The Oxford Summer Academy - an academic and cultural program in Oxford, England, for high-school students

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Academic

In each two-week period, you will take one major, one minor, and one elective. Majors and minors are assessed. We can provide you with a transcript of your studies. Your academic reports will usually be forwarded to your parents or guardians. Your tutors will be happy to discuss your reports with you before the course ends.

During each fortnight, you will have the opportunity to meet Oxford University academic staff and learn about applying to Oxford. You will also have the opportunity to discuss applying to other UK universities with academic staff.

Accommodation

All students will be resident at St Edmund Hall in twin rooms. There are some single rooms available. Please let us know if you would prefer this. The rooms are typical of undergraduate accommodation in the UK. Rooms have wash-hand basins and there are shared bathrooms on each floor. Towels are provided in the rooms.

Each room has a telephone which can receive incoming calls. Outgoing calls can be made on the purchase of a phone-card.

You can register to use the college's wifi on arrival.

Laundry facilities are available at St Edmund Hall.

Meals

Breakfast and dinner are provided in college each day. You can purchase lunch each day, inexpensively, from the many cafes in central Oxford.

Special dietary requirements can be accommodated. Please let us know what these are in advance on your application form!

Transport to and from St Edmund Hall

We can arrange taxi-transfers for you to and from airports if required.

Alternatively, there is a regular coach service between London’s major airports, Heathrow and Gatwick, to Oxford. nationalexpress.com and oxfordbus.co.uk

What to Bring
You are welcome to bring laptop computers with you, but at your own risk. You should not leave valuables unattended at any time.

We will provide study materials for you – books and handouts – but we encourage you to do some reading ahead where tutors have specified recommended textbooks.

Please bring a notebook, pens, pencils and calculators with you.

England does not have a climate, rather, extremely variable weather! Please bring warm clothes and waterproof clothes as well as those suitable for the summer! During classes, dress is informal, jeans and trainers are fine. There are though several formal events during the course – the welcome reception, gala dinner and theatre trips - when dress should be more formal. Students in Oxford traditionally dress up for dinner each evening – indeed – the evening meal is often called “a formal”.

If you are planning on joining any of the sporting activities, please bring the appropriate footwear and clothing. If you are planning on joining the orienteering, please make sure that you bring some comfortable walking boots!

It is essential that you bring your mobile phone with you. We need to be able to contact you 24x7 during your stay with us!

Spending Money

Your course fees cover board, accommodation, breakfast, dinner on non-excursion days, tuition, excursions and the social program. They do not cover outgoing phone calls, your Ethernet cable for internet access, laundry, lunch each day, dinner on excursion days and general spending money for souvenirs and presents.

You can estimate the amount of spending money you may need from the following list:

• Internet Access - £14
• Laundry - £10 - for a 2-week period
• Lunch - £5 each day

Rules

We have very few rules – we mainly want to ensure that you have a safe and enjoyable visit to Oxford – but we have listed the few rules we have below:

• St Edmund Hall is a medieval college, and in common with many colleges in Oxford, it has a formal “quad” which we don’t walk on. There are plenty of other lawns where you can sit and relax, but the main quad is a protected area. We’ll point this out to you when you arrive.
• Smoking is not permitted in any part of St Edmund Hall – inside or outside. You will find that smoking is banned by law in public buildings, restaurants and cafes in the UK.
• It is illegal to purchase alcohol in the UK if you are younger than 18. If you try to purchase alcohol, you will likely be asked for ID. We have a rule that NO ALCOHOL is permitted – either on college premises or off.
• We ask you to check in with us each evening by 10.30pm. Everyone should be in their own rooms, and quiet, by 11.00pm.
• We expect everyone’s behaviour to be courteous, considerate and co-operative.