Should they apply and if so, how?

There are nearly 12,500 undergraduate students at Oxford, with an amazing range of backgrounds and interests. They come from all types of schools and from all over the world. What they share is a love of learning and a talent for studying.

Will they be welcome at Oxford?

We want everyone to feel welcomed, valued and respected here.

At the moment we know that some talented students don’t think Oxford is for them and we want that to change. We want them to realise that Oxford is a realistic goal for anyone with academic talent and commitment.

It is really important that people from all sorts of backgrounds study with us – this is what helps to make Oxford one of the most exciting places to learn in the world.

Does it matter where my child goes to school?

We are always looking for students with the greatest talent for studying, whatever their background.

We understand that it is more difficult for some students to achieve the highest grades because of their circumstances. That is why we look at lots of different information when we consider applications.

We want to make sure we understand students’ achievements in the context of their individual experiences. 

How is Oxford changing?

Some groups are still under-represented here, but this is changing. 

Between 2019 and 2023, within the total group of UK-domiciled undergraduates admitted:

• The proportion from state schools rose from 62.3% to 67.6%.
• The proportion identifying as Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) rose from 22% to 28.8%.
• The proportion from socio-economically disadvantaged areas rose from 12.2% to 14.4%.
• The proportion from areas of low progression to higher education reduced from 14% to 13.3%.
• The proportion declaring a disability rose from 9.5% to 19%.
• The proportion of women reduced from 54.3% to 52.2%.

We remain committed to ensuring that talented, academically motivated students, from all backgrounds, see Oxford as a place for them and have a fair chance of securing an offer for their selected course.

If you are a student considering applying to Oxford, a family member, or teacher with ideas about how we can reach more young people across the UK, please get in touch via ox.ac.uk/ask, as we would love to hear your thoughts.

Accessing Oxford

As part of our commitment to change, we have several exciting new access programmes to support students on every step of their journey.

Oxplore

• Home of BIG questions - this free educational website provides super curricula materials for 11-18 year olds which are designed by Oxford's academics to inspire young minds.
• Oxplore Festival - these festivals are a celebration of curiosity and exploration and designed to inform and inspire 11-13 year olds. Check if the festival is coming to you!
• Oxplore Teach - launching soon, this is Oxplore's new digital platform for Key Stage 3 teachers - complete with ready to use classroom sessions and CPDL support and ready to ignite academic enrichment within schools.

BeUNIQ
For 14-16 year olds, BeUNIQ fosters academic confidence and self-efficacy, thereby supporting educational aspirations. This bespoke engagement programme aims to reach beyond schools and collaborate with organisations working with the wider local community. BeUNIQ leads naturally to participation on UNIQ.

UNIQ
Offering around 1,300 places each year, the majority including a residential in Oxford, UNIQ is our flagship outreach programme for UK state school students in their first year of higher education. This programme is known to be likely to increase someone’s chance of getting a place to study here. It also supports the continuation of the exciting academic journeys begun on BeUNIQ.

Target Oxbridge
Our collaboration with Target Oxbridge aims to support black African and Caribbean students and students of mixed race with black African and Caribbean heritage in making strong applications to Oxford.

Opportunity Oxford
Since 2020, the University has made more than 1,000 offers with a place on Opportunity Oxford and a further 1,500 offer holders have been invited to take part in the OppOx Digital programme. Each year we expect there to be around 250 offer holders taking part in the programme and 300 who participate in OppOx Digital. The programme is designed to explore, develop and equip students with core academic skills for their future degrees, ensuring they are fully prepared to thrive from day one at Oxford. It also offers a supportive induction into life as an Oxford student, helping participants to feel confident and ready to embrace their university experience.

Astrophoria Foundation Year
The University of Oxford’s Astrophoria Foundation Year is a one-year fully-funded foundation programme for UK state school students with significant academic potential, who have experienced severe personal disadvantage and/or disrupted education which has resulted in them being unable to apply directly for an Oxford undergraduate degree programme.

It enables motivated students to reach their academic potential through a supportive and challenging academic course aimed at developing their skills, self-belief and academic confidence.

In 2024, 86% of the first cohort of students progressed to undergraduate study at Oxford.

Outreach events
Alongside these programmes, we run thousands of outreach activities with UK state school students from backgrounds under-represented at Oxford, and their teachers and communities, every year and across the country.

We want to make sure that anyone anywhere can find out what student life at Oxford might be like and how to apply.

All of this is already making a big difference and our students are coming from an increasingly wide range of backgrounds.