Hear from students

Rahiya - English

"This place isn't just for one specific type of person"

"I remember by the end of the year everyone was saying 'Wow Rahiya you've got so much more confident now!'"

"With each tutorial or class I felt more validated and felt like I had something to offer"

"I think if you're surrounded by good people, which most of the people here are like everyone wants to do well, then you find the motivation"

Ahmed - Law

"I think the foundation year provided me with a taste of what the next three years could be"

"I was able to do a lot of extra-curricular activities during my foundation year"

"On the foundation year you make a lot of friends and I made a lot of significant ties here"

"Trying to figure out where you belong in these institutions is completely valid, it's just about trying to be proactive and trying to find your group"

Jonathan - Engineering

"The foundation year was probably my best year at Oxford"

"It's a good stepping stone from A-level to Oxford because you get that tutorial system and you get to experience university"

"What I heard about Oxford before I came was that it was this elitist place that people from private schools go to. Most of the things I had heard had been exaggerated"

"My closest friends are all people who were on the foundation year with me"

Zoe - English

"I think at first I was in a state of shock. I would just kind of wander round the gardens and be like 'I'm really in Oxford'" 

"I did a lot of learning. It was a lot to catch up on, but it was really interesting as well. There were just so many different topics that I had never really considered before"

"It is fun, but it is also hard"

"It's so much different than you think and even if you don't think you'll fit in you will"

Sabyia - Law

"It is a lot more diverse than I thought"

"I would not be able to get the grades I am getting at the moment if it wasn't for that preparation"

"I wouldn't say there is a typical foundation year student. But I would say that we are all similar because we are different"

"I definitely had to prove myself a lot. Not just to the tutors but to myself. I had a very big belief that I had somehow fluked the system and made my way into Oxford"