Oxford

Oxford is a fantastic location not only for education, but for social life as well. There are museums and tourist sites that are available at walking distance, and hundreds of libraries to access and study in. The nightlife is great too, with plenty of bars and clubs to suit different personalities.

Oxford is known for its historical architecture and for being home to one of the most prestigious university, however there’s much more to oxford than meets the eye. It’s high crime rate and unaffordability makes living in oxford as a student difficult. With cowley being one of the main housing areas for second and third year students you’d expect the crime rate to be minimal in order to promote it as a safe area however with many rapes, cases of violence and burglaries taking place it’s far from this. You’d think you’d hear about this side of oxford before moving here in order to deter students from coming but many students have never even heard of this side of oxford. It’s about time that we expose it for the scary place that it is.

Oxford as a location for university life is pretty perfect. It is small enough to feel manageable, yet had so much going on. The setting is beautiful with old colleges distributed throughout the main town, large park areas for example south parks and uni parks as well as a brand new, modern shopping centre - The West Gate. Whilst the Main Street (George street) from the station hosts many chain restaurants, areas of Oxford such as Cowley and Jericho contain lots of independent restaurants and cafes to suit all tastes. The number of clubs in Oxford is shrinking, with probably 1/2 nights on each day. However there are lots of places to drink, 2 spoons, beer/ale bars, cocktails bars — e.g house, the duke of Cambridge and a new piano and wine bar - Sandy’s. Oxford has now been named one of the most unaffordable places to live and you really do notice this as a student.

Oxford has fantastic architecture yet here is also a lot of greenery. There are masses of food places, all different cuisines. It is swimming in culture. There isn’t a lot to do however. Unless you go punting, there can be a shortage of entertainment

The accessibility of the town to any other city other than London is incredibly poor. Even to go to Cambridge, which is literally 1.5 hours away by car, you’d have to take the train down to London first. The food is good and the town is lovely!

Since Westgate has opened, Oxford has definitely become a location and a half! There’s great views over the city to catch up with friends or do uni work in the sun, and all of the colleges and accommodation are virtually in the city centre if not close to it. Travel around the city is also really easy as the buses are very frequent, but most people cycle. There’s also a great train service there too!

I chose my uni mainly because of its distance from the city and the university itself. And not to mention that it only takes about an hour plus by bus to get to central London.

There are four campus spread across the city and all are connected by a free uni bus service. Shopping is great with the new shopping center, and is only a 20 min walk form headington campus. Night life is ok, there are about 8 clubs in the city center and loads of pubs located near student accommodation

All students are in a few areas and so it's convenient to stay with pals. In oxford there is Great shopping, food and things to do but it is quite pricey

All students are in a few areas and so it's convenient to stay with pals. In oxford there is Great shopping, food and things to do but it is quite pricey

Oxford is a small but perfectly-formed city, with amazing architecture ranging from the lovely old college buildings to more modern buildings like the Maths institute. The city is small enough to walk pretty much anywhere and its green spaces and rivers are beautiful, especially in summer. Living in college as a student means you get to be right in the heart of the city, but lots of students also live in East Oxford which is a fun area with great pubs and cheaper food options. The nightlife isn't great for people who are into clubbing (although the Parkend cheese floor is always fun), but the pubs, bars, restaurants, theatres, cinemas and other quirky places like a board game cafe give you lots of entertainment options, plus there's always lots of social stuff going on at the colleges. The new Westgate centre has added a lot to the city in terms of shopping and eating out. There are also good transport links to London and other parts of the UK.

Really enjoyed myself in Oxford. Isn't as big city as London but everything needed is here and convenient. Public transport is really good too. Prefer Oxford to big cities as its not too busy.

Oxford: Great variety of food, restaurants, cafes, cocktail bars/pubs, night clubs you name it. There really is something for everyone! It is a slightly more student oriented town which meals you should always ask if they’ve got student discount. Great range of shops, some high street shops, mid-range and higher end, plus some indie or cutsy stores to find something a little different. Competitive book stores (again great for students). Plus there’s some culture, including museums, art galleries, cool oxford colleges to see, punting. Also it’s a cycling town so they get priority and there are a lot of great cycle routes to explore - note: if you just want to borrow a bike then they have bike systems stationed around town where you can pick up a bike, pay, cycle and then leave it somewhere else. It’s not the biggest town, but it’s a bit of everything and has some nice countryside and little towns/villages on the outskirts.

Good selection of clubs and one is always open. Literally every possible place you could think to eat at. Bar crawls, walks, punting, museums, clubbing, shopping etc. Value for money is mixed, it’s half student friendly places and half not, rent prices aren’t student friendly though

Oxford is a beautiful city - I always feel like a tourist! But besides the old buildings and streets, there's always plenty to do and see - whether it's eating out, drinks and nights out, or walks and museums. Plus, everything is within cycling (or walking) distance, no need to rely on public transport, it's a real student bubble, but a great bubble!

Oxford is a really nice place to explore, the city centre is visually attractive. A lot of places are in walking distance of each other which is nice and buses also run frequently which can be helpful. The new shopping centre which recently opened Westgate has significantly improved the shopping experience due to the increased options of shops and restaurants. Only downside is that oxford is very expensive

I love everything about Oxford, the nightlife, the feeling when you enter the historic centre, the tourists as well as the student atmosphere. Although Oxford is a little more expensive than some places to live, I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else!

Location is amazing. £10 for return to London valid for 3 months. All student get free bus travel round the city. Which is great because then going for a night out in London is so much cheaper. I prefer the nights in London to oxford as it’s so small.

Really good would recommend for anyone mixture of people when you go out. Nine out of 10 town centre is amazing with clothe shops and everything you meed

Chose to go to Oxford as it's a great town: big enough to have everything you'd want entertainment and nightlife-wise, but not too big that you'd need to get a taxi.

Really Great town to live in, good night life and restaurants but very expensive and the shops weren't great up until this year. As the new shopping centre has just been built

Eating out is quite expensive, but there is a great range of restaurants and you can usually get good student deals! The restaurants on the rooftop of the shopping centre are particularly nice to take friends and family to when they visit!

The food is really good, with various options. If you're in the city centre, George Street is full of places that are just right for a dinner out with friends or cornmarket is full of options for a quick bite. Go a bit further to Cowley road and it's full of Middle Eastern restaurants. Food is never a problem here.

Oxford is a beautiful historic city, there are not many clubs but you are guaranteed fun night out. However food, drink living and activities prices are expensive, even with student discounts. One of the best things is that the city is small and you can walk everywhere.