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Oxford Summer Courses Web Brochure 2016
Oxford Summer Courses Web Brochure 2016
Summer 2016
Contents
Welcome ............................................................................................................................................ 4
What is Oxford Summer Courses? ............................................................................................... 5
Testimonials .................................................................................................................................... 8
Programmes ...................................................................................................................................... 9
Teaching methods ............................................................................................................................ 10
Staff ................................................................................................................................................... 11
Accommodation ............................................................................................................................. 12
Cultural and social activities ...................................................................................................... 14
Subjects ............................................................................................................................................ 16
Welfare ............................................................................................................................................. 20
Prices and dates ............................................................................................................................ 21
Timetable ........................................................................................................................................ 23
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
Welcome
At Oxford Summer Courses,
Summer 2016
What is Oxford
Summer Courses?
Our philosophy
Were devoted to the highest standards, finest settings and best experiences. So you will:
Have plenty of time to relax, explore, and make lasting friendships with your fellow students
Tutorial teaching
Your tutor is your academic guide; he or she will help you navigate your way on an intellectual journey in
your chosen subject. Your tutor will set your reading list, pose your essay question and, ultimately, challenge
the answers you come up with.
Our tutors are experienced teachers and they know where to prod and push to get your brain working.
Tutorials arent question-and-answer sessions. Theyre a way of developing an answer, as a team, to a
deep or problematic issue. Your tutor will be responsible for stretching your mind and looking after your
academic well-being.
Whats different about Oxford Summer Courses is that we dont go in for large classes and big groups.
Tutorials are what Oxford is built on and theyre what were committed to. One tutor, one student. This gives
you the chance to go at your pace and tackle the questions you want. Dont worry if you dont know what
these are yet our tutors are experts in helping you find out.
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
Summer 2016
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
Testimonials
Sidney Sponer English Literature student from USA
The academic experience at Oxford Summer Courses is amazing. I had only one
other person in my English Literature class, and we got to spend a lot of time with an
experienced tutor, just learning more about what we love. My tutor opened me up to so
many inspiring poets and writers, including Yeats and Austen, and let me write about
what Im interested in. It cant get better than that level of familiarity in the classroom.
Summer 2016
Programmes
The value of Oxford Summer Courses
We provide a learning experience that would stand alone as a fantastic memory and highlight of any
students summer. However, in this increasingly competitive world the value of a good education is more
valuable than ever for securing entry to top academic institutions, and jobs.
For this reason at Oxford Summer Courses were committed to providing a learning experience that helps
to give you an edge, not only at school but also in preparation for university applications and the world of
higher education itself. Were dedicated to helping passionate students realise their aims, and hope that
by providing a genuinely stimulating and challenging curriculum, in a collaborative and inspiring learning
environment, we can enable students to get ahead in their chosen subject.
With Oxford Summer Courses, students distinguish themselves from their peers and unlock their own academic
talent. Our tutors dont provide how to get into Oxbridge courses theres no magic formula. Instead, the best
preparation is becoming passionate about your subject and sampling the tutorial experience. Our tutors and the
courses they run are of serious academic quality.
Students are divided into separate age groups with distinct timetables and course rules that are age appropriate.
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
Teaching Methods
Tutorials
Tutorials make the University of Oxford a global academic force. Theyre an unrivalled opportunity to scrutinise
your work with the worlds finest minds. Your tutorials, quite simply, will shape your thinking forever.
Each week our staff will give you their undivided attention, one on one. Theyll closely attend to your essays
and arguments and force you to justify your conclusions. And theyll share their own approaches, honed
throughout many years of intense study and reflection.
Dont be daunted, though. Our teachers are here to guide and inspire you. They want to hear what you
think, and why and help bring out the very best in you. Youll learn new ways to think, marshal evidence
and defend your views with flexibility and flair.
Seminars
We run weekly seminars for groups of no more than six students. Youll be supervised by an Oxford tutor, but
the emphasis here is on you. So youll each prepare a topic in advance, then present your work to the group.
Its a chance to learn from, and share with, your peers in a collaborative, friendly setting while taking
part in lively and thought-provoking debate, and our tutors will help give your academic presentation skills
serious sheen.
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Summer 2016
Staff Profiles
We only recruit Oxford-educated tutors, so youll be taught by the very best. Our teachers have a range of
backgrounds, ages and interests. But they all have first-rate minds, research credentials and approaches to teaching
as well as years of academic and teaching experience with the University. The BAC noted in their inspection that
our teaching was of an excellent standard and students reported very favourably upon the quality of teaching.
Our tutors are the experts. We believe in giving them autonomy and theyll respond quickly and efficiently
to your needs and enthusiasms. Throughout your course, youll get to know your tutor well. They may even
take you out to libraries and museums as part of their teaching. Their goal is to inspire you so even if
youre not entirely sure what you want to study, theyll guide you along the way. Here are some of our staff:
Dr Kieron Winn
Creative Writing
Dr Cllia Laitem
Medicine
Clelia is a post-doctoral
Dr James Panton
International
Relations, Philosophy
Dr Amanda
Holton
English Literature
As well as tutoring
undergraduates throughout
is currently a Visiting
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
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Accommodation
Oxford Summer Courses
Our courses take place in one of the 38 colleges that make up the University of Oxford. In 2015 our courses ran
in Somerville College, Christ Church and Lady Margaret Hall.* You will live alongside our staff whilst your tutors
will visit the college to teach you (unless you need to be off site, such as in a lab). Despite having everything on
site you will also be in the centre of Oxford and have shops, restaurants and the city itself on your doorstep and
plenty of time to explore them. The rooms at Somerville are home to undergraduates and graduates during term
time and have high-speed internet, desks for working and views over the college quadrangle.
Breakfast is served in Somervilles dining hall and there is a large lawn thats perfect for reading, working,
playing frisbee or taking afternoon tea (which we enjoy twice a week). Most of the rooms share bathrooms (as
is standard across Oxford) and we separate genders and age groups in different blocks. There is at least one staff
member in each block who will make sure all OSC rules are obeyed. Our pastoral staff and group leaders will be
nearby to make sure youre safe, comfortable and happy and can help with anything from finding a teaching
room to helping you do your laundry. Somerville provides a daily room clean, weekly sheet and towel change and
there is a laundry room (or local dry cleaners).
Students receive an orientation on the first day to help the settle in and work out the basics of life in Oxford.
Oxfords history
Oxford was first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in the year 912 AD. The University dates back to
the 11th century and enjoyed (perhaps endured) a tumultuous history as it... actually, you can learn all that
once youre here.
What matters is that Oxford has inspired philosophers, scientists and poets for centuries. Its a magical
place of studious cloisters, captivating spires and endless fun. And the academic facilities, from libraries to
laboratories, are the envy of the world.
Youll tread the same ground as historys most influential and inspiring figures and well guide you round
Oxfords many cultural riches and hidden gems.
* Please note Oxford Summer Courses is an organisation which contracts with the university for the use of facilities, but which has no
formal connection with the University of Oxford.
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Summer 2016
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
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Cultural and
Social Activities
Formal three-course meal
Golden Compass.
Punting
Debating
Blenheim Palace
experience.
Literary tour
This walking tour takes in the rich literary history
of Oxford, including the dining hall featured in
the Harry Potter films, and the pubs frequented
by the writers of the Lord of the Rings and Alice
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Summer 2016
cultural artefacts.
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
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Subjects
A wide range of options
study during your time with us. You will have the
you, and our tutors are there to help narrow your focus
should you need advice. Sample course outlines are
Classical Civilisation
Biology
Computer Science
Chemistry
Oxford has one of the worlds leading Chemistry
Creative Writing
study the subject there is a whole industry of spinout companies set up in the Science Park as a result
of research breakthroughs made in the department.
Oxford chemists are not only great researchers but
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Summer 2016
History
Economics and Business
in; our tutors are experts of the ancient and the modern.
International Relations
The course studies power and international politics
to analyse the relationships between states. It aims
address pressing questions and survey neo-realist, neoliberal, constructivist and post-structuralist approaches.
English Literature
Law
Geography
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
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Mathematics
Our Mathematics course is specifically tailored to
meet your ability and understanding of the underlying
material. The tutorial format focuses on solutions
to problem sheets rather than the discussion-based
tutorials. Mathematics can be sub-divided into many
individual disciplines, all of which are available for
students to study. Previously, our mathematical finance
course has proved popular, covering mathematical
accounting and financial derivatives, beginning with
basic options and futures and moving through to more
Politics
The study of politics can be divided into three main
areas: the past, the present and the future. Political
history is the study of what institutions were like
Medicine
Philosophy
Psychology
The human brain is the most complex object on
earth, containing over 100 billion nerve cells, and
100 trillion connections among them. It is the
source of all thought and behaviour. Focusing on the
relationship between brain, mind and behaviour,
Theology
Physics
multicultural environment.
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Summer 2016
Hello. I am
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of a floating
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www.oxfordsummercourses.com
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Welfare
Its not all about the brains, though. Our main concern is that youre happy and having the best summer
ever. So weve got non-academic staff on board to help you settle in and provide any support you need.
The Course Director will make sure the whole programme runs smoothly and is available if you want a chat.
Residential deans are around if theres anything big or small that you want to get off your chest.
Student helpers are our local experts. Theyll be around to show you the hidden corners of Oxford that larger
groups often miss and theyll join us on extra-curricular expeditions. Theyre all Oxford-educated too, so theyll
be able to help you prepare for tutorials and seminars. Below is a selection of our staff who led the course in 2015.
Harry Hoare
Course Director
Summer Courses!
Nabila Qureshi
Student Helper
Jonathan Goddard
Residential Dean
delights of Oxford!
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Summer 2016
Enrolment
Before you apply, there are a couple of things we need to check. You dont need to be a prodigious scholar
but you must have a genuine, demonstrable passion for your subject.
So, well ask you to write a personal statement and send us a letter of commendation from a tutor or teacher
to secure your place on Oxford Summer Courses. Youll also need to be proficient in English. And your age
will determine which course you embark on.
The prices
The price for summer 2016 is 3,695. You dont have to pay it all in one go the deposit is 500 and the rest
can be paid in instalments if you prefer.
Included in the price is:
The dates
In 2016 we will be running three 2-week sessions running from:
Join us this summer for one session, or why not come for two and try two different subjects or one in greater
depth? If you do we would be happy to offer you a special price of 6,995.
www.oxfordsummercourses.com
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Summer 2016
Tutorials
Debating Night
Pierre
Victoire
(French)
Seminars
Tutorials /
tour of the Bodleian Library
Friday
Saturday
Lunch
Tutorials
Afternoon Tea on
Somerville lawn
The timetable shown is based on the actual activities form 2015. The 2016 timetable may be subject to minor adjustments (and improvements).
Tutorial preparation
Thursday
Formal hall
- Wadham
College
Mission
Burrito
(Mexican)
Quiz Night
Byron
Burger
(American)
DAY TRIP to London: South Kensington Museums, Picnic & games in Hyde Park, Classical Music at the Albert Hall
Seminar preparation /
trip to the Ashmolean Museum
Tuesday
Punting
Cherwell
Boat House
(English)
Formal hall
- Somerville
College
Seminars
Afternoon Tea on
Somerville lawn
Cinema
Film Night
Branca
(Pizza)
Loch Fyne
(Seafood)
TED-style talks at
Somerville College
Bills
(Modern
British)
Seminars
Chiang Mai
(Thai)
Seminars
5
Ice-cream icebreaker
Evening
Brasserie
Blanc
(French)
Lunch
Wednesday
12
Afternoon
Tutorials /
tour of the Bodleian Library
Tutorial preparation
Seminar preparation /
tour of Christ Church (College)
Seminar preparation /
trip to Pitt Rivers Museum
Breakfast
Monday
Sunday
11
Seminar preparation /
walking tour of Oxford
10
Lunch
Saturday
Friday
Thursday
Lunch
Wednesday
Tuesday
Monday
Sunday
Morning
Timetable 2016