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Mansfield College, University of Oxford (Outgoing Program)

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  • Locations: Oxford, United Kingdom
  • Program Terms: Academic Year, Spring
  • Homepage: Click to visit
  • Restrictions: Swarthmore applicants only
Fact Sheet:
Fact Sheet:
Housing Options: Dormitory GPA requirement: 3.7
Language of Instruction: English Academic Program Components: Study Abroad, Tutorials
Areas of Study: Anthropology, Art History, Biology, Classics, Earth Science, Economics, English Literature, Environmental Studies, Finance, Geographical Science, History, International Relations, Management, Math/Statistics, Peace and Conflict Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Public Policy, Religion/Theology, Sociology, South Asian area studies, Southeast Asian Studies Program Type: Direct Enrollment
Program Description:

Mansfield College, University of Oxford  Mansfield


Visiting Students play an integral part in the College’s academic, cultural, and social life.  Although they study at Oxford for a year, they are members of Mansfield College for life, and we are pleased that many former visiting students return for visits and alumni events.  

The Mansfield Visiting Student Programme aims to replicate as closely as possible the Oxford undergraduate experience. The Oxford system of undergraduate teaching is based on the weekly tutorial, at which one to three students meet with a tutor for a period of concentrated study. Tutorials are backed up by University lectures and Oxford's rich library resources. The system thus places great emphasis on individual students developing skills of critical evaluation and reasoning, whilst exploring the chosen discipline in depth.

The Visiting Student Programme offers suitably qualified students the opportunity to come to Oxford as members of Mansfield College and Registered Visiting Students of the University of Oxford.  We normally admit 35-40 VSP students per year, from Ivy League and other top US institutions, and a few from other non-EU countries.   Students study arts, humanities, and social science subjects for one year.  Places are occasionally available for study in Hilary and Trinity terms only (Spring Semester).

Visiting students have access to all college facilities and are members of the JCR (Junior Common Room - the undergraduate student body).  As Registered Visiting Students of the University, they also have access to a wide range of University facilities, including the Bodleian Library, Faculty (subject) libraries, the Oxford University Computing Services, and the great wealth of lectures organized by the University throughout the academic year. 

We hope, in essence, to give visiting students the chance to experience the unique opportunities provided by study at Oxford while earning credit for their home institutions.

Location


Visiting students live in College accommodation. In order that Visiting Students may have a fuller experience of living in the UK, the College tries - as far as is practicable - to integrate their housing with that of other Mansfield students. All students have their own study-bedroom, and share kitchen and bathroom facilities. They also have access to the College Dining Hall for meals during term time together with all other College facilities.  Visiting students live either in the Ablethorpe Building, just over Magdalen Bridge, or in College houses in the Cowley are of the city. Visiting Students do not have to move out of their accommodation over the Easter and Christmas vacations, and Oxford can provide an excellent base for exploring the rest of the UK and Europe.

Mansfield occupies a very central location in Oxford, close to the libraries and shops, but in a quiet setting near the University Parks and the river Cherwell. 

The college site includes student accommodation, tutors’ rooms, offices, the chapel, the dining hall, the library, a laundry room, common rooms, and other social facilities.  Mansfield also shares excellent sports facilities with Merton College, including tennis and squash courts.

The College’s main library is a wonderful wood-panelled room which contains core texts for all courses, and there are separate libraries devoted to Law and Theology.  All three libraries are open to students twenty-four hours a day, and there is a computer room available for use by students.

In 2014, a new student cafeteria, bar and terrace were completed. 

Academics

Teaching at Oxford is primarily in tutorials, with one or two students working with one tutor, and writing an essay for each tutorial. Each student will take one primary (eight tutorials) and one secondary tutorial (four tutorials) a term. There may also be additional classes as part of a term's course, and most courses will be supported by lectures in the faculties and departments. We try to give you the same experience as our second and third year undergraduates, and as far as possible you will follow the same course of study as they do, except that you will not take examinations. You have the opportunity to follow a course of study in one subject, progressing through courses to more difficult and specialised work, or to pick from a range of disciplines. 

Note: unfortunately we are no longer able to offer Music as an option from 2016 onwards.

In tutorials you get a lot of individual attention from your tutor, and you soon learn that you need to be well prepared. There is no hiding at the back of the class when only you and the tutor are there! Many of your tutorials will be with your College tutors, but others will be in other colleges and departments, so that you have the benefit of working with a wide range of experts in your chosen subject.

The tutorial is just one of a range of teaching methods you experience as a student at Mansfield. Every department and faculty provides lectures and classes centrally, and these are attended by students from all colleges. For science subjects lectures and practicals form the core of the week’s work.

The University has outstanding library, laboratory and computing facilities, and Mansfield supplements these resources with its own facilities on site. The College library is a beautiful wood-panelled room, which provides you with a good selection of books, and students are encouraged to make recommendations for book purchases. Law and Theology have their own separate specialist libraries in College. There are designated computers in the library for essay writing, and a computer room next to the library with free internet access. The Mansfield libraries are open twenty-four hours a day.