An Overview of Oxford University

Advantages: High academic standards, reputation, university can be the best years of your life
Disadvantages: Can be seen as stuffy and old-fashioned, a lot of work, may not suit all

...Oxford University is one of the most prestigious in the world. It may be second to Cambridge in the Times league table, but really this is relatively insignificant. The truth is that there are many top quality universities, and I shall not pretend that Oxbridge is automatically superior, when in reality places like York, Durham, etc can all offer at least as good facilities in certain subjects. As a current student of Oxford University (just finished first year PPE at Jesus), however, I feel qualified to write a guide for those that may be thinking of applying, and anyone who’s just interested. I shan’t write everything here – there are separate categories on Dooyoo concerning the interview, courses, etc so I shall just try to give a broad overview here (and probably write in more detail on the other aspects later...

a-true-ben 06.01.2002 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Oxford University - love it or hate it?

Advantages: You either love it
Disadvantages: or you hate it

...I studied at Oxford for seven and a half years. I had never even thought about studying at Oxford (or Cambridge which I visited often as a child) when one day I was on a school open day at New College. I walked into the college and I simply fell in love with it. I knew then that I wanted to study there and have not regretted it. The application procedure for Oxford and Cambridge is slightly more complicated than for other Universities. There is a separate form which has to be filled in and returned, and the deadline to send this in is earlier than for the UCAS form. When I applied there was still an entrance exam, but now that has disappeared. You pick a first choice college (and second and third if you want, or if you don't want to pick you will be assigned them "by computer") and if you are invited for interview you will be...

newc0597 05.05.2004 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Keble College, Oxford University

Advantages: Beauftiful, grand, Oxford as a whole is prestigious
Disadvantages: Grand, daunting, har to get into

...igh street chains, plus a few other shops, both cheap and not so cheap! There are plenty of bars and clubs around, which is only to be expected in a city with not one, but two universities I guess... Oh and I got rejected from Oxford, which is a shame, but it does mean I'm off to Durham this September! Wooo!...

kozwoz 25.03.2005 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Oxford Brookes is a good University in a beautiful city

Advantages: Good facilities for teaching, socialising and sports
Disadvantages: Very expensive

...quality staff and there is equipment and facilities available for most activities. The main problem I have with this University is the expense of everything. Compared to where I studied for my undergraduate degree, accommodation is literally double the price. It seems to me that there also a lot of hidden costs such as printing and photocopying - again much more that I was paying at a different institution. I feel that the shops on campus could also stock more essential goods, or be located closer to student accommodation....

twinkle321 29.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of Oxford Brookes University

10 reasons to love Oxford University...

Advantages: Good Facilities, Friendly People, Nice City
Disadvantages: Work!

......assuming I can think of ten that is. Still shouldn't be too difficult given what a great place it is. So here we go in no particular order... Buildings: As in historical and beautiful. Many of the colleges are very pretty: Magdalen, Christ Church, The Chapel at Balliol. Plus outside of the colleges is amongst other things The Sheldonian and the Church of St Mary The Virgin - the most visited church in Britain. Oxford Union: 'The Last Bastion of Free Speech', run by elected students and famous for its speakers from the world of Politics, Sport and Entertainment. Visitors in recent years include Michael Jackson, Rolf Harris, The Dalai Lama, OJ Simpson and Kermit the Frog. David Trimble & John Hume spoke in a debate on Northern Ireland there last Tuesday. The Union also runs social events and has a Bar offering Pound a Pint as...

Sweep1 12.05.2001 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Why Oxford?

Advantages: Friendly students and social life, Fantastic societies to get involved with, Proximity to London
Disadvantages: Very academic! Highly pressurised and very stressful

...The aura surrounding Oxford is one which contributes significantly to the pressure on students who are accepted to the university. Not only do they have to contend with very intense workloads and deadlines, but they have to finish term without collapsing and return home to face the curiosity (and often anticipation) of friends and family - making it difficult to admit that the experience may not be as rewarding as it seemed initially. My own experience of Oxford (so far, as a 1st year) has been very mixed and very intense. Without a doubt, the college you find yourself at and the course you have chosen can make or break your time at the university - because there is simply no time to turn back once term has begun. The intensity of the institution demands excellent self-organisation and motivation, because despite the well-known tutorial...

teenage_legend 11.03.2009 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

Worcester University

Advantages: Accomodation, Student Union, Sports, Clubs, Library, IT, History
Disadvantages: Expense

...I've been here getting on for around a week now and I must say that I have had an excellent time so far. Before accepting the offer to go Worcester I travelled to it to investigate it and to see if it was for me. After travelling around some of the other universitys that I got into I came to the conclusion that this one was more for me conpared to any of the others. Size ********* I've found that its small which makes it quaint in my eyes and from my opinion however I find a city that is huge can be a little too big and can appear scary and overwhelming at times. Worcesters size is perfect offering up Night Clubs, Food, Shops and culture. The University was originally opened as an emergency teaching college until only recently in the last few years it has been granted the ability to become a university. This means it has being...

burns2007 17.09.2008 (18.05.2009) · Read review
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Review of Worcester University

Oxford - land of opportunity

Advantages: Excellent reputation and the best tutors going
Disadvantages: A little archaic sometimes but good

...The thing about Oxford university is that if you get the chance to go, or someone around you, a teacher or one of your peers tells you that they think you have the ability, you have to try and go. The reasoning for this is simple - an Oxford degree is one of the best things you can ever put on your CV. People know what it stands for and what to expect from you, and you will have an automatic advantage when applying for any job. Criticized in the media most wrongly for its elitism, the university does suffer from being a little archaic in places and so might seem stuffy or wrapped up in itself sometimes but the fact of the matter is that three or four years there offers an open ticket for a great job of your choice for your whole working life...

BIGHORSE 09.08.2000 · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

The Oxford Bar Review

Advantages: Bars have their own individual character
Disadvantages: No centralised student venue

...After attempting to drink at as many college bars as I could (for research purpose of course) I came to the conclusion that without a reliable guide a new student might find themselves rather lost. So I took it upon myself to write this article just in case someone should be tempted by the false delights of St John's bar. The other opinions on the thread are slightly out of date aswell. Each college has its own bar. Since there is no central student union the bars are the focal points of university and college life. The quality varies, but in general they offer cheap beverages and a friendly atmosphere. Most of the bars open at about 6pm but don't expect to find anyone in them until about 8pm. All the bars close at 11pm but they sometimes get extension if they have a bop going on (a bop is a stupid oxford word for a party, a college...

Duncan1 21.04.2001 (11.06.2001) · Read review
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Review of Oxford University

  University Life

Advantages: reputation, sports, teaching
Disadvantages: on a hill, shops + banks

...Having been a fresher here at bath for 8 weeks now I feel the need, nay, duty to write a review on the university. I've already done a freshers review on "things beginning with F" if you want to hear about how great (or rather average) freshers week was. But this is going to focus more on the university. I'm currently on a 4 year physics masters course here at Bath. -------------------- Reputation -------------------- I don't believe in league tables and all that rubbish. The trend seems to be that the more time the university spends on fiddling it's figures to make it look good, the less time it can spend on teaching. I didn't apply to Oxford or Cambridge for two reasons. Firstly, I wouldn't be able to get in. Secondly I know it would be full of people who only applied because of the name and who could succeed better...

C_W_Monkey 23.11.2004 (08.04.2005) · Read review
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Review of Bath University