Open Days and Events

Our doors are always open to schools and pupils interested in studying at Somerville.

Somerville is open to prospective applicants and offer holders; you can pick up a self-guided tour from the Porters’ Lodge when you arrive, or you can ask at the Lodge if there’s a member of the Academic Office or Access Office available to show you around. Members of the general public can visit us free of charge on most days, without needing to book ahead.

If you are a teacher, you can book a school visit for a group of students for next term using the following form, which includes options for schools to book both in-person and virtual visits:

Book a school visit (Virtual or In-Person)

We participate in the university-wide open days in June/July and September and host visits from schools each week during term time. We also host annual Year 12 Study Days and collaborate in university-wide Remote Interview Workshops in November for state school applicants from disadvantaged backgrounds to help demystify the interview process. See below for more information.

Open Days

The next University Open Days for prospective applicants will be on 2nd-3rd July and the 19th September.

At an Open Day, our team of warm and friendly student helpers will be on hand to guide you around the College and give you a first-hand account of life at Somerville. There’ll also be talks to help you learn more about the subject you’re interested in applying for.

Open Days Timetable

The College Opening Hours are 08:45-17:00.

09.00-09.45: Admissions talk by Tutor for Admissions, Flora Anderson Hall. Our admissions tutor will be available to chat to prospective applicants all day. Our Welfare Officer and Disabilities Lead, Jo Ockwell, may also be available to talk to on request.

09.00-12.30: Student-led tours of Somerville.

12.30-14.00: Meet the tutors drop-in. An opportunity to meet one of the Somerville tutors in the subject of your choice!

12.30-14.00: Free sandwich lunch in Flora Anderson Hall. Tea, coffee and refreshments will be available here throughout the day.

14.00-17.00: Student-led tours of Somerville.

The Director of Chapel Music may be available in the Chapel to discuss Choral Scholarships and the College Choir.

Accommodation

We have some B&B rooms available in Somerville for students, parents and teachers for the nights before and during the Open Days, which can be booked through our Bed & Breakfast page from June onwards. There is a discounted rate available for UK-based state school students who are travelling more than 70 miles to attend the Open Days – please contact our Access & Outreach team to receive the promo code if you are eligible.

Travel Reimbursement Scheme

If the travel costs of coming to an Open Day are prohibitive, we may be able to reimburse up to £50 per student for their journey to and from Oxford, depending on where they are travelling from, and with discretion to go above this amount if a student’s individual circumstances and journey necessitate this.

In order to be eligible, you must be a UK-based prospective applicant attending a UK state school or college, for whom the cost of attending the Open Days would otherwise be prohibitive. We are usually only able to reimburse travel costs for students who are travelling via public transport, and receipts must be provided for your travel.

Please see our travel reimbursement application form for further details. Applications will open nearer the time.

If you wish to arrange a personal visit to Somerville at another time, please contact our Access & Outreach team. If you are a teacher looking to bring a group, please see here to find out more about booking school visits.

Oxford Remote Interview Workshops

Somerville is one of the colleges which participates in the University-wide Remote Interview Workshops, which are held in November following applications but before the invitations to interview are sent out.

These are run for Oxford applicants from disadvantaged backgrounds on Microsoft Teams, and involve general admissions guidance, as well as subject-specific workshops and Q&A opportunities with tutors and current students.

The subject workshops may include mock interviews, discussion of sample questions, and advice about what interviewing tutors are looking for.

More information will be sent out to eligible candidates nearer the time.

Year 12 Study Days

Somerville offers an annual series of four Virtual Study Days for Year 12 students. These days feature taster lectures or workshops run by Oxford University academics, which will offer a challenging and entertaining introduction to university-level study of the subject.

There will also be opportunities to hear advice from admissions and outreach staff about applying to Oxford and Cambridge, and to ask the college tutors and current undergraduates questions about their subject of interest.

The study days are held in February half term and the daily timetable for the days is as follows:

15:00-15:50: Admissions talk with Q&A
16:00-17:00: Academic taster session (attendees have a choice of 2x subjects per day)
17:00-17:30: Subject Q&A with Academic and Student Ambassadors

The sessions are open to all Year 12 students at a UK State School who are taking a related subject, and/or are thinking about going on to study a related subject at university. More information about the dates and subjects on offer will be shared in due course.

Young Carers' Insight into Higher Education Day

Somerville host an Insight into HE day for Young Carers’ in Year 12 at a UK state school.

This informal event is aimed that those who have caring responsibilities in their family and who are considering their post-18 education options. The afternoon will provide opportunities to learn more about university life, find out about the support available and also to meet current students, including those who are also young carers. The information talk will also be live streamed for those unable to come in person.

Example Timetable:

12:45-13:00 – Arrival and sign-in
13:00-14:00 – Information talk about University
14:00-14:30 – Tour of Somerville College
14:30-15:30 – Small group Q&As with current students
15:30-16:00 – Tea, coffee and biscuits
16:00 – Depart

If you have any questions please email access@some.ox.ac.uk.

Year 12 BAME Day

Somerville runs a BAME day aimed at Black, Afro-Caribbean and Asian Year 12 students attending schools in our Somerville link regions. The day is held in the Summer half term and provides an opportunity to find out more about life as a student at Oxford.

The day includes Q&As with current students and information and guidance about Oxford University including the admissions process.

Example Timetable:

10:15-10:45 – Arrival and sign-in
10:45-11:00 – Welcome
11:00-12:00 – Information and Guidance session
12:00-13:00 – Lunch
13:00-13:30 – Tour of Somerville College
13:30-15:00 – Oxford life talk and Q&A with current students
15:00-16:00 – Refreshments and opportunity to mingle and ask informal questions
16:00 – Depart

Register for the event, before 11:45pm on May 21st, via this form

If you have any questions please email access@some.ox.ac.uk.

Virtual Tour

Can’t wait until Open Days to have a look around? Luckily, thanks to our Interactive Map Tour, you won’t need to.

TAKE a Virtual Tour of Somerville

Or you can watch our students’ virtual tour video to see college through their eyes:

Watch our students’ Virtual Tour

Also check out our students’ bedroom tours to see some examples of our first year accommodation.

Watch our students’ Bedroom Tours

Join the Somerville Teachers' Mailing List

School teachers may be interested in joining our mailing list in order to find out about the opportunities offered by Somerville and other parts of the University to learn more about studying at Somerville and Oxford.

Please email us at access@some.ox.ac.uk if you’d like to receive our regular newsletter or call 01865 280632 to find out more about applying to Somerville and organise a visit.

You can also find out about the latest outreach events by following us on Twitter.

If you’re a student, you can join the University’s Choosing Oxford mailing list to be kept informed about useful resources and outreach offerings across the university, which you can apply for directly.