Oxbridge Honors
With a year of study at the University of Oxford
More demanding than a traditional college major, all six Oxbridge majors provide rigorous training in sophisticated interpretation, analytical thinking, critical evaluation, and strong writing and oral presentation. The Ivy League-status program with a reading-writing intensive approach combines the best of British higher education—intense and deep study, with great independence—with the American—broad background and close mentorship.
The Oxbridge Honors program is highly selective, enrolling a limited number of students each fall following an interview with faculty. Students typically have a mean ACT score of 30 (composite), 33 (reading) and 33 (science, for Oxbridge molecular biology majors), and rank in the top 10% of their high school class.
You might be an ideal Oxbridge candidate if you are an:
You do not need to declare your Oxbridge major until the end of your first year.
View the core course requirements and course descriptions for each major:
You will spend your junior year studying in Oxford at the finest educational institutions in the world while taking part in university life and English and European culture. During your first two years at Jewell, you will study under the tutorial system. Created on the educational model found in Oxford and Cambridge Universities, the Oxbridge Honors Program features tutorial (rather than classroom) instruction. Classes in your Oxbridge major will be taken in one-on-one or small group settings, with a master teacher or tutor coordinating intensive reading and writing assignments.
“I wanted to study abroad. The opportunity to go to Oxford—of all places to study abroad—was just incredible to me, and I had never even considered it because I didn’t even think it was within reach.”
Erin Melton, '18, graduate school at London School of Economics
For more than 25 years, the William Jewell College Oxbridge Honors Program has been preparing students with the knowledge, vision, and flexibility to succeed in the highly-competitive and rapidly evolving environments of academics, professions, business, and service.
Here are some questions we often receive about Oxbridge Honors. View the full FAQ list.
The primary difference is the tutorial method of study. In addition, the Oxbridge curriculum promotes study in greater depth. Whereas students in a classroom English or History major might take survey courses, using an anthology or textbook as their source of readings, Oxbridge students read selected topics from primary sources. The tutorial, with its emphasis on classic works and cutting edge scholarship, leads naturally to detailed consideration of a single topic rather than coverage of many.
No. Under the open year policy, first-year students are accepted into the Program as Oxbridge open students for an exploratory and trial year; students who enter the Program at the beginning of the sophomore year are open students for the fall semester and become majors for the spring semester. Toward the end of the open year, or for sophomore-entry students, toward the end of the fall semester, students will apply for admission to one of the Oxbridge majors. To be eligible to apply to a major, typically a student will have done well in a tutorial offered by that major.
In fall, you will take the Oxbridge Introductory Seminar, a special course exclusively for Oxbridgers designed to help students make the transition from high school to high-level honors work and from regular classes to tutorials. You may also take a foundation course for your intended Oxbridge major. Then, in the spring semester, you’ll take your first tutorial. By the end of the year, you will be years ahead of where you were when you started.
Yes. You will live and take most of your classes with the rest of the student body. While it is true that an Oxbridge major requires more time and greater focus, you can regularly engage in a wide range of college activities, including music, theatre, debate, sports, leadership programs and student newspaper.
Oxbridge alumni are accepted to the most celebrated graduate schools:
Oxbridge graduates enjoy highly successful careers in numerous areas: