Why Balliol?

See a transcript of the video above.

All graduate students at Oxford are members of a college or hall as well as a department or faculty, and being a graduate student at Balliol College is a particularly rich and stimulating experience.

The Graduate Centre and the Balliol MCR (Middle Common Room)

An important feature of this experience is being part of the Holywell Manor community. Graduates are accommodated in the Graduate Centre, five minutes from the main College site, and at the heart of this is Holywell Manor, a medieval house that is the setting for much of the vibrant graduate social and intellectual life for which Balliol is well known. 

The Balliol MCR (of which all graduates are members) is a very active one. Balliol prides itself in fostering independent thought and high-quality academic debate, and MCR activities at Holywell Manor include graduate seminars, political debates and visits from high-profile speakers – including Dervorguilla Seminars with female scholars. There is also the termly Praefectus’s Seminar, which is preceded by a special dinner with the speaker. Balliol graduates host an annual biomedical symposium; and the biennial Holywell Manor Festival, a day of academic talks, music and performing arts which brings together past and present College members in an exchange of ideas and experiences.

With around 340 students of over 40 nationalities, the Manor community is diverse in ethnicity and subject of study. The MCR committee helps to foster an inclusive and supportive environment, with regular welfare programmes, women’s events, informal meals, and celebrations of national festivals such as North American Thanksgiving and Diwali. It also runs a busy programme of social events, with bops (Big Open Parties), formal dinners, movie nights and cultural outings. You can read more here about the special nature of the Holywell Manor community, captured by testimonials of those who have experienced it.

As a focus for graduate activity Holywell Manor allows Balliol’s graduate students to be an independent body, but they also enjoy the advantages of being part of a large established college, including its 24/7 Library, its central Oxford location, its sports, societies and choir, and its illustrious history. Every graduate student has an individual College Adviser, who can give general academic or pastoral advice and assistance throughout the student’s course of study.

‘Give it a shot. It is totally worth it. A life-changing experience.’ Balliol postgraduate, MJur, in the Student Barometer Survey 2016.

Financial support

One of the most attractive aspects of what Balliol has to offer graduate students is its range of scholarships. There is also financial support available in the form of bursaries and small grants to assist with specific projects or to help with the preparation of theses; and the College has a system of loans and grants to aid any graduates who find themselves in unexpected financial difficulties. For further details, see the Financial Support page.

Accommodation and facilities

The accommodation Balliol offers, at three sites, is another reason to choose Balliol for your graduate studies. Please see the page on accommodation and facilities.

Further information