment, the lectures I attend might include a series on ‘Milton and epic’, ‘Beowulf’, ‘Twentieth-Century World Literature’ or even ‘What is Literature?’. These lectures are given by some of the most eminent academics in the world and are a real highlight of the Oxford experience.
12-1pm: I’ll usually meet a friend for lunch at one of the many lovely cafes in Oxford or the Covered Market. Alternatively, I’ll head back to college to have lunch in hall; this is always a great opportunity to see people from across my year. Life at Oxford involves a lot of individual study, so it’s a good idea to make the most of these social times of day.
1-2pm: if I have a tutorial coming up in the afternoon, I’ll head to the library to prepare. I’ll read through my notes and the essay I’ve written that week to make sure I’m ready for the discussion.
2-3pm: Tutorial! These usually last one hour and consist of two students and one tutor. Each week, we’ll write an essay which we submit before the tutorial (or ‘tute’ in Oxford slang!); the tutorial itself involves a discussion of the essay. Usually the first question the tutor asks is ‘what was the argument of your essay?’; one of the key skills which the Oxford education system seeks to foster in us is the ability to construct and develop a coherent argument, and an Oxford essay usually involves taking a particular approach to a subject and exploring it so that by the end of the essay, the original idea has been developed. Discussing our essays in tutorials really helps with this, because when you talk about your ideas out loud, you are forced to make them logically coherent. Incidentally, speaking ideas out loud is a useful revision exercise for A Levels and practising critical discussion and explaining your thought process, will be extremely beneficial for any future Oxbridge interview.
3-4pm: I’m usually a bit tired after a tutorial, so to reenergise, I’ll go for a run. Christ Church Meadows, University Parks and Magdalen Deer Park are all beautiful routes for a jog!
4-6pm: After my run, I’ll head back to the library to work. My favourite libraries are the Radcliffe Camera, an amazing dome-shaped building which houses all the English and History books, and the Duke Humphries. The Duke Humphries is the oldest part of the Bodleian Library; it’s where the ‘Restricted Section’ in the Harry Potter franchise was filmed!
6-8pm: I’m a big fan of cooking, so most days I’ll cook dinner with friends. We’ll buy the ingredients and then rustle up meals such as stir fry, spaghetti bolognaise or a curry!
8-10pm: I play the oboe and am involved in the Oxford University Wind Orchestra, so I’ll often have a rehearsal in the evening. The Oxford music scene is absolutely thriving and there’s any number of ensembles to get involved in in college and the wider university. We usually have one concert per term, performed in the historic University Church. This is always a lovely opportunity to have parents and friends come and visit. If I don’t have orchestra on, I’ll usually be doing some other kind of extra-curricular activity; the Oxford Union holds a weekly debate on topics such as ‘Can Feminism be Capitalist?’ and ‘What’s the future of AI?’ and I try to attend those as much as possible.
10-11pm: After orchestra or whatever evening activity I have on, I’ll head back to my room and do a bit more work before bed. Studying English means that there’s always more primary reading to be done (‘primary’ reading refers to original texts rather than criticism), and this is a good time of day to get in a bit more reading. At around 11pm, I’ll get everything ready for the following day and head to bed; Oxford days are busy, so I tend to fall asleep immediately!
Hopefully this will have given you a sense of the day-to-day reality of living in Oxford as a student. If you enjoy being busy and relish any chance to try out new things within your subject and as extra-curricular activities, Oxford could be the place for you. You’ll never be bored here; the courses are so varied and the opportunities so extensive that there’s something for everyone.
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2) We typically suggest beginning with a 1.5 hour informal assessment/ preliminary session, where the tutor will get to know the student and assess their current performance level and identify strengths and weaknesses. Following this, we issue a report with feedback, make sure you are happy with the tutor, and structure a plan for future sessions.
3) Regular sessions: Following the first session, the tutor/s will curate a plan for further sessions, working out a good split between papers/ texts/topics to cover. They will also ensure the student has the tools they need with regards to exam technique/ understanding how to tick the boxes of mark schemes. All of our tutors are Oxbridge-educated and highly passionate about their subjects, so should hopefully mentor and inspire the student too! We send reports after every session detailing feedback and students/ parents & guardians liaise directly with the tutor to arrange sessions around their schedule.
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