For more information on Oxford University, go to: http://www.ox.ac.uk.

For more information on New College, go to: http://www.new.ox.ac.uk.

For more information on New College Student Union (Junior Common Room), go to: http://jcr.new.ox.ac.uk.

For more information on Magdalen College, go to: http://www.madg.ox.ac.uk (Visiting Students only).

For more information on Magdalen College Student Union (Junior Common Room), go to: http://jcr.magd.ox.ac.uk.

For more information on Trinity College, go to: http://www.trinity.ox.ac.uk.

For more information on the Trinity College Student Union (Junior Common Room), go to: https://www.trinityjcr.com/

For more information on Christ Church, go to: http://www.chch.ox.ac.uk.

For more information on Christ Church Student Union (Junior Common Room), go to: http://www.chchjcr.org.

The colleges that we are working with are aware that American students often are only able to study abroad for one term or semester (due to course requirements at home, finances, etc.).

If they welcome a student for one term they naturally wish to be sure that he or she will receive a substantial and coherent academic program.

The eight-week period is that part of the Oxford term during which the University lectures are given. Degree candidates normally arrive in zero week (the week before the first week of the eight week period) to meet with their supervisor regarding the term’s courses, etc. Tutorial courses may extend into ninth or tenth week. According to experienced tutors, most degree candidates do academic work for at least 39 weeks a year (an average of 13 weeks a term). An important point is that Oxford degree candidates normally work on reading lists during the three vacation periods. For instance, the Oxford Classics Handbook says “Vacation study is vital.” (p.11) With the approval of OSAP and his or her home college a non-graduating student may enrol in 2-4 additional tutorials each term at no extra cost. If a student chooses to study in less than the normal 14 tutorials there can be no refund since the cost for the entire program is based on average costs per student. Not every student will participate in every tour or use every library, etc. The same average use principle applies.

OSAP will ensure that Visiting Students or Associate Members will be in residence for typically 13 weeks a term and will (depending on the individual college) normally study in one primary tutorial course of nine tutorial sessions and one secondary of five tutorial meetings. Alternatively, in some cases, three secondary courses of five tutorials each might be educationally desirable.

This will mean that a student could properly earn 13-14 U.S. semester credits over 12-13 weeks of intensive academic work.

If you are considering applying through another US overseas program (as some students do) you should ask them specifically how many weeks of residence you will have. (Most offer only 8-9 weeks and students often must get their own housing in vacation periods if they come for two or three terms). Also ask how many tutorials will you have (most offer only 12 tutorials in 8 weeks). Also, ask if the other program has an office and staff in Oxford to help you (several have no Oxford office). The academic rankings of the colleges they work with may also be of interest. Ask about the “Norrington Tables”, or the Oxford academic league tables by which Oxford colleges are ranked.

You could also ask how many tours they offer, do they have a medical plan, is the housing with British students, what is the location? Will you receive a transcript authorized by Oxford University or a US transcript?

The tutorial should be a mutual exploration of a topic. It is not a one-way transaction; you are not there to be spoon-fed. You should expect your tutor to provide some feed-back on the content and structuring of your essay, but you should not let the initiative lie always with him/her. You should always go into the tutorial with an agenda of problems you feel need discussing. If you feel a little intimidated by the set-up – and perhaps some of you will at first – then write down the things you want to discuss before you go in. You should pay careful attention to the issues the tutor raises with you and the range of alternative approaches he/she suggests. By all means take notes during the tutorial, but not at the expense of your own intellectual engagement. If you do not take notes during the tutorial, then write down what you have learned immediately the tutorial is over. Make sure that your notes are clear, and tidy them up if necessary after the tutorial. Tutors get extremely irritated when they find themselves going over in revision stuff through which they know they have laboured in tutorials.

[If applicable] Always listen patiently to what your tutorial partner(s) say, and be prepared to comment on their arguments. Don’t always wait on your tutor’s judgement. Never dismiss another person’s point of view without arguing a case, and avoid posturing.

Relationship between assignments

The weekly assignments should not be viewed in isolation; they are simply convenient divisions into which the material is divided for the purposes of learning. This means that you should endeavour to make connections between one week’s work and the next. Sometimes students find the themes of papers rather alienating at first, but many of the ideas and approaches you use early on can be applied to later assignments, and you will also find that the insights of one paper can be applied to another.

Assessment Criteria

Your work will be assessed according to the following criteria: focus on question, overall structure, coherence of argument, depth of reading, use of evidence and accuracy, and prose style.

Oxford has not yet surrendered to the new barbarism of subjective spelling and grammar. Illiteracy will be penalised [dyslexic students have special guidelines].

Initiative: how hard have you tried in seeking out books? have you gone beyond the demands of the reading list?

Intellectual curiosity: have you asked questions in tutorials? have you shown a willingness to study different types of history? how flexible are you in the face of new approaches/evidence? have you confined yourself narrowly to the demands of the syllabus?

Argumentative flair: have you structured your essays well? have you shown an interest in conceptual issues?

Fluency: what is the standard of your written English? how wide is your vocabulary?

Responsiveness: have you made an effort to implement any advice your tutor may have given you? do you make an effort in tutorials? do you engage with the work of your tutorial partners?

Originality: have you made a real effort to engage with the contents of what you have read? have you thought critically about the arguments of the historians?

Professionalism: have you been punctual for meetings? have you responded promptly to tutors’ requests for information? have you respected the additional calls on your tutors’ time?

Efficiency: how well have you managed the balance between academic and other commitments? have your assignments been completed on time?

Team-work: have you contributed constructively in seminars? have you managed to avoid the expression of personal animosities in your academic dealings with your peers?

This may seem like a tall order, but these are precisely the range of qualities on which we regularly are required to comment to employers. Please do not expect us to perjure ourselves.

Planning your essay is essential, and you should ensure that you leave enough time to do it properly. Planning the essay is something you should be doing throughout the time of your work for it. Some students are paralysed at the point when they come to write the essay often because they have not been thinking about the demands of the question while researching the assignment. It is a good idea to keep a sheet separate from the main body of your notes on which you should record thoughts and ideas relevant to the essay title as they occur to you in the course of your reading. These jottings do not need to be elaborate, but making them will assist you in shaping an essay.

Essay writing

Your guiding principle here should be clarity. Much of what I say below relates to making your case explicit and providing signposts to your argument. Aristotle helps us here: ‘A speech has two parts. You must state your case and prove it. You cannot either state your case and omit to prove it, or prove it without having first stated it; since any proof must be a proof of something, and the only use of preliminary statement is the proof that follows it’. The introduction obviously plays a key role in providing the reader with guidance as to where you stand and how you propose to tackle the question.

Introductions have a number of functions. They can be used to IDENTIFY the issues which the question raises and the range of previous historical opinion (the ‘historiography’) on the question. Where opinion is divided – and it usually is – the introduction also provides an opportunity to EVALUATE the arguments (albeit in a preliminary fashion), either by indicating the kind of evidence on which they are based, or by looking at some of the conceptual difficulties raised by historians’ different approaches. This evaluation should help you to SIGNPOST your own approach, in other words to establish an analytical strategy. The type of strategy you adopt will depend on the kind of question you have been asked but it often helps to break the question down into a series of sub-questions, each of which can be addressed in a separate paragraph.

Another (perhaps more interesting) technique is to begin the essay with an example which in some way encapsulates the nature of the problem you are exploring. You might use your example to generate the questions which determine the sequence of subsequent paragraphs.

Undergraduates often ask tutors whether they should or should not put their conclusions in their introductions – and they often misunderstand our answers, because there are not hard and fast rules. It is more important for the introduction to define the problem than to give a solution; so stating the conclusion should never be a substitute for opening up the issues. Having said that, it may be obvious by the end of the introduction what you are going to argue because of the way you are tackling the question: all well and good. But try to avoid the mechanical, ‘In this essay I am going to argue that…’: there are more artful ways of doing this.

Likewise conclusions are often difficult to handle, and I will confess that they give me more trouble than any other bit. If your essay has developed a clear line, you won’t need to sum it up! You may want to find an appropriate image, example, or quotation which sums up your position.

Your essay should be clearly organised into paragraphs. Each paragraph should have an argument that is somehow related to the main question. If it does not, it should be eliminated. The argument of the paragraph (its proposition) should be announced in the first sentence of the paragraph (the ‘topic sentence’). The following sentences should prove the proposition by means of evidence. It is also legitimate to use the topic sentence to introduce a question or state a problematic provided that (i) it is related to the main question; (ii) the paragraph addresses that question/problematic, and sticks to it; and (iii) your answer to the problematic is clear by the end of the paragraph. You should not drift from the subject matter announced in the topic sentence. It should be possible for the reader to make sense of your essay by reading the first and last sentences of each paragraph. Test for yourself.

Some students have difficulties linking their paragraphs. Much depends on whether you have successfully identified an analytical strategy at the outset. If you have done this well, you will already have given the reader the necessary signposts to the argument, so that he/she will know where each unit stands in relation to the whole. But there are other devices for linking material. One is by means of a brief summary of the argument so far, pulling the strands together, and indicating the thus far unanswered questions. Another is by providing a numbered sequence of points: ‘There are (say) three reasons for this’ ƒ then list them in summary form ƒ then devote a paragraph to each. Numbered sequences can also be used to organise material within paragraphs.

Another common source of difficulty lies in the use of evidence. Students either give no evidence at all for their assertions or they wallow in superfluous detail. Remember that you should never substitute an historian’s opinion for a discussion of evidence on which it is based. In other words it is not adequate to say that ‘Archer has shown that x is true’, without indicating something of how Archer got there. After all Archer may be a historical mountebank! But neither is it necessary to reproduce all Archer’s evidence. A telling example, contemporary assessment, or persuasive (if you are convinced) statistic is often enough. Still more impressive is the classification of types of evidence: ‘Contemporary assessments by ƒ (give example) suggest that ƒ This is confirmed by the evidence of A (give source type and example) and B (give source type and example)’. You should try to weave in evidence allusively rather than feel the need always to labour points.

As a matter of fact it is unwise to name-drop, not least because it is likely to lead you into the trap of substituting opinions for evidence. It is sometimes helpful to indicate historians’ opinions in the introduction, but thereafter it is best to get down your own response. Name-dropping is also dangerous because of the risk of getting the wrong name. Some students show a distressing propensity to credit the writers of textbook cribs with the insights copied out from an original authority the student has been unable to consult.

Always move from weak points to strong ones. In other words don’t end your essay (or indeed an individual paragraph) with a whole series of qualifiers thereby undercutting your argument. If you are dismissing a given line of argument do it at the beginning of the essay, not at the end; you must end on a positive note.

An argument is always strengthened by anticipating the obvious objections. The best historians will attempt to answer those objections.

Students sometimes get confused by the bewildering variety of historical experience, e.g. the problem of local variations. But remember that it is the historian’s task to identify the variables which explain those differing patterns of behaviour. A standard rhetorical device which helps here is structuring the argument as follows ‘Although example x shows that in a given set of circumstances y outcome z applied, nevertheless in the majority of cases circumstances b applied producing outcome c, as shown by examples a1, a2, a3 etc.’

Avoid purely descriptive material; make sure that everything you write is problem orientated.

Your essay should be concise; normally somewhere between 2000 and 3000 words should be adequate.

Your essay should be clearly presented, and your tutor will probably be pleased if it has been word-processed using the facilities in the College’s Computer Room. You should, in any case, acquire word-processing skills while at Oxford, as they are a definite career advantage.

All essays should include a margin of sufficient breadth to allow for written comments by the tutor.

You should always include a list of books and articles you have read at the end of each essay, or you may wish to footnote quotations. [Whatever notation style you use, it must be clear and consistent]

If your tutor has marked an essay, always read his/her comments, and try to act on advice given. If you cannot read the comments ask for them to be deciphered.

Reading Lists

One of the most initially intimidating aspects of learning at Oxford is the reading list. You will undoubtedly be expected to read more than you have ever done at school. Your tutor should give you some guidance as to the order of priority to be observed among items, distinguishing between outline surveys, monographs, and articles. It is important that you realise that different types of text require different types of reading. You will read a few sources, articles and chapters in full. But you will also need to read some things at speed, especially if you are just trying to get a general sense of the argument. Varying your focus and speed so as to take in what you need, but no more, is one of the skills you will need to develop.

Textbooks you should read to get an idea of the order in which events happened and a notion of key personalities and historical issues. They are best read in the vacation preceding the term in which you study the paper. I do not advise you to take extensive notes from textbooks; you will end up virtually copying them out, and they will often leave you ill-equipped to answer questions because they rarely give a sense of the current debates. It is better to buy the textbook and use it for reference purposes as you cover the paper. Confine any note taking you make to analysis rather than narrative, while taking care to ensure that you have supporting evidence.

Students are often deterred from reading monographs because of their bulk; this is a pity because they can often provide new angles on familiar topics. Monographs do not necessarily have to be read from cover to cover; pay careful attention to tables of contents; sometimes your tutor will direct you to individual chapters; monographs are often susceptible to gutting; you can look at introductions and conclusions, and at the beginnings and ends of chapters; sometimes an article can be skimmed by reading the first and/or last sentence of each paragraph (the appropriate technique will depend on the author, and spotting the correct technique is something at which you will become proficient over time). Because writers of monographs are engaged in an academic discourse they tend to labour their conclusions, giving ten examples where one will do. Look out for the framework of the argument, and don’t allow yourself to be swamped by detail – except where, you think, the detail is at the heart of an argument or is the crux of a whole topic or essay. Similar prescriptions apply to the reading of articles.

Make sure that you learn to use indexes. Sometimes you will be looking for information on a specific topic or individual; if the book has been properly indexed (alas, not always the case) you will be able to pinpoint what you need. But look carefully at how the index is arranged (in particular at the level of thematic indexing); sometimes it is necessary to engage in a certain amount of lateral thinking to find what you want.

Your reading should always be active. It is perfectly possible to spend long hours in the library but to make zero intellectual progress. This happens when you read passively, in others words without a set of questions in your mind. To generate a set of questions: think about the assignment you have been set (what is the broad structure of the subject? what parts can it be divided into? what seem to you to be the main themes within the topic? what interests you most about it? what broad questions does it raise? what is the range of alternative answers to the question you have been set?); think about the types of evidence the author is using; think about how the author relates to other authorities you have read; think about definitional and conceptual issues; think about other essays you have covered which address the same kind of historiographical issues; follow up any hints your tutor may have given you. Use textbooks for initial orientation, then move on to monographs and articles, preferably looking at as many as possible briefly in order to determine which will be most useful for the kind of questions you have become interested in.

Remember that while reading you are thinking about the ways in which the past has been investigated and interpreted and debated by historians, as much as trying to learn about the past itself. So, think about what the book/article is trying to do. Is it offering a synthesis or overview, making available some new information from primary research, or challenging older opinions with new arguments, ideas, and/or facts – or a combination of these? When was it written (especially in relation to other items on the same topic)? What are its assumptions and prejudices? Which sources is it relying upon and which has it missed out: do these make a difference to its line of argument? You should always be building up a picture of how historians work, and of the variety of ideas they entertain about the past.

• A further point which I can’t emphasise too strongly. Don’t feel hide-bound by the constraints of the reading list; if something interests you follow it up through the foot-notes; browse along library shelves by all means; look out for short-cuts to the monograph literature, e.g. by reading the reviews in periodicals like the English Historical Review, Historical Journal, Journal of Modern History. …

A note on ‘relevance’. Some students seem to think that a text is irrelevant if it does not directly answer the question they have been set. This is to fail to recognise that there would be little point in asking the question if there were a ‘pat’ answer somewhere. The reading you will be given often requires thought; some of the connections will not be immediately apparent. But, and this is very important, if you feel that a text has been irrelevant (or indeed if you have had difficulties in understanding it), use the tutorial to ask about it.

Monitoring progress

Students often complain that they do not know where they stand. There are a number of mechanisms for feed-back. Sometimes tutors do not use them properly, and students have cause for complaint. But remember that any act of communication involves two parties, and if the mechanism has broken down, it may be because you have done little to activate it. Your tutor should provide feedback on essays in tutorials. If he/she does not, ask.

Note that by feedback I do not mean grades. My personal view is that it is unhelpful to label a student’s work on a week-by-week basis with a raw grade. This can have the effect of discouraging students who are trying hard but who do not necessarily register improvement in the short-term. You can only expect to make significant strides by sustained effort. But note that you may ask for some indication of the level of your performance at the end of each term.

Punctuality

Once your tutorial time has been set, you should stick to it. If you know of some regular commitment which may make attendance at a particular time difficult, you should tell your tutor in Noughth Week. Note that it is particularly difficult to rearrange the times of group classes once they have been fixed because of the number of parties potentially inconvenienced.

Always turn up for appointments on time. If you think that you are unable to make an appointment, please write to the tutor indicating your reasons. Never leave apologies until after an appointment has been missed; your failure to arrive on time will have generated a considerable amount of resentment in the mean time. These considerations apply with added force to tutors outside Keble.

If your tutor has asked for an essay to be handed in prior to the tutorial, please ensure that it is handed in by the time specified. If it is late, you should not be surprised if your tutor refuses to mark it. It is illegitimate to expect your tutor to be marking your essay in the early hours of the morning simply because the poverty of your own organisation has resulted in its being handed in late.

Courtesy

Behave courteously towards all those with whom you have dealings (fellows, secretaries, College staff, and other students). Always show yourself willing to apologise, preferably in writing, if you have lapsed in any way.

Balance between academic and other commitments

The first call on your time must be your work. This does not mean that you are not encouraged to engage in other activities (sport, drama, music, College and University Societies). On the contrary the flexibility of your timetable is one of the chief advantages of an Arts course. But you must learn to organise your timetable so that your work does not suffer. Some hints on time management are offered below. But one important point to be emphasised is that before undertaking any time consuming activity (e.g. holding College or University Office) you should discuss the matter with your tutor. You should avoid such commitments in the third year.

One hopes that your enthusiasm for the subject is such as to make these exhortations unnecessary, but bear in mind that there are sanctions against students who do not work.

Time management

In many ways this is the biggest challenge of your time at Oxford. For much of your previous academic career you have been bound by timetables imposed by external agencies. It is also worth emphasising that most future careers will also impose demanding schedules. While at Oxford, however, you are given a considerable degree of freedom to manage your own time.

1. The most important point is to make sure that you work steadily. Do not leave your work until the last minute, but allocate a set number of hours each day to your work.
2. One source of problems is the cycle whereby students do one set of assignments weekly [a primary course] and another concurrent set of assignments fortnightly [a secondary course]. This means that in some weeks one essay has been completed, in others two. It is tempting to take things easy in the ‘lighter’ weeks, but this is foolish as it piles up work for the following week. Create a timetable for each week which allocates time to both assignments.
3. Remember that efficient work depends upon a degree of concentration. One implication of this is that the efficiency of your work will depend on where you work. Some students use the College Library as a talking shop; others find that working in their rooms leads to continuous interruptions from friends wanting cups of tea; you may find it better to work where there are fewer distractions, and this is particularly true if you are a social animal. There is a great choice of academic venues in Oxford: the Bodleian has numerous reading rooms of varied character, and you will probably find the Faculty a congenial environment. This is not to say that you should not socialise, rather that you should canalise your social energies into set times of the day.
4. Some students know that because of major extracurricular commitments they will be extremely pressed in particular terms. If this is the case, then they should discuss the matter in advance with their tutor. In these cases a sensible course of action is to build up an essay bank during the vacation preceding the term in question, i.e. to prepare a number of essays beforehand.
5. Keep financial affairs in good order, because disentangling them will take up a lot of your time. Settle your bills promptly; ensure that you have the funds to meet your obligations; and apply for grants and loans at the start of the year. Failure in this area is rarely balanced by academic success.
6. Keep your correspondence in good order, replying promptly to the communications you receive.

Invitations

You may occasionally receive invitations while at Oxford, some from tutors, some from College Officers, some from College and University Societies. If the invitation says RSVP it is frankly rude not to reply. Some people are unclear on how to reply to formal invitations. The usual form is as follows: ‘AB would like to thank CD for his/her kind invitation to whatever and is delighted to accept/regrets that he/she is unable to come’. If you have enjoyed a social occasion hosts generally enjoy receiving written thanks, particularly on nice postcards! It makes the host feel that the occasion has been worthwhile and induces the kind of benevolence which is likely to produce further invitations!

References

Never give a tutor’s name as a referee unless you have asked permission of him/her. It is a good idea to send your tutor a copy of your C.V. or an application form to ensure that the reference is written from an informed position. Make sure that your instructions are crystal clear, e.g. with respect to deadlines. Such instructions should be written down. Always allow your tutor plenty of time to write the reference, and make careful enquiries as to the tutor’s availability during vacations (there is a possibility that he/she will be absent on research).

Enjoying the course

Oxford can provide an incredibly vibrant and stimulating intellectual and cultural environment. How far you benefit from this will be the real test, because the fulfilment of your intellectual and cultural potential depends on choices you make. Many of those choices are outlined above, but note the following tips to increase your enjoyment.

1. Try to broaden the range of topics you study. There are opportunities within the outline papers to study social, economic, cultural, ecclesiastical, intellectual, military, diplomatic, and political themes.
2. Be prepared to talk about historical topics with your peers. Historians should make good dinner-time companions with interesting conversation!
3. Try to let your historical understanding inform your perceptions of contemporary political issues, and talk about them with your friends.
4. Seek out some of the special lectures, particularly those given by visiting academics. They will broaden your horizons.
5. Make your holiday travel arrangements mesh with areas of your historical study. Your enjoyment of a place will be much enhanced by an understanding of its history.
6. Read some historical novels.
7. Read a decent newspaper or news magazine like Prospect, The Economist or New 
Statesman and Society. Historians should always be alert to the world around them. They do not live in the past.

[The above advice is obviously geared towards historians, but is generally applicable.]

Finally,

Please remember that the demands on your tutors’ time are multiple. They are not merely undergraduate teachers, important though that is to their role; they have administrative duties in both the College and the University; the have responsibility for graduate students both in their College and elsewhere; and, most importantly, they are part of an international research community. This is not to discourage you from approaching them; but it is to encourage you to observe the guidelines outlined above. Remember that Oxford gives its students a unique level of access to its faculty members, and you should therefore respect the demands on their time by conducting your relations with them in a thoroughly professional and mature manner. In that way you will get the most from them.

Choice of Tutorial Subject

Your academic impression of Oxford will be formed mainly by your experience in tutorials – and how well this functions is bound up largely with the choice of subject. In theory there is a wide variety of subjects on offer at any one time, yet the choice you make must be limited by certain important factors.

The tutorial system is completely unsuitable for study on the introductory level: the idea that a tutorial, especially a secondary one, might be a good way to have a taste of a subject is quite misguided. All Oxford courses are taught at the US advanced level, equivalent to junior, senior or M.A. years at leading US colleges (Harvard, Stanford, etc.). For example, to ask for a secondary tutorial in logic without having any background in philosophy would be very foolish. Bear in mind that your tutors will be used to dealing mainly with British students who are required to specialise at a much earlier age than in the United States, beginning even at high school. The best subjects to choose to study at Oxford are thus those where you already possess a good basic knowledge. If you need to take a subject at an introductory level for credit requirements then you should do so at your home university, where such a course will certainly be provided.

It is equally important that you take account of Oxford’s particular strengths, both in terms of tutors and of material, and that you do not take subjects here which you could do more easily, and probably with better provision, at your home university. For example, asking to study the literature of the Deep South and some arcane subject of the American Civil War really misses the point of your coming to a foreign country to study, whereas an examination of Matthew Arnold’s poetry and the causes of the English Civil War would allow you much better choice of tutors and more material with which to work. Of course, you will be studying in a geographical locality in which these topics would come to life.

We want to stress that when you plan your Oxford courses you should not think about what you would normally study next term at your home college. You could take those courses later. You should think about how you can best make use of Oxford’s almost unique opportunities.

Please bear these comments in mind when making your tutorial choices, since they will have a large bearing on the success of your studies here. It must also be pointed out that your Academic Adviser will not arrange tutorials in particular subjects if he believes that your background is not sufficient to enable you to profit from the course. Please note that the provision of any particular course cannot be guaranteed in any way. For all these reasons no tutorial arrangements for your first term of study in Oxford will be confirmed until you have been interviewed by your Oxford Academic Adviser.

Students often complain that they do not know where they stand. There are a number of mechanisms for feed-back. Sometimes tutors do not use them properly, and students have cause for complaint. But remember that any act of communication involves two parties, and if the mechanism has broken down, it may be because you have done little to activate it. Your tutor should provide feedback on essays in tutorials. If he/she does not, ask.

Note that by feedback I do not mean grades. My personal view is that it is unhelpful to label a student’s work on a week-by-week basis with a raw grade. This can have the effect of discouraging students who are trying hard but who do not necessarily register improvement in the short-term. You can only expect to make significant strides by sustained effort. But note that you may ask for some indication of the level of your performance at the end of each term.

Once your tutorial time has been set, you should stick to it. If you know of some regular commitment which may make attendance at a particular time difficult, you should tell your tutor in Noughth Week. Note that it is particularly difficult to rearrange the times of group classes once they have been fixed because of the number of parties potentially inconvenienced.

Always turn up for appointments on time. If you think that you are unable to make an appointment, please write to the tutor indicating your reasons. Never leave apologies until after an appointment has been missed; your failure to arrive on time will have generated a considerable amount of resentment in the mean time. These considerations apply with added force to tutors outside Keble.

If your tutor has asked for an essay to be handed in prior to the tutorial, please ensure that it is handed in by the time specified. If it is late, you should not be surprised if your tutor refuses to mark it. It is illegitimate to expect your tutor to be marking your essay in the early hours of the morning simply because the poverty of your own organisation has resulted in its being handed in late.

Behave courteously towards all those with whom you have dealings (fellows, secretaries, College staff, and other students). Always show yourself willing to apologise, preferably in writing, if you have lapsed in any way.

The first call on your time must be your work. This does not mean that you are not encouraged to engage in other activities (sport, drama, music, College and University Societies). On the contrary the flexibility of your timetable is one of the chief advantages of an Arts course. But you must learn to organise your timetable so that your work does not suffer. Some hints on time management are offered below. But one important point to be emphasised is that before undertaking any time consuming activity (e.g. holding College or University Office) you should discuss the matter with your tutor. You should avoid such commitments in the third year.

One hopes that your enthusiasm for the subject is such as to make these exhortations unnecessary, but bear in mind that there are sanctions against students who do not work.

In many ways this is the biggest challenge of your time at Oxford. For much of your previous academic career you have been bound by timetables imposed by external agencies. It is also worth emphasising that most future careers will also impose demanding schedules. While at Oxford, however, you are given a considerable degree of freedom to manage your own time.

1. The most important point is to make sure that you work steadily. Do not leave your work until the last minute, but allocate a set number of hours each day to your work.
2. One source of problems is the cycle whereby students do one set of assignments weekly [a primary course] and another concurrent set of assignments fortnightly [a secondary course]. This means that in some weeks one essay has been completed, in others two. It is tempting to take things easy in the ‘lighter’ weeks, but this is foolish as it piles up work for the following week. Create a timetable for each week which allocates time to both assignments.
3. Remember that efficient work depends upon a degree of concentration. One implication of this is that the efficiency of your work will depend on where you work. Some students use the College Library as a talking shop; others find that working in their rooms leads to continuous interruptions from friends wanting cups of tea; you may find it better to work where there are fewer distractions, and this is particularly true if you are a social animal. There is a great choice of academic venues in Oxford: the Bodleian has numerous reading rooms of varied character, and you will probably find the Faculty a congenial environment. This is not to say that you should not socialise, rather that you should canalise your social energies into set times of the day.
4. Some students know that because of major extracurricular commitments they will be extremely pressed in particular terms. If this is the case, then they should discuss the matter in advance with their tutor. In these cases a sensible course of action is to build up an essay bank during the vacation preceding the term in question, i.e. to prepare a number of essays beforehand.
5. Keep financial affairs in good order, because disentangling them will take up a lot of your time. Settle your bills promptly; ensure that you have the funds to meet your obligations; and apply for grants and loans at the start of the year. Failure in this area is rarely balanced by academic success.
6. Keep your correspondence in good order, replying promptly to the communications you receive.

You may occasionally receive invitations while at Oxford, some from tutors, some from College Officers, some from College and University Societies. If the invitation says RSVP it is frankly rude not to reply. Some people are unclear on how to reply to formal invitations. The usual form is as follows: ‘AB would like to thank CD for his/her kind invitation to whatever and is delighted to accept/regrets that he/she is unable to come’. If you have enjoyed a social occasion hosts generally enjoy receiving written thanks, particularly on nice postcards! It makes the host feel that the occasion has been worthwhile and induces the kind of benevolence which is likely to produce further invitations!

Oxford can provide an incredibly vibrant and stimulating intellectual and cultural environment. How far you benefit from this will be the real test, because the fulfilment of your intellectual and cultural potential depends on choices you make. Many of those choices are outlined above, but note the following tips to increase your enjoyment.

1. Try to broaden the range of topics you study. There are opportunities within the outline papers to study social, economic, cultural, ecclesiastical, intellectual, military, diplomatic, and political themes.
2. Be prepared to talk about historical topics with your peers. Historians should make good dinner-time companions with interesting conversation!
3. Try to let your historical understanding inform your perceptions of contemporary political issues, and talk about them with your friends.
4. Seek out some of the special lectures, particularly those given by visiting academics. They will broaden your horizons.
5. Make your holiday travel arrangements mesh with areas of your historical study. Your enjoyment of a place will be much enhanced by an understanding of its history.
6. Read some historical novels.
7. Read a decent newspaper or news magazine like Prospect, The Economist or New Statesman and Society. Historians should always be alert to the world around them. They do not live in the past.

[The above advice is obviously geared towards historians, but is generally applicable]

Please remember that the demands on your tutors’ time are multiple. They are not merely undergraduate teachers, important though that is to their role; they have administrative duties in both the College and the University; the have responsibility for graduate students both in their College and elsewhere; and, most importantly, they are part of an international research community. This is not to discourage you from approaching them; but it is to encourage you to observe the guidelines outlined above. Remember that Oxford gives its students a unique level of access to its faculty members, and you should therefore respect the demands on their time by conducting your relations with them in a thoroughly professional and mature manner. In that way you will get the most from them.

Your academic impression of Oxford will be formed mainly by your experience in tutorials – and how well this functions is bound up largely with the choice of subject. In theory there is a wide variety of subjects on offer at any one time, yet the choice you make must be limited by certain important factors.

The tutorial system is completely unsuitable for study on the introductory level: the idea that a tutorial, especially a secondary one, might be a good way to have a taste of a subject is quite misguided. All Oxford courses are taught at the U.S. advanced level, equivalent to junior, senior or M.A. years at leading U.S. colleges (Harvard, Stanford etc.). For example, to ask for a secondary tutorial in logic without having any background in philosophy would be very foolish. Bear in mind that your tutors will be used to dealing mainly with British students who are required to specialise at a much earlier age than in the United States, beginning even at high school. The best subjects to choose to study at Oxford are thus those where you already possess a good basic knowledge. If you need to take a subject at an introductory level for credit requirements then you should do so at your home university, where such a course will certainly be provided.

It is equally important that you take account of Oxford’s particular strengths, both in terms of tutors and of material, and that you do not take subjects here which you could do more easily, and probably with better provision, at your home university. For example, asking to study the literature of the Deep South and some arcane subject of the American Civil War really misses the point of your coming to a foreign country to study, whereas an examination of Matthew Arnold’s poetry and the causes of the English Civil War would allow you much better choice of tutors and more material with which to work. Of course, you will be studying in a geographical locality in which these topics would come to life.

We want to stress that when you plan your Oxford courses you should not only think about what you would normally study next term at your home college. You could take those courses later. You should think about how you can best make use of Oxford’s almost unique opportunities.

Please bear these comments in mind when making your tutorial choices, since they will have a large bearing on the success of your studies here. It must also be pointed out that your Academic Adviser will not arrange tutorials in particular subjects if he believes that your background is not sufficient to enable you to profit from the course. Please note that though OSAP will always do its best to accommodate your tutorial choices, the provision of any particular course cannot be guaranteed in any way.

The tutor who will teach your chosen subject will be assigned in consultation with senior colleagues in the subject concerned. Each arrangement is thus made on an individual basis taking into account the subject, the tutor’s particular expertise.

There is, however, a wide variety of different kinds of tutors in Oxford, all of whom may be referred to collectively as “dons”. (Don is Latin for teacher) At the top come the professors, about 8% of all teachers, whose title denotes not just that they are university professors, but that they hold a chair in the subject. The primary responsibility of a professor is to research and to lecture; apart from the occasional graduate supervision, they do not tutor at all, so you will not often meet them directly in tutorials. Where appropriate, however, the Advisers do persuade chairs to teach Associate Members.

Tutorial fellows form the backbone of the teaching system in Oxford; Fellows often hold university lectureships. The equivalent of fully tenured American professors, they are assisted by college lecturers (a misnomer, since they do not lecture at all). Research fellows (whether senior or junior) are engaged primarily in their own research, although they may take on a very few pupils for particular special subjects.

You may expect to be taught by tutors from any, or indeed all of these categories during your time at Oxford, since you will be taught by the same specialists, in the same way, and to the same standards as matriculated degree students. You may, of course, request particular tutors and every care will be taken to make appropriate arrangements where possible. However, no guarantee can be given that any particular tutor will be available to teach in any given term.

American students should also be aware that the PhD (or DPhil) is not regarded as important at Oxford. Many of the senior faculty (Fellows and Professors) never bothered with a PhD. They earned a First and wrote a book or books (the equivalent of a PhD) and were offered a Fellowship in international competition. Some of the most distinguished scholars have only earned a BA degree (the MA is honorary). Remember, it is a different system.

Oxford has always been a very international university…it was founded in large part by scholars from all over Europe (at that time every educated European spoke Latin). Today about 30% of the students are from overseas and about the same ratio applies to the faculty so you may have a tutorial from an Indian, an Australian, a German…or an American (about 5% of the faculty, including Masters of three colleges, are American.).

The Academic Advisers in the colleges that we have been working with are all well aware that a OSAP student will only be in Oxford for a relatively short time. They will make a special effort, therefore, to see to it that these students get the most out of their time in Oxford.

Students accepted should know that they will be taught by the best teachers available in their subjects regardless of which college they themselves are affiliated. In the academic sense, therefore, it makes little difference with which college you yourself may be associated.

Changing tutors once arrangements have been made is only permitted in unusual circumstances, after consultation with your Academic Adviser. You should be aware that matriculated degree students are only rarely allowed to change tutors in the middle of the term. Given the close, one-to-one nature of the tutorial, it is inevitable that occasional personal problems arise. If you ever do have a problem of any kind with a tutorial you should talk to your Academic Adviser right away.

Your college may be thought of as your “home base”; you will probably find yourself doing work with dons from several other colleges.

Students should always bear in mind that (as you have been told) Oxford is an international university (about 30% are from overseas); still, it is located in England and English customs tend to prevail. You must not think of Oxford as similar to an American University, in many ways it isn’t. It is highly decentralized and individualistic. This allows for a very individual treatment of students. You will not be an IBM number here. Many U.S. students say they are amazed at how easy it is to meet with faculty members, even very senior ones. On the other hand, the academic process is not so cut and dried as it can be in the U.S.; you will not ‘register’ on your first day here and walk into a classroom on the second.

If you cooperate fully with the guidelines in this handbook, you should expect to have all your tutorials set before the end of First Week. Sometimes an especially good tutor for a secondary course may only be available in the second week. If you wish to enrol in a difficult or esoteric course, or one for which few, if any, tutors are available at the time, you will be so advised. You must realise that such a course may take more time to process. Naturally, if you change your mind this will also delay the process. During the period in which arrangements are made you should keep in close contact with your Academic Adviser (note his office hours,etc.), but you should not expect him to give you hourly reports (“I have contacted X who will let me know by Y”, etc.) You must not worry that you have been ‘forgotten’; this will not happen. Difficult subjects , however, will inevitably take longer to arrange.

Oxford dons naturally have many responsibilities, and sometimes will not be able to respond immediately. You should remember that they are used to thinking in long-range terms (most of their students are three or four year students) and may proceed a bit slower than they might in a U.S. college. Most U.S. students tell us the process is not always easy, but the end result is very rewarding.

1. The independent and inevitably loose structure of the tutorial system means that the student must assume certain important responsibilities. Failure to take these seriously will not only affect your own progress, but will selfishly cause difficulties to others. Briefly stated these responsibilities are as follows:
2. Keep in close contact with your tutor. Exchange telephone numbers so that you can make easy contact in case of illness or other emergencies.
3. Keep your Academic Adviser informed of any difficulties which you may experience with your academic work. Unless you bring your problems to light yourself they may fester unknown for a long while. It is your responsibility to ensure that such problems are made known as soon as possible.
4. Attend tutorials punctually at the times and on the days agreed between you and your tutor. A tutorial arrangement is one that may be broken only in the case of real emergency, such as illness.
5. Observe all library regulations assiduously.
6. Check your college mailbox frequently for messages – at least on a daily basis. You may ask a flatmate to do this for you on days when you are not in college.
7. Inform your Academic Adviser immediately of any change in your study plan.
8. The Academic Adviser – It is the primary role of the Academic Adviser to arrange your 
tutorials, liaise with tutors, monitor your progress, and oversee your evaluations. He or she is always willing to see students and may be contacted at all times indicated on his or her door, by telephone (answerphone service) or in writing. However, unless you come during the above mentioned office hours, an interview can only take place by appointment.
9. Your academic adviser will talk with your tutors periodically and email or call you to make certain all is going well.

A number of students (and parents) have asked us for guidance on personal expenses.

Naturally this will depend on the individual. In general, Oxford is considered very expensive, as expensive as London. (Rents for students are very high – just ask any British student when you arrive).

Roughly speaking, we would say that Oxford is about 60% more expensive than most college towns in the East, such as New Haven, Boston, etc.

You can save a lot of money by avoiding restaurants; an average lunch would cost about £13 (we will use £, you can check the current exchange rate in any good newspaper.

Pub lunches are a good buy – about £7-9 . College meals are a real bargain – about £4-5 and you can cook meals in your flat (all have kitchens) eat exactly what you want and not go over £3-4. The college bars sell beer (the drinking age in England is 18) at about a third less than the public bars, “pubs”.

A bus ride to London (about 1 1/2 hours) costs about £14 return.

We would say a student could live modestly for a week in Oxford, meals, some bus fares, movies, drinks, laundry, etc. for about £100. You may wish to plan a budget which will allow you to travel in more of Europe for a week or two after (or before) the end of term.

Students are advised to consult with their bank prior to their departure for Oxford to verify whether their ATM card will be accepted in the United Kingdom and to inquire about other international financial services.

First of all you should shop around to find the best discounted airline ticket.

Travel as light as possible. If you come in the first two terms (Fall and Winter) you will need two kinds of clothing for each term (Fall-Winter and Winter-Spring). In the Spring term, after April 15 to the end of June, you should only need Spring clothing. Since you buy clothes periodically anyway you may wish to bring clothes for one season and buy the others in Oxford (British clothes have a good reputation).

Basically, southern England has about the same weather as New England except that it is a bit colder and it rains more often. For the Winter season (after about November 1) you will need an overcoat and a sweater. Fall and Spring clothing would be just what you need for the northern US. Most Oxford students dress casually but you will need a jacket and tie at least – a dark suit will probably be needed once in a while (or the women’s equivalent).

Visiting Students will need to wear subfusc once or twice – a dark suit or dress with a white tie (which can be bought in Oxford) and black academic gowns.

Most clubs have termly black tie dinners and there are Balls. You could buy a used tuxedo in Oxford (the British prefer them – they look older, etc). Women could get by with a party dress – a long gown is rarely necessary. You will need all the personal items (razor, etc.) that you would normally take to your home college.

In most cases, US electrical equipment, including computers, may be used in England with an attachment you can buy on arrival. You may will probably wish to bring your laptop. Email, by the way, is available in all colleges and in the OSAP office.

You could have some goods sent on ahead. You may mail or ship a box or two to our office in Oxford (we have someone there to accept it almost all the time). Shipping agents vary from city to city but almost every town has a UPS (United Parcel Service) and if they cannot ship your box or trunk themselves they ought to be able to suggest the best way of doing it. You are welcome
to use e-mail, faxes and computers in our office.

If you have a specific question, please call the OSAP office in Ofxord and someone there will do his or her best to help or will be able to find the answer to your question.