FAQs

No, not unless you are applying for an organ scholarship. For more information on organ scholarships please visit the following sites: University of Oxford,  University of Cambridge

You can only apply for one course in any one year, however it might be possible to be considered for an alternative course once you have been interviewed during the admissions process.

No. The Classics Faculty has robust measures in place to ensure as far as possible that the best candidates secure places regardless of which college they apply to. The data from candidates’ UCAS forms, their written work assessment, and their test results are all scrutinized by tutors from all colleges and many candidates are interviewed by one or more colleges other than their college of first choice. Practically all students who have been admitted to a college other than their first-choice college are very happy at that college, and once admitted most could not conceive of wanting to be at any other. Remember again that you have the option of making an ‘open application’ (see the answer to the next question).

Almost all of the undergraduate colleges offer the courses involving the study of the ancient Greek and Roman world. Full details are available from the university Undergraduate Admissions website. This website has direct links to the classics sections of the college websites http://classics.web.ox.ac.uk/colleges-offering-classics-courses

There is no need at all to choose a college, if you do not want to. You can submit an 'open application', and a computer will allocate you to a college. From that point on, you will be treated in exactly the same way as applicants who named a college on their form. For advice on choosing colleges and for college summaries see Discover our Colleges.

Although the vast majority of our students either come immediately after leaving school or have taken a single gap year, we warmly welcome applications from potential classicists of absolutely every age, background and experience. We are looking purely for academic merit and commitment, and we take careful account of individual circumstance and opportunity. If there are factors which you think it would be helpful for us to know about, it is a good idea to mention them in your application. For more information see the university's admissions guide for mature students.

Tutors use a large number of factors when making offers to candidates. These include past academic record (such as GCSE grades), predicted or achieved school-leaving grades, the reference provided by your school or college, your own personal statement about your interest in the subject, results in admissions tests, written work submitted, interviews, and the individual background and circumstances of each candidate. No one of these factors is in itself enough to win or lose a place at Oxford. We take extreme care to look at each applicant on their own merits, and we are above all looking for academic potential and commitment to the subject.  For more detail on the admissions criteria for Classics and Joint Schools, please see this page: https://www.classics.ox.ac.uk/admissions-criteria-classics-and-joint-schools

Just the same as for first degree candidates. For further information see the University's guidance on applying for second degrees, or consult a college tutor for advice.

Colleges are generally prepared to offer a deferred place to any candidate worthy of an undeferred place, but they usually do not offer more than one or two deferred places per subject, in order not to disadvantage the following year's candidates. Some applicants for deferred entry may either be offered an undeferred place or encouraged to apply again the following year. If a second college is willing to offer a deferred place to a candidate who wants one when the first-choice college offers only an undeferred place, the offer of a deferred place has precedence. But do bear in mind that it is crucial, if you are applying for a language-based course, to have a plan for how you will maintain your linguistic skills between leaving school and starting at university.

College tutors will usually write to successful candidates with advice about preparation for the course. In addition to reading that might be suggested, tutors might recommend that prospective students attend one of the excellent Latin or Greek summer schools before coming to Oxford.

The Classical Association website maintains a list of Classics summer schools taking place in the UK.

The best way to find out is to ask them at the subject Open Day (held jointly with Cambridge each March) or at university Open Days. 

See also the videos on our undergraduate profiles page and see the University's Student Wall of Faces

Graduates with classical degrees have an outstanding employment record, and their opportunities are as broad as those of any other arts students. They go on to further study, teaching, law, accountancy, into the City, central or local government, computing, industry. The University Careers Service has an excellent record in helping undergraduates to decide what they really want to do on graduating and to find a way of doing it. See www.classics.ox.ac.uk/alumni-profiles

The best advice in choosing your course is to apply for the version that interests you most. 

You can see statistics on success rates for the joint courses under their entries on the university admissions website; note however that the numbers of applicants, and of places awarded, are much smaller in CE/CML than in single-honours Classics, which means that minor fluctuations can have a relatively large effect on these statistics.