Under professional guidance, students reconstitute the daily lives of ancient civilizations through a mixture of lab work, investigating artifacts in museums and visits to local digs. They learn how to read evidence and design their own research projects, and even explore how an archeologist of the future might view us.

This course explores some of the key episodes in English and British history from pre-Roman times to Brexit. Students learn how to read and reference primary, literary, archeological, and artistic evidence in their analysis of the contexts of epoch-defining events while augmenting their studies with regular site visits.

This course examines the literature, philosophy, history, art, and scientific thought of Ancient Greece and Rome. From readings of classical authors to tours of the Ashmolean and local Roman sites, students receive an imaginative introduction to Greco-Roman civilization, explore why the classical world has been admired for millennia, and how it continues to influence society today.

Students compose fiction and poetry under the guidance of a published writer, with Oxford’s rich literary history as their inspiration. They explore their own potential by experimenting with new forms and styles of writing. Successful authors give workshops in which students learn about the creative process and the practicalities of publication. Students develop a portfolio of their best writing and collaborate to design, edit, and publish a literary magazine.

Through workshops, debates, and visits to police stations and criminal courts, students explore individual and social theories of crime, philosophies of punishment, criminal profiling, incident analysis, and basic forensic science. They consider the causes of crime, the influence of the media upon crime, and issues of race, inequality, and gender within the context of the British and American criminal justice systems.

To what extent do people subconsciously take on ideas from the society in which they were raised? Are we all unwitting products of forces we did not choose? This course combines philosophy with critical theory to examine why the world is the way it is. Students call on a range of thinkers to analyze the political and societal trends that define the 21st century. They learn to interrogate information, discuss controversial topics sensitively, and construct persuasive arguments.

Students learn the principles of engineering science. Both world-renowned and local examples are examined, and the findings applied to a variety of case studies to solve mechanical, structural, and architectural problems. They complete the course by designing a model engineering project of their own.

This course examines some of the great works of English literature from Chaucerto Zadie Smith amidst the evocative surroundings of Oxford. Students engage with a wealth of writers in the literary pantheon to improve their skills in close reading, textual criticism, and clear, informed writing. Each student engages in a close study of a chosen text in the final week.

Students discover what drives entrepreneurs — the rules they follow and the ones they defy. They learn how to identify demand, determine fixed and marginal costs, generate a business plan, canvas for support, calculate overheads, estimate break-even and future value, and manage debts and depreciation. For their final project, students launch their own mini-businesses.

As the world teeters on the brink of ecological disaster, students are introduced to the complex science behind the headlines. They learn about the different disciplines that combine to make Environmental science possible, notably Atmospheric Science, Chemistry, and Ecology. Working from a range of case studies, they discover how environmental scientists assess and respond to different challenges, and learn about the benefits and disbenefits popular proposed solutions, from carbon offset to electric cars, lab-grown meat and the prospect of radical lifestyle change.

Students are exposed to the mechanisms, institutions, and principles that underpin modern business. They address the main business principles of strategic planning, marketing, economics, finance, accounting, and management. Concepts covered include SWOT analysis, developing a marketing strategy, as well as working through how to create a product-centered company and draft a business plan. For their final project, they create a mock company that they present in a “Shark Tank”, mirroring the high-pressure, quick-tempo presentations used at colleges, business schools, and startup incubators around the world.

This course addresses International Relations by focusing on key issues of the day. Subjects covered include globalization and its political, economic, and social effects; environmental challenges; new forms of war and peace; the changing nature of security challenges; peacekeeping operations; the regional complexities of areas like the Middle East, Africa, and South-East Asia; and the relationships and rivalries that define global order today.

Students become full-time journalists, acquiring and perfecting their research, composition, editing, and formatting skills as they discover the varied skills required of all journalists these days: publishing a class magazine, running a blog, managing information on social media, and creating TV news reports. They address key topics in contemporary journalism as well as ethical issues surrounding journalistic responsibility and risk in a rapidly changing environment. Interview access to outstanding guest speakers deepens this fascinating introduction to the world of the working journalist. Production fee of $100 US for the Major; $50 US for the Minor.