Oxford University Key Facts

While students in Oxford have the resources of a great international university to aid them in their intellectual growth, Oxford is a place where students educate themselves. Collegiate life is structured to provide an environment hospitable to that activity. The common room and the buttery provide informal gathering points to encourage the airing of ideas. The student common rooms in the colleges enrich student life through their sponsorship of variety of activities ranging from debating societies to dramatic and musical groups and they promote a wide range of athletic competitions. Most colleges have sports grounds nearby which provide tennis courts and playing fields for soccer, rugby, cricket and field hockey. College boathouses on the Thames river (locally known as the "Isis") support major rowing competitions among the colleges. Athletes who are selected to present Oxford University against Cambridge University are awarded the recognition of a "Blue".

The academic year in Oxford (commencing October of each year) is divided into three terms that are eight weeks long. Terms are interrupted by six-week vacations in mid-winter and spring and by the “long vacation”, which extends from late June to early October. During these vacations, however, undergraduate students are expected to maintain their academic work by at least undertaking, as the University’s Undergraduate Prospectus puts it "the wide, more leisurely reading which is essential to all courses". The pace of work for graduate students continues through the year.