Monday 20th October 2025

Opinion

Dear summer school snobs, please pipe down

You might not like it, but in an era of rising financial pressures for the university sector, summer schools are not just harmless – they are essential.

Embracing AI undermines academia

By facilitating copious AI usage, the University fails to deliver on its centuries-long tradition of encouraging original thought. 

Let’s critique what protesters do, not who they are

I may not agree with all of their tactics, but I am grateful for those who make sure that our University is on the right side of history.

Outreach shouldn’t stop at Hadrian’s Wall

In a Britain that claims to be a “United” Kingdom, having only two-dozen Scottish state schoolers at its best university does much to foster division.

Mo Farah – How Britain’s greatest athlete enhanced his legacy even further

Farah’s hope in revealing his story is that people sit up and take notice

The Trade Union Scare

It is also worth asking: how can workers respond to unjust circumstances and work conditions if their demands are largely ignored?

The Complicated Legacy of Shinzo Abe

Abe’s most cherished goal was to revise Japan’s ‘pacifist’ constitution; a goal he never achieved.

Writing on the Filing Cabinets: A State School Student’s Response to Emma Duncan

"The implication that our [state school students'] presence is a threat to upholding the average IQ here is unbelievably condescending."

Elizabeth the Last: What next for the monarchy?

"Is it right that our national anthem reveres nothing but our monarch? Is there not far more to our country than that?"

The University must take a look at itself before dishing out trashing fines

While climate change is at the top of the University's agenda in research and development, the University seems to have little qualms about accepting funds from the world's mega polluters.

The changing role of Christianity in British society

In 2018 a survey found that 70% of young Brits aged 16–29 had no religious affiliation. Yet the country as a whole remains firmly...

Love and patriotism: A critical reflection on the Jubilee

As Jubilee weekend approaches I am conflicted. Many on Sunday will be celebrating their affection for our nation, and I should make it clear...

Free speech and genuine questioning: Is the Oxford Union failing us?

"denied the opportunity to ask a question, I heckled Singer with disgust over the ‘soft-ball questions’."

The unbearable lightness of grieving

CW: gun violence, murder, terrorism This morning, I woke up to the news headlines about the mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas:...

Why the latest BBC cuts are the most dramatic yet

Nadine Dorries, the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, has made no secret of her dislike for free and independent media...

Party to privilege, and privileged to party: College balls and socioeconomic exclusion

"Balls are a manifestation of the hierarchical independent school culture that persists in Oxford."

In between practicality and principle: a partial observer’s advice for the French left

"When faced with unity or annihilation, it is time to put aside minor differences, and think about ultimate aims – if not for ourselves, then for those who will suffer under the opponent’s policies."

Calorific damage

CW: calories, eating disorders Many will be aware of the public concern which erupted when the government passed legislation making it compulsory for eateries with...

Conditional allyship? Queerness and censorship in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

CW: queerphobia Many gay people go through their teenage years realising who they are and, more often than not, coming to believe that it makes...

Oxford isn’t designed to change

"Oxford is doing what it is designed to do: reconstruct and renew Britain’s elite first, act as an educational institution second."

Access fatigue at Oxford: Letting ‘them’ in and letting ‘them’ down

"...my own feelings towards outreach are a lot more complex than they were when I first started."

Oxfess: Why the fixation?

Let’s imagine it’s night-time, you’ve settled in for an early one after a long old day, and you decide to innocently scroll through the...

What’s in a name? The social inequality attached to where we go to school

"If you go to a school with a widely known ‘name’ then, whether you want it or not, people perceive it to be one of your characteristics."

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