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	text:  larger  smaller		Here are some frequently asked questions about admission to study law in Oxford as an undergraduate. You should always check the Undergraduate Prospectus for authoritative information on admissions procedures. What academic standards are set for undergraduate admissions in law? We have formally spelled out the qualities we are looking for in applicants for our undergraduate programmes in law. These 'qualitative admissions criteria' are used by all colleges. So far as formal academic qualifications are concerned, there is no fixed requirement. Most of those admitted will either hold or be predicted to obtain all As at A-level (or equivalent), and will already have an outstanding group of GCSEs (or equivalent) dominated by A*s and As. However our main interest is in academic promise and sometimes we may admit candidates whose existing qualifications, in our view, do not do justice to their academic abilities. We rely on the UCAS form, on performance in the National Admissions Test for Law (see below), and on our interview process  to establish whether this is so. We do not rely on any non-academic factors unless they reveal something relevant to academic progress. If we make an offer before A-level (or equivalent) it will usually be AAA (or equivalent). Check the qualitative admissions criteria for undergraduate law at Oxford... Notes on A-level and GCSE equivalents for Scottish and overseas applicants ... Some international qualifications Should I study any particular subjects at school? At least a C grade in GCSE Mathematics (or equivalent) is normally required. For Law with Law Studies in Europe (but not for the regular Law degree) you must normally have studied a European language to A-level (or equivalent) - in most cases the language of the country you want to go to during your degree (see further below). Otherwise your choice of subjects at school is your own. Strictly academic subjects matter most. Both arts and sciences are helpful. Studying law at school confers no particular advantage or disadvantage. When colleges are comparing A-level results and predictions they may attach reduced importance to General Studies. Check the official table of admissions requirements, which gives more detail of the language requirements for Law with Law Studies in Europe applicants ... What is the 'National Admissions Test for Law'? The National Admissions Test for Law (LNAT) has been introduced by leading UK law schools to assist them in making fair comparisons across an increasingly large number of very highly qualified applicants. The LNAT is jointly owned and supervised by the eight instigating institutions, operated by Pearson Vue, and administered in co-operation with UCAS. You will register electronically in September-October and sit the test during the same period at a test centre near your home. The exact deadlines for booking and sitting the test are announced on the LNAT consortium website. All applicants for our BA law degrees are required to sit the test. If applicants fail to sit the LNAT test by the deadline of 1 November, their applications will be incomplete. It is the responsibility of the applicant (not anyone else) to check the LNAT consortium website for deadlines and instructions. This applies to UK, EU and overseas applicants. If there is no test centre in your country, or no safe transport route to a test centre, you must contact the Oxford college to which you are applying for further instructions. The LNAT consortium website (includes practice papers and registration information) Why does Oxford hold interviews? Most of our applicants have or are predicted to obtain all As at A-level (or equivalent) and hold an outstanding group of GCSEs (or equivalent) dominated by A*s and As. Most come with the strong support of their school or sixth-form college and most have very impressive personal statements. Because of this we need to have further mechanisms to reach final decisions among such uniformly excellent applicants. One mechanism is the LNAT (see previous question). Another is the interview. Our interview process is designed to provide further insight into the academic strengths and weaknesses of our candidates. Want to know what number and proportion of applicants get in? Check here ... Are all applicants interviewed? No. We only interview those who have a realistic chance of getting in, when judged by their UCAS forms and LNAT scores. Some candidates from overseas may also be considered without interview . Interviewing of overseas candidates ... What is the interview about? Interviewers will be looking for evidence that you meet our qualitative admissions criteria (see above). The interview may include legally related questions as well as more general intellectual puzzles calling for logical analysis of a type similar to legal analysis. Interviewers may ask questions about your interests and enthusiasms in order to ease you into the interview, or in order to assess your motivation. Knowledge of the law is not being assessed and is not relevant to the assessment of the interview. Sometimes, however, candidates may be given a legal extract to discuss. In this context, the only legal knowledge being sought is that which can be learnt from the extract. Candidates for Law with Law Studies in Europe who are applying for the French, German, Italian or Spanish Law options may also be given an oral test in the relevant European language. (This does not apply to those interested in going to the Netherlands where instruction will be in English.) General facts about Oxford interviews - and a few myths exposed ... Will you look at samples of my work? Only Harris Manchester College (a college that offers places only to those who will be 21 or older when starting their course in Oxford) requires samples of written work. When you complete the LNAT test, you will write a short essay: this will be read by use when evaluating your application. What are the language requirements for Law with Law Studies in Europe? Applicants for Law with Law Studies in Europe will need to identify which variant of the programme they are interested in (French Law, German Law, Italian Law, Spanish Law or European Law). Since the year abroad teaching in the European Law variant is conducted in English, the Faculty sets no formal language requirement for entry to this variant. Those applying for the French, German, Italian or Spanish Law variants will normally be expected to have (or be predicted to obtain) an A at A-level (or equivalent) in the relevant language. Where a conditional offer of a place is made to such applicants, an A at A-level (or equivalent) in the relevant language will normally be one of the conditions. Recognising that opportunities to study Italian at A-level are not so widespread, the Faculty may exceptionally make offers to candidates for the Italian Law variant whose level of Italian is below A-level, but where there is sufficient evidence (typically, from their work on other languages at A-level) that they can be expected, with additional intensive language training during the first two years in Oxford, to be able to bring themselves up to the standard required to study successfully in Italy during the year abroad. Candidates for the French, German, Italian and Spanish Law variants may expect to have an oral language test when they come to Oxford for interview. It is important to emphasise that, although these tests of linguistic competence are important and must be passed, selection for the programme is made first and foremost by reference to the applicants’ potential as a law student. Why do I apply to a college rather than the Law Faculty? Oxford is a federal University and every degree candidate must be a member of a college. The colleges are academic institutions, not merely places of residence. In the case of undergraduate students, the colleges make the main admissions decisions. The University - and hence the Law Faculty - automatically admits those admitted by the colleges. No separate Faculty decision is required. The exception is the BA in Law with Law Studies in Europe (the four year programme). For this programme, college decisions must be approved by the Faculty, because there is such a small number of places available. In all cases, the college, not the Faculty, will tell you whether your application has been successful. How does the college system work? How do I choose a college? You don't have to if you don't want to. You are welcome to make an 'open application', in which case the Undergraduate Admissions Office will allocate you to a college with a relatively low application rate. If you would rather choose for yourself, you may want to read about the various colleges in their own words, and/or in the words of their current students. Each college has its own website and prospectus. There is also a student-written 'Alternative Prospectus' produced by the Oxford University Student Union. More on choosing a college ...  List of undergraduate colleges with links ... Alternative prospectus on the OUSU site ... Who makes the admissions decisions? The main decision is always made by the college law tutors. They are professional academics who are also lecturers in the Law Faculty. If they admit you, they will also teach you in tutorials (or organise tutorials for you at other colleges in subjects outside their expertise). In the case of the BA in Law with Law Studies in Europe, the college's law tutors will nominate their preferred candidate(s) to a Faculty committee, which looks at all the colleges' nominations together.  No separate interviews are held by the Faculty committee: the selection is made on the basis of the information provided by the colleges as to the candidates’ application and performance in the admissions process, together with (in the case of applicants for the French, German, Italian and Spanish options) the results of the language tests held during the interview period. If you are not successful in this final competition for Law with Law Studies in Europe places your college may nevertheless offer you a regular Law place. You may be asked to indicate at interview if you would not be interested in taking up a regular Law place instead. List of Law Faculty members showing their college affiliations: most (except the holders of 'statutory chairs') are also college tutors ... Will my application be considered by more than one college? All colleges have access to your papers. Sometimes you may find that you are interviewed at more than one college. Many students end up being admitted to a college other than the one on their application form; unless you are one of the small number of candidates given an Open Offer, a college can only offer you a place if you have been interviewed by that college. The colleges all make great efforts, separately and together, to make sure that those candidates who should receive offers from Oxford do receive them. Every year, a small number of applicants will receive an Open Offer. Applicants with an Open Offer are guaranteed a place at a college but we are unable to confirm the college until the ‘A’ level results are made available. Can I apply for deferred entry? Applications for deferred entry are welcomed. Applicants who are offered places for deferred entry will generally rank among the strongest of those to whom offers are made. This is because we need to be sure that they would also have been offered a place had they applied the following year, against what might turn out to be stronger competition. For the purposes of deciding whether to invite deferred-entry applicants for interview  and whether to offer them a place, the colleges and the law faculty will rank them against all the other current law applicants, not only against the other deferred-entry candidates. Can I visit the University and/or colleges to see what they are like? Yes, we have open days for prospective students in March and in the summer. College open days run throughout the year.  We also host a summer school in July under the auspices of the Sutton Trust. Open days and summer schools ... What are the fees and other costs? For UK and EU students, the tuition fee is capped by the government. No tuition fee need be paid up-front. You can arrange for the Student Loan Company to pay your tuition fee for you, so that you pay it yourself after you graduate, subject to your income reaching a certain threshold. These arrangements are fixed by government and are identical to those at other universities. Overseas students must pay both University fees (at a higher rate) and college fees. The costs of accommodation and food are always payable by you, whether you are a UK, EU, or Overseas student. College rents and catering charges vary. There are also many options for living out of college. Oxford works out no more expensive than other popular UK student cities. There is an Oxford bursary scheme as well as a UK government maintenance grant scheme to help with living costs of UK students. Check the latest fee levels and estimated living costs (also grant and bursary info)... Who gets the home/EU rate? How do I get the application forms? You need to fill in a Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) form and an Oxford Application form. If you are still at school or sixth-form college these will usually be provided and submitted by your school or college. If you are an individual applicant you can obtain them by mail or pdf download from the Undergraduate Admissions Office. Those applying for postgraduate entry to an undergraduate degree use different forms, also available by mail or pdf download from the Undergraduate Admissions Office. Go to the Admissions Office application forms page to request or download... What is the timetable for applications and decisions? Your forms have to be sent in October (for example, October 15th 2008 is the deadline for applications to study at Oxford from October 2009 and for deferred applications to study at Oxford from October 2010). Interviews are in December. Decisions are sent out in late December or early January. If you receive a conditional offer your place will either be confirmed or denied when your exam results come out in August. Get the precise application deadline ...  See a more detailed timetable ... Are there any special requirements for applicants who are not native English speakers? Candidates who are not native English speakers and who have not been educated in the medium of English Language during their two most recent years of study must satisfy our English Language Requirements. Do I need to fill in separate application forms for accommodation? First year undergraduates are invariably accommodated by their colleges. If you get a place, your college will be in touch to explain the arrangements and will provide you with any paperwork that needs to be completed. Are there any bursaries and scholarships? The University has a bursary scheme for publicly funded home/EU students who are on full fee remission. Applications are made through your college on arrival. There are also a few scholarships available to overseas applicants. Once you are in Oxford there will also be various funds to which you may apply at college level and in the University. About the Oxford Opportunity Bursaries ... Scholarships for overseas students ... Other financial assistance for Oxford students ... Do you make special provision for mature students? Yes. Harris Manchester College exists to serve the specific needs of mature students (those who will be aged 21 or over when starting their course) and admits mature students to study undergraduate law. Other colleges accept mature students as well. Full information for mature students ... Where can I find the answer to my other questions? Always check the University Undergraduate Prospectus first. Failing that contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office. Prospectus homepage...  Undergraduate Admissions Office contact... Question about the undergraduate programmes themselves? FAQs are here ...