Questions

Is Lady Margaret Hall a part of Oxford University?

Which subjects can I study as a Visiting Student at Lady Margaret Hall?

How many courses can I take as a Visiting Student?

What is a tutorial?

How is my work at Oxford graded?

What are the fees for the Visiting Student Programme?

What are the dates of the academic year?

Can I study at LMH for just one term?

Where do Visiting Students reside and can we reside in College outside of term time?

What kind of extra-curricular activities are available to Visiting Students?

From which universities do Visiting Students to LMH normally come?

Answers

Is Lady Margaret Hall a part of Oxford University?

Oxford University is comprised of 39 independent and self-governing colleges, of which Lady Margaret Hall is one. All Oxford students are members of a college, which is normally where they reside, dine and socialise. Students are usually assigned a Personal Tutor in their college; that is a tutor in their subject area who will help them to organise their studies. However, students study with tutors from throughout the University; they utilise University facilities and participate in University clubs, societies and events.

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Which subjects can I study as a Visiting Student at Lady Margaret Hall?

Visiting Students can usually study any of the subjects available to regular Oxford undergraduates, with the exception of natural sciences, modern languages and law.  (We do, however, offer Mathematics and usually Physics.) It is sometimes possible to take individual courses with modern languages and law after consultation with tutors. Occasionally also, with the consent of tutors, we can provide some special subjects tailored to the Visiting Student’s interest.  However, the ability of the College to accommodate students in a particular subject area is decided on a case by case basis each year since this will depend on our ability to match a student’s particular interests to teaching resources.

Visiting Students in previous years have commonly studied the following subjects: Classics, Classical Literature, Economics, English, Fine Art, History, Mathematics, Music, Philosophy, Physics, Politics, Psychology and Theology. For further information, please go to the Subjects page.

Prospective students can inquire about their interests either through one of our partner agencies (see How to apply or by contacting the Visiting Student Office).

Visiting Students who wish to study a modern language can usually arrange courses through the Oxford Language Centre. However, we do not give transferable credit for language courses and they must be taken in addition to the regular course of study.

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How many courses can I take as a Visiting Student?

The Visiting Student Programme allows students to take 12 credit hours of study per term. This is normally arranged as such:  Students take one ‘primary’ course for eight credit hours and one ‘secondary’ course for four credit hours. In the Oxford system, students study in tutorials or small groups that meet weekly or every other week. For a primary course, students will meet for one hour with a tutor each week and for a secondary course, they will meet for one hour every other week. Students might also be asked to attend lectures to supplement materials covered in the tutorial sessions but no additional credits are given for attending lectures.

Oxford does not encourage a broad range of majors and minors as you have found in your home university. We believe that specialism in a small range of subjects provides a better educational experience here rather than mixing a large number of disparate subjects.

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What is a tutorial?

A distinctive feature of the Oxford educational system is the learning that takes place in tutorials or small classes. The structure of tutorials varies across subject areas, but they normally involve between one and three students meeting regularly with a ‘tutor’ (usually the equivalent of an American professor). In preparation for the meeting, students are required to complete some readings and usually must either write an essay or prepare a problem set in advance. The session with the Tutor involves discussion of the assignment and personalised feedback on the student’s work.

This system of learning involves an intense interaction between the student and her or his teacher. Although there may only be one hour of contact each week, students are required to spend several hours independently preparing for this and must come to the tutorial fully ready to delve into the topic at hand. In the tutorial, a student is given constructive feedback and is pushed to think through topics in much greater depth than is the norm in a classroom or lecture setting. Sometimes American students find the tutorial system hard to adjust to since it demands a great deal of participation and active learning. However, most students get used to this quickly and come to value this way of learning and the unique opportunity it provides to pursue particular academic interests.

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How is my work at Oxford graded?

Visiting Students are not required to take examinations at Oxford, particularly because these exams normally take place at the end of a full course (i.e. at the end of three years of study). Rather, Visiting Students receive grades based on their work during the term. Each one of the student’s tutors will prepare a report at the end of each term which includes comments on the student’s work as well as a numerical grade. Tutors use the Oxford system of grading in their reports and they grade Visiting Students according to Oxford standards. The Visiting Student Programme Office then translates these grades into the American equivalent. Both the Oxford grade and the translated grade appear on transcripts that are sent from Lady Margaret Hall to the student’s home institution.

Grade Translation

The LMH Visiting Student Programme Office will translate the Oxford grades given by Tutors to their American equivalent on all Visiting Student transcripts. This will be in accordance with the following scale:

80+ = A+ 70-80 = A 65-69 = A-

60-64 = B+ 55-59 = B 50-54 = B-

45-49 = C+ 40-44 = C <40 = F

 

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What are the fees for the Visiting Student Programme?

Fees are agreed between Lady Margaret Hall and the relevant Study Abroad Office or agency.

Accommodation costs are fixed annually and will be notified by early summer. Please see LMH Board and Lodgings Information 2012/13.

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What are the dates of the academic year?

The academic year at Oxford University runs from October to June. The year is divided into three eight week terms: Michaelmas (autumn, October to December), Hilary (spring, January to March), and Trinity (summer, April to June).

However, there will be meetings with tutors and/or Collections in the week before ‘full term’ (referred to as ‘noughth week’).  All students are required to return to College by 1 pm on the Thursday of 0th week and need to be available for meetings with tutors or Collections on the Thursday afternoon.

Visiting Students are expected to be in College for the whole of each term. It is NOT possible to leave early in Trinity (summer) term, even if you wish to begin an internship.

See the Dates of Term on the University website.

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Can I study at LMH for just one term?

We strongly encourage our Visiting Students to study here for a full academic year because we believe that this is the only way to get the full experience of being at Oxford and participating in its unique educational system. The terms at Oxford are short – only eight weeks. This is hardly enough time to get used to the system, let alone to take full advantage of it.

We will consider half-year applications (usually for the spring and summer terms together), but these will be given consideration only if all places are not filled by full-time students.

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Where do Visiting Students reside and can we reside in College outside of term time?

All Visiting Students are allocated single rooms in College for the weeks 0 - 8. Normally, you are required to leave your room at the end of week 8; however, accommodation during vacations can usually be arranged for a few additional days. You will be charged per night for each extra night you stay. See here for current rates.

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What kind of extra-curricular activities are available to Visiting Students?

• Societies for academic interest, such as Beaufort Society (English), Daisy Circle (politics) and History Society
• Sports - football, rowing, tennis and many others
• Music and drama - Regular concerts and plays are organised and produced in LMH (sometimes in the gardens) which include our own students and others.
• Groups that seek to play a role in the wider community of the city of Oxford, often by helping the disadvantaged
• Our own punts, moored in our gardens
• And… of course... social events, ranging from regular college discos to parties and quizzes

For further information see JCR and clubs & societies at LMH.

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From which universities do Visiting Students to LMH normally come?

Students from a wide range of universities study at Lady Margaret Hall. In the past three years, they have come from the following universities:

American University Amherst College Babson College Bates College Brandeis Brown University Claremont McKenna Columbia Cornell University Duke University Franklin and Marshall George Washington

Hamilton Harvard John Hopkins Kenyon College Lake Forest College Lehigh University Marquette MIT Northwestern Penn University Rice University Smith College Swarthmore College

Trinity College Tufts University University of California University of Minnesota University of North Carolina University of Pittsburgh University of Virginia Vanderbilt Wellesley College Wheaton College Whittier Yale

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