””OXFORD- a renowned seat of learning !!””
Oxford in England is undoubtedly the oldest university in the english speaking world and has been in continued existance for more than 9 centuries now. As an internationally known centre of education, it naturally attracts students and scholors from right accross the globe. It lies about 90 kms north-west of London. A medium sized city with population totalling approximately 140,000, Oxford is refreshingly different from all other cities I am lucky enough to have visited so far. I fell in love with this gorgeous city immediately after I first set foot there way back in 1979. The 24 long years I spent there since then made my love for the place grow even deeper. Without a shadow of doubt, in my opinion Oxford is the most beautiful,cosmopolitan and likeable city in the whole world and must be in everyone´s once in a lifetime (at least!) list of places to visit. It has class written all over it.
According to the statistics for the acadamic year 2003/2004, there were approximately 17,660 students in Oxford out of which approx. 11,100 were undergraduates spread around 39 independent colleges. University staff altogether will total around 10,000 out of which 3,500 are directly employed by the colleges. At Oxford, the term time for an acadamic year is divided as follows: a) Michaelmas Term (October – December), b) Hilary Term (January – March) and c) Trinity Term (April – June). Each Oxford College is a corporate body distinct from the university and is governed by its own head and fellows. Most fellows are college instructors called tutors and the rest are university professors, readers and lecturers. Each college manages its own buildings and property, elects its own fellows and selects and admits its own undergraduate students. Each student at Oxford is assigned to a tutor, who supervises the student´s course of study, primarily through tutorials. Tutorials are weekly meetings of one or two students with their tutor. Students may see other tutors for specialised instruction. They may also attend lectures given by university teachers. Students choose which lectures to attend on the basis of their own special interests and on the advice of their tutor. At the end of the course, it is the university,(not the individual colleges) which grants degrees. The first degree at Oxford in arts or science is a BA (Bachelor of Arts) with honours. After a few years it automatically becomes an MA and is known as an MA (Oxon). The Rhodes scolorship program enables students from the US and Commonwealth countries and many other nations to study at Oxford and there are a number of illustrious names who have been Rhodes scholors. The three oldest colleges in Oxford – University, Merton and Balliol – date from 1200´s. Twelve more colleges were found between 1300 and 1555. The first colleges for women were estblished during the late 1800´s. The university did not grant degrees to women until 1920 !!
Oxford, unlike Cambridge is an indutrial city as well with the legendary Morris Oxford which once used to be made here. Now the stylsh Austin Mini´s (with BMW back up) are rolling out of the sophisticated plants in Cowley and is one of the most popular and sought after small cars in the US and Japan. When you walk through the historic streets like the High Street, Cornmarket Street,Broad Street, Trul Street and Longwall Street of Oxford you will feel that time has disappeard into a cave somewhere leaving this wonderful city totally un-touched. The ancient and modern go hand in hand without any strain here. Without hesitation i can say that the years I spent here along with the people I met here really changed my outlook on life and made me a changed person. Though physically in Kozhikode, Kerala now for learning about the Kerala life of yester years, my mind is still firmly in oxford. With the modern communication I am still in close touch with this city and plann several short trips in the next few years to Oxford and the U.K.
For prospective browsers interested in gathering info on Oxford I recommend the following links: 1) www.ox.ac.uk and 2) www.visitoxford.org for further information.