Oxford BPhil

[cold_logic]

Has anyone here done the Oxford BPhil program? I just applied, and parts of it sound wonderful. I love the idea of having that much academic freedom, but it seems as though there's barely any instruction at all. Students meet with professors only once every two weeks, and from what I can tell, there aren't many group classes/seminars. I'm plenty self-motivated, but it just sounds a little lonely.

Does anyone knowledgeable have thoughts to share?

[balderdash]

Has anyone here done the Oxford BPhil program? I just applied, and parts of it sound wonderful. I love the idea of having that much academic freedom, but it seems as though there's barely any instruction at all. Students meet with professors only once every two weeks, and from what I can tell, there aren't many group classes/seminars. I'm plenty self-motivated, but it just sounds a little lonely.

Does anyone knowledgeable have thoughts to share?

Sure, though I'm not a BPhil student at Oxford. I'm doing an MPhil at Cambridge, so the social structure is the same.

As far as your academic life, yes, it will be lonely in that you won't go to class with friends like you would in the States. However, the beauty of Oxbridge is the college system, and that will give you all the social inclusion you could want. Living in college is a community feeling that really doesn't have an equivalent in America: it's a mix of 300-600 people ranging from undergraduate students to graduate researchers to professional academicians across all disciplines. You hang out in the common room with members of the college, you eat your meals in the hall with them, and you go to events at least weekly with them. In addition, if you live in halls (aka dorms), you'll be living with students from your college.

Also, your department itself will be a locus of social life. There are constant events to get everyone on your course together for drinks or whatever. So it's likely you'll have friends with whom you can commiserate even if you don't spend time with them in lecture.

Finally, the fact that you have so little in-class time means you get to structure your studying as you see fit, giving you greater flexibility to spend time with friends from college or flatmates.

Hope it helps.

[armouredapple]

Hi cold_logic!

I've just applied too, and just to add to what balderdash has said, firstly colleges are great! - but also, I'm pretty sure there is some group content. I have scribbled in my notes that there are weekly classes with presentations - I think this might be mentioned somewhere in the BPhil handbook on the department website. But yes I got the sense too that it's a much more individually driven thing.

[cold_logic]

Thank you for your helpful responses!

Now the real trouble: funding. Anyone know of a good source for international students? Or are we just SOL? (I'm assuming we won't get any university aid, given the current budget crisis in UK education.)

Another topic for discussion: Is going into debt for a BPhil an extremely dumb idea?

Edited March 8, 2011 by cold_logic

[armouredapple]

cold_logic, sorry for a late reply...the things off the top of my head are Fulbright, Rhodes...but you have to apply for these in the October/November before you apply. My general sense (from having done PhD applications from the UK to the US, although in economics) is that non-university funding usually must be applied for quite early.

However by now you probably already know about offers (I was rejected by Oxford ) and you may have heard about college scholarships, which is the other thing that springs to mind. There may also be Oxford scholarships focused at particular countries (e.g. the US). I think for instance there are the Clarendon scholarships. As for debt, ultimately it's a personal choice...I took on quite a lot as an undergraduate (coming here from overseas) and an economics Master's student, and whilst I wouldn't go back and change history, it has been quite stressful and I do regret the strain it put on my family. But then if you're fairly sure it's the thing you want to do...

I say all this in case you are thinking of postponing for a year. Then it is worth (1) looking into external funding over the summer - I think the Fulbright website gives nice general advice on this; and (2) looking into university/college funding before choosing colleges.

Edited May 31, 2011 by armouredapple