About the University of Oxford
We aim to lead the world in research and education for the benefit of society both in the UK and globally. Oxford’s researchers engage with academic, commercial and cultural partners across the world to stimulate high-quality research and enable innovation through a broad range of social, policy and economic impacts.
We believe our strengths lie both in empowering individuals and teams to address fundamental questions of global significance, while providing all our staff with a welcoming and inclusive workplace that enables everyone to develop and do their best work. Recognising that diversity is our strength, vital for innovation and creativity, we aspire to build a truly diverse community which values and respects every individual’s unique contribution.
While we have long traditions of scholarship, we are also forward-looking, creative and cutting-edge. Oxford is one of Europe’s most entrepreneurial universities and we rank first in the UK for university spin-outs, and in recent years we have spun out 15-20 new companies every year. We are also recognised as leaders in support for social enterprise.
Students at Oxford
Undergraduates
Postgraduates at Oxford
Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world and can lay claim to nine centuries of continuous existence.
- Oxford was ranked first in the world in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings for 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.
- There are more than 26,000 students at Oxford, including 12,683 undergraduates and 13,324 postgraduates.
- Entry to undergraduate courses at Oxford continues to be very competitive: there are usually only around 3,300 places, and over 23,000 people applied to start in 2022.
- The majority of Oxford’s UK undergraduates come from state schools. Over 68% of UK students admitted in 2022 were from the state sector.
- 450 postgraduate courses received applications for year of entry 2022/23 (including part-time variants).
- For 2022/23 entry, over 37,500 applications were received for some 6,056 postgraduate places.
- International students make up 46% of our total student body – around 12,075 students. Students come to Oxford from more than 160 countries and territories (as of 1 December 2022).
- According to the 2021 Research Excellence Framework, which assesses the quality of research in UK Higher Education Institutions, Oxford has the highest volume of world-leading research.
- The University of Oxford contributes around £15.7 billion to the UK economy, and supports more than 28,000 full time jobs (2018/19). Find out more here.
- The Oxford University Press is the largest and most successful university press in the world and publishes thousands of titles each year, in countries across the globe, in more than 100 languages.
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Join us and you will find a unique, democratic and international community, a great range of staff benefits and access to a vibrant array of cultural activities in the beautiful city of Oxford.
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Academic divisions
There are four academic divisions within Oxford University. All have a full-time divisional head and an elected divisional board. Also listed are the University Administration Services (UAS), where this role sits, the Department for Continuing Education, and the University’s Gardens, Libraries and Museums.
Explore our Divisions:
The Humanities Division brings together nine faculties and the Ruskin School of Art. The faculties are among the largest in the world, enabling Oxford to offer an education in arts and humanities from music and fine art to ancient and modern languages. Oxford was named as the best university in the world for arts and humanities in the 2022 QS World University Rankings by Subject.
The Mathematical, Physical & Life Sciences Division is home to the nonmedical sciences at Oxford. The nine academic departments in the division span the full spectrum of mathematical, computational, physical, engineering and life sciences, and undertake both research and cutting-edge applied work. In the Times Higher Education subject rankings for 2022, Oxford was ranked first in the world for Computer Science.
The Medical Sciences Division is the largest of the four academic divisions within the University and is internationally recognised as a centre of excellence for biomedical and clinical research and teaching. In the Times Higher Education subject rankings for 2022, Oxford was, for the 11th year running, ranked first in the world for Clinical, Pre-Clinical and Health subjects.
The Social Sciences Division brings together departments, faculties and schools committed to tackling some of the major challenges facing humanity, such as sustainable resource management, migration, global governance, justice, poverty and development. The Times Higher Education subject rankings placed the University of Oxford as number one in the world for Social Sciences in 2018, 2019 and 2022, and number one in the UK and Europe in 2020 and 2021.
The University Administration and Services (UAS) consists of 16 sections, including the Finance Division, Personnel Services and Research Services. Their purpose is to support the University’s core academic purposes of teaching, learning and research, ensure the University can meet the requirements of government, funding bodies and other external agencies, and facilitate the attainment of the objectives set out in the University’s Strategic Plan.
The Department for Continuing Education is one of the largest providers of continuing adult education for lifelong learning in the UK. It enrols more than 15,000 students from all over the world on hundreds of part-time programmes each year, including undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications, from certificates and diplomas to masters’ and doctoral degrees, online courses, short courses, day schools, lectures and weekend events, continuing professional development courses, and summer programmes.
The Gardens, Libraries and Museums of Oxford University are collectively known by the acronym GLAM, and form one of the greatest concentrations of university collections in the world. Comprising over 20 million objects, specimens and printed items, they constitute one of the largest and most important research repositories, enabling GLAM to work closely with academic departments to deliver teaching and provide students access to important material for their study, as well as drawing scholars from all over the world.