Oxbridge: calling all international students!

Coming to the universities of Oxford or Cambridge is a big decision for an international student to make. Taking a place at Oxbridge for the international student can involve a significant relocation – plus a long commute home! – to a new country with which they may be unfamiliar. Oxford and Cambridge are keen to welcome international students to their hallowed halls, and both universities have a wide range of help and services available for the international student.

So why should international students consider studying at Oxbridge? The obvious answer is that the universities provide a world-class education, stimulating the minds of the students they teach to produce successful academics. Tutors select on academic ability alone, and the teaching system which the universities use, based on small group discussions (called tutorials at Oxford and supervisions at Cambridge), really fosters an intensive learning environment for those with a great passion in their subject.

On top of this, each of the cities are beautiful places in which to live, and bring a great quality of life and living experience for the duration of your course. Both Oxford and Cambridge publish a wide range of advice for international students on their websites. There is advice on applications and entrance requirements, with Cambridge providing the ability to check your qualifications by country. There’s also practical advice on visas and accommodation, dedicated to providing detailed information about living in Oxford or Cambridge. There’s a wide array of information on finances for international students at both Oxford and Cambridge, designed to make your research of the universities as easy as possible.

Once international students arrive, they join a vast body of international students, with both universities showing a strong international contingent.  At Cambridge, there are currently around 1,200 overseas students from over 120 countries studying undergraduate courses at the university. At Oxford, students currently come from 138 countries around the world, with international students making up one third of the student body (including 14 per cent of our full-time undergraduate students). Student integration is important at both universities: see Oxford’s ‘Wall of 100 Faces’ or Cambridge’s ’60 Second Impressions’ as examples of the cross-section of students in the university. The cities and the universities are welcoming places, and with students coming from all over the globe, undergraduates are interested in learning as much from each other as possible.

The application process for international students is as rigorous as can be expected from these prestigious universities. There is the personal statement, admissions test, written work and the interviews to tackle, and the process ensures that the best students are chosen to study there. It is therefore important that you prepare yourself as thoroughly as possible for everything the applications procedure will throw at you. Our Oxbridge Platinum Programme has been designed to provide expert support for applicants to Oxford and Cambridge who live outside the European Union.  The process starts with a Private Consultation, which takes place over Skype, and continues  to include help with your university, college and course selection, personal statement support, and admissions test and interview preparation, alongside 14 hours of one-to-one mentoring with your dedicated tutor.

Alternatively, you can book onto one of our international Interview Preparation Days taking place in September in Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai. These are designed to help you develop the skills and confidence required at interview, and combine academic study and communications skills workshops with mock interviews and personalised feedback. For more information, please get in touch on +44 (0)207 499 2394, see the main website at https://oxbridgeapplications.com/ or email [email protected]. Our Skype™ details are oxbridge.applications.