Monthly Archives: March 2025

Applying to study modern languages, Events and Competitions, Resources for language study, Student life, Studying at Oxford, Why study languages?

History and Modern Languages Study Day!

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The Faculties of History and Medieval and Modern Languages along with St Hilda’s College, Oxford are delighted to be offering a Study Day dedicated to Year 12 state school students looking to study History and a Modern Language at University/Oxford!

This event will take place on Thursday 29th May at St Hilda’s College.

People punting on the River Cherwell, St Hilda’s College

The Study Day will offer students the chance to:

  • experience academic taster sessions in both History and a Modern Language (that they are studying at A-level or in a brand-new language that they might wish to take from scratch* alongside History);
  • meet and ask questions to current History and Modern Languages students;
  • hear about the History and Modern Languages course and admissions process;
  • meet other students who are interested in studying History and a Modern Language at University/Oxford;
  • visit an Oxford college and learn more about Oxford’s collegiate structure.

Please note, students do not need to be studying History or a Modern Language at A-level in order to attend the event but must have a serious interest in studying the two subjects as a joint degree at University in order to apply.

There is no cost for attending the Study Day and participants will receive a free lunch at the college. We are committed to ensuring that students are not prevented from attending this event due to costs. Therefore, we are pleased to be able to offer financial support to students for reasonable travel expenses to and from Oxford for the Study Day.

Students who are interested in taking part can apply via this form by Sunday 27th April.

In the case of oversubscription to the event, priority will be given to applicants who are currently under-represented in higher education. More information about this and the University’s commitment to increasing access can be found here.

Any questions can be directed to outreach@history.ox.ac.uk.

* Our beginners’ languages courses offer an exciting and rare opportunity for students to engage with a new language and culture for the first time, or to pick up a language they studied at GCSE. The courses are challenging yet rewarding, with many designed to bring students up to A-level standard within the first year.

Applying to study modern languages, Events and Competitions, French, Student life, Studying at Oxford

‘Try Before You Buy’ Days!

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Balliol College is running a series of free ‘Try Before You Buy’ Days over the course of May and June 2025.

These are an opportunity to experience a taste of Oxford undergraduate teaching, with participants taking part in a tutorial having completed and submitted work prior to the event. Students will also take part in an admissions session and college tour with undergraduates. A free lunch will also be provided in the Balliol Dining Hall.

Balliol College, Oxford

The Days are aimed towards prospective applicants of a variety of subjects, but in terms of languages, are open to Year 12 students hoping to apply for degrees with French (starting in 2026). Under-represented groups will be prioritised for this event.

These events are in great demand so applicants must ensure that they are able to attend and can complete the work and return it by the deadline which is usually a week before the event.

More information about the days can be found here and students can register for the sessions at the links below:  

Applying to study modern languages, Events and Competitions, French, German, Spanish, Student life, Studying at Oxford

Modern Languages Summer School

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Applications are now open for Wadham College‘s annual five-day Modern Languages Summer School. The residential will take place at the college, based in the centre of Oxford, from 18th to 22nd August 2025.

Summer schools are designed to give UK pupils studying in Year 12 a taste of what it’s like to be an undergraduate studying at the University of Oxford.  Pupils will take part in an academic programme, live in College, meet student ambassadors studying at Oxford, and receive information, advice and guidance on applying to university. Wadham’s Summer Schools are free and the college will provide financial support to pupils to cover their travel costs.

Wadham are delighted to be able to run these events in-person allowing participants the best experience of life at the university.  The feedback from last year’s Summer Schools was hugely positive with over a third of participants subsequently securing offers to study at the university.

“After the summer school I am much more confident that I would fit in at Oxford and feel like I am more ready to move away from home”

– Summer School participant, 2022

For Modern Languages more specifically, pupils will engage in a seminar series led by Wadham’s language tutors, including language classes in their selected language of study (French, German or Spanish) with opportunities to try other languages as beginners (including German, Portuguese and Russian). Students will complete an assignment on a main topic with feedback from tutors. Pupils will also be able to receive support from current undergraduates and from the College on making successful applications to top universities.   

A Summer School French class

For more information and to apply, click here: Wadham College Summer Schools. Pupils should be studying French, German or Spanish at A-level or equivalent to apply. Applications close on 5th May.

If you have any queries, please contact access@wadham.ox.ac.uk

Events and Competitions, French, Spanish

Reminder: Flash Fiction Competitions

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With just under a month to go until the deadline, there’s still a chance to enter our Flash Fiction Competitions in French and/or Spanish – don’t miss out on your chance to win £100! A reminder of the competition details and how you can enter can be found below…

What is Flash Fiction?

We’re looking for a complete story, written in French or Spanish, using no more than 100 words.

Did you know that the shortest story in Spanish is only seven words long?

Cuando despertó, el dinosaurio todavía estaba allí.
(When he woke up, the dinosaur was still there.)

– Augusto Monterroso Bonilla (1921-2003)

What are the judges looking for?

Our judging panel of academics will be looking for imagination and narrative flair, as well as linguistic ability and accuracy. Your use of French or Spanish will be considered in the context of your age and year group: in other words, we will not expect younger pupils to compete against older pupils linguistically. For inspiration, you can read last year’s winning entries for French here, and for Spanish here.

What do I win?

The judges will award a top prize of £100, as well as prizes of £25 to a maximum of two runners up, in each age category. Certificates will also be awarded to pupils who have been highly commended by our judges. Results as well as the winning, runner up, and highly commended stories will be published on this blog, if entrants give us permission to do so.

Poster for the 2025 Flash Fiction Competitions

How do I enter?

You can submit your story via our online forms at the links below.

FrenchSpanish
Years 7-9Years 7-9
Years 10-11Years 10-11
Years 12-13Years 12-13

Click on the links to be taken to the correct submission form for your age/year group.

You may only submit one story per language but you are welcome to submit one story in French AND one story in Spanish if you learn or study both languages. Your submission should be uploaded as a Word document or PDF.

The deadline for submissions is 12 noon on Monday 31st March 2025.

Due to GDPR regulations, teachers cannot enter on their students’ behalf: students must submit their entries themselves.

Please note that the competition has changed slightly this year. We are now only accepting entries from UK secondary school pupils.

If you have any questions, please check our FAQs here. If these still don’t answer your question(s), please email us at schools.liaison@mod-langs.ox.ac.uk.

Bonne chance à tous! ¡Buena suerte a todos!