How Do I Apply for Oxford Summer Courses?
A summer school is an amazing adventure, especially after the tedium of lockdown. Exploring subjects you’d never study at school, meeting people from all around the world and overcoming new challenges are all fascinating learning experiences which will transform your future.
If you’re thinking about attending (or sending your child to attend) a summer school in Oxford, you’ll want to know how to apply for Oxford summer courses.
If you’re applying for top-tier Oxford summer courses, you should expect the most detailed information when you apply, from health and safety to how to organise visas if you’re travelling from outside the UK.
In this article, we’re going to explore exactly how to apply for Oxford summer courses, what you can expect when you apply, how to access scholarships for Oxford summer courses if they’re available, and support if you’re applying with a disability.
How do I apply for Oxford summer courses?
You can apply for Oxford summer courses by clicking on the ‘apply’ or ‘enrol’ section of the website of the Oxford summer school you want to attend, which should be obviously displayed on the website’s homepage. You can also contact the Oxford summer school via phone or email, which will be listed in the contact details of their website, to express your desire to apply for an Oxford summer course.
For example, if you were applying to an Oxford summer course at Oxford Royale Academy, you would click the ‘enrol’ button on the website, which would lead you immediately to an application form, where you or your parent or guardian can apply for the course of your choice, or access support to find the right course for you. Alternatively, you can download an Application Form or discuss your application directly with the admissions team.
Let’s dive right in, and explore every detail of how to apply for Oxford summer courses.
Oxford summer courses: the application process
What information should I expect when I apply to Oxford summer courses?
In these uncertain times, it’s more important than ever to access clear information and know what support is available on the Oxford summer course you choose. When applying to an Oxford summer course, you should expect the following information:
Advice on health and safety
Make sure the Oxford summer course you apply to has clear Covid-19 policies. As well as key information on refunds, they should have a flexible policy if you need to cancel due to Covid-19, and offer a free switch to an online course or deferral to a 2022 summer course if you contact them about needing to postpone or cancel your course in good time.
Your health (or the health of your child) is the highest priority when you’re attending an Oxford summer course, and the Oxford summer course you choose should give clear information about local nurses and GPs they partner with, who will can provide medical care in case of sickness. Attending an Oxford summer course gives you the advantage of being next to some of the most world-renowned hospitals in the world.
Information on payments and refunds
An Oxford summer course is an amazing investment in your future. You should look out for an Oxford summer course which gives you clear information on finances and refunds, to put your mind at ease. Your Oxford summer course should let you know the time frame in which you can request a refund on your deposit, and how you will be refunded if you cancel before your course start date. The Oxford summer school should also provide you with crystal clear guidance on how to pay for your course, as well as a range of flexible payment procedures.
Arrivals and departures
Clear and exact information on arrivals and departures is very important when you attend an Oxford summer course, especially if you (or your child) are travelling from overseas. The best Oxford summer courses have decades of experience supporting and escorting their overseas students to their summer school, whether it’s helping them find the most convenient airport to book a flight to or from, or organising transport. Top tier Oxford summer courses will offer a special airport transfer service, so that you can enjoy the smoothest and safest transition from plane or train, to your Oxford summer school. You can expect to be met personally by a member of staff, who will unite you with a taxi driver to take you to your accommodation. 
Information on visas
The best Oxford summer courses are highly international, and attract bright young students from all over the globe. As a result, when you apply to a good Oxford summer course, you should expect detailed guidance on any visas you need to obtain, particularly if your country is not part of the EU or the European Economic Area.
Your Oxford summer course should be able to tell you how to arrange a Visa Waiver if you’re from the US, and provide individual support on accessing visas, whichever country you are travelling from. Make sure your Oxford summer course can provide you with a Letter of Invitation, should you require one for your visa.
It’s a huge bonus if the Oxford summer course you are attending can organise free travel and medical insurance included in the cost of your course, as this will add to your peace of mind when attending the summer course.
Course advice at any time
When you apply to an elite Oxford summer course, one of the best aspects is the chance to study a fascinating topic, led by world-class tutors. You should be able to access information on your course whenever you require it, through a friendly and informed customer service team before the start of your Oxford summer course.
Is the application process for Oxford summer courses competitive?
Most independent Oxford summer courses will only require you to have a desire to learn and a thirst for new, exciting experiences in order for you to enrol on a course.
World-class Oxford summer schools will often offer scholarships to students for the course of their choice. These processes are competitive, and you’ll have to fill in an application form citing your academic and extracurricular achievements, to be considered. To maximise your chances of being awarded a scholarship on an Oxford summer course you should:
- Be clear about your motivations and aspirations in life. For example, if you’re passionate about becoming a robotic engineer or published author, you could write about why these disciplines fascinate you, what you hope to achieve through pursuing them, and why studying a particular Oxford summer course will help you to do so.
- Emphasise your academic achievements. If you know you’re going to apply for a scholarship for an Oxford summer course, for example, next year, you should study hard now so that you can put down excellent grades and glowing teacher references to make the best impression you can on the admissions team.
- Take part in extracurricular activities. Whether you have a passion for helping those in need, for example, through volunteering in a charity, or you’ve taken the initiative to run a study group for students in your school, make sure you do extracurricular activities which centre around what motivates you and what you’re interested in. If you can, link them in terms of transferrable skills to the course you want to study. For example, maybe you volunteered in a home for elderly people and this increased your empathy and understanding of people’s needs, which is vital for the medical preparation course you want to study at an Oxford summer school. Then, when you come to do your application, the admissions team can get a clear idea of your passions and skills both as a student and a person, and how they relate to the course you want to enrol on.
Does it matter if I don’t know what I want to study?
It’s absolutely fine not to know what you want to study on an Oxford summer course. It takes time to discover what you’re passionate about in life, and to turn a few vague interests into a vocation.
In fact, an Oxford summer course is the perfect place to discover these elusive passions, because you’ll be exposed to so many different subjects and styles of teaching that you won’t have encountered before, from coding to photography.
The Oxford summer school you apply to should give you expert support on what you could study. You can often tell the quality of an Oxford summer school by their customer service team. When you speak to them, they should have an in-depth knowledge of which Oxford summer courses are available and what they offer, and help you find the course that is right for you, depending on your skills and interests.
If your interests are varied or you simply can’t decide on one course, you may well be able to study more than one subject. Many of the best Oxford summer courses offered combined study programmes, where you can study fascinating combinations of subjects, like Creative Writing and Chemistry, or Mathematics and Photography and Sketching.
We’ve now covered how you can apply for Oxford summer courses, what you should expect when you apply to a top Oxford summer school, and what to do if you’re not sure what course to study, and we hope you’ve found this a useful read. While attending an Oxford summer course in one of the most ancient and famous cities in the world is an exhilarating experience, we know it can be daunting to travel and live away from home, so it’s only right that you have all the information you need.