In a talk given on Monday evening an Oxford University spin-off organisation called ‘80,000 Hours’ revealed their calculation that some Oxford students may have a 1 in 3 chance of becoming an MP with 1 out a few hundred students being in with a chance of becoming Prime Minister.

The group tracked the progress of OUSU and Oxford Union presidents between 1974 and 1985 and found that of those who attempted to pursue parliamentary politics, roughly one in the three were elected to parliament. More than one third of the 2010 incoming cohort of MPs studied at Oxford. The research mainly looked into students studying PPE and took into account involvement in societies and organisations like the Union.

They also took into consideration the fact that not all PPE students want to become MPs and instead go on to careers in everything from journalism to law.  With this accounted for, a random PPE students’ chance of becoming an MP if they wanted to could still be as good as 1 in 12, according to the research.

“This research illustrates correlation between PPE students going on to become MPs, but not causality.  We don’t know whether studying PPE over say law or even physics will necessarily give you an added advantage.  All we know is that PPE students are more likely to go on to become MPs,” said Niel Bowerman of 80,000 Hours.

“We are interested in how we can make a big difference in the world with our careers.  Our members want to pursue a wide range of careers, from academia, to tech start-ups, to the charity sector.  Many of our members are also considering pursuing Parliamentary politics.  We did this research to give them an idea of how likely they were to get elected. You are going to spend about 80,000 hours on your career, and so it’s worth spending at least 1% of that time thinking carefully about what you’re going to do and how you can make more impact in the world.”

Evan Lum, President of Oxford University PPE society, to whom the talk was given, was present on Monday for the presentation. He said, “I was at the 80,000 hours talk last night and as much as some people would love to believe that they have a 1 in 3 chance of becoming an MP, this is only if you are Union president. It is just a tiny bit higher for the average PPE-ist, being somewhere around 1/100, which isn’t too bad if you do intend of pursuing this course.”

“Although there a lot of people who come to Oxford to do PPE for academic interests, the course is famous for churning out successful politicians, and as such this would draw many politically minded, ambitious, smart 17 year olds to PPE; who with a good degree, networks and unrivalled ambition, have a good chance of becoming MPs should they so wish.”

Mairi Robertson of Oxford University Liberal Democrats said of the statistics that “it is a disappointing but unsurprising figure. The political class in this country have long since been drawn from stocks of Oxbridge graduates, and while we should not discriminate against a potential MP because they happened to go to a great university, neither should it occur to such an extent that other more-than-able candidates are excluded from the system. Oxford PPEists are not representative of the population as a whole by any stretch of the imagination, which is what one should want from their Parliament.”

“The very idea of a ‘career politician’ is itself problematic. The current culture, where an individual might graduate Oxbridge, work for a think-tank or party affiliate, and then be parachuted into a safe seat – which leaders in all parties are guilty of – is so far removed from the real world that it’s hardly surprising most politicians are stratospherically distant from the average punter.”

Jonathan Metzer, spokesperson for the Oxford University Labour Club, echoed a similar view: “Oxford has always had a reputation for training politicians – just look at the number of ex-Prime Ministers! I suppose this is selfperpetuating.”“The problem is, the social mix at Oxford is not representative of the general population. Students from just five institutions (Eton, Westminster, St Paul’s Boys and Girls, and Hills Road College) send more students to Oxbridge each year than nearly 2,000 comprehensive schools and colleges. Indeed, Oxford University takes the highest proportion of privately-educated students in the country.’

‘Oxford needs to do much, much more to encourage access for the many not the few. The best way to do this would be for every single Oxford college to take responsibility for the management of at least one of the nearly 650 failing comprehensives in the country and turn them into state schools to be proud of. At a stroke Oxford could go from being a bastion of privilege to a powerful driver of long-term social mobility.”

80,000 Hours is a careers evaluation organisation created by Ben Todd, a recent Oxford physics and philosophy graduate, and Will Crouch, a philosophy DPhil student. It provides free advice on how to make more of a difference in the world with one’s chosen career. 80,000 Hours is affiliated with the Oxford University Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, which is a part of the Philosophy Faculty.

David Kuria Mbote, the first openly gay black person in Africa to run for national office outside South Africa, addressed students last Friday at an event hosted by the LGBTQ society.

In his talk Kuria, a senate candidate for the Kenyan 2013 elections, discussed various LGBT issues in Africa including criminalisation laws, HIV vaccination research and media portrayal.

David Kuria founded the Gay and Lesbian Coalition of Kenya (GALCK), an umbrella organisation for multiple LGBTQ groups in the country, with the aim to create more awareness and support. However, in his speech he stressed that they still had a long way to go. He said that if a white gay couple asked for a room at a hotel in Nairobi they would be accepted, however that it would be a very different matter if a Kenyan gay couple were to do so.

The Kenyan politician stated that if elected his main priority would be the removal of structural barriers to HIV prevention, treatment and care. He said that more research was necessary and emphasised the importance of “allies in academia” who could present the opposition with properly researched arguments.

When asked why the LGBTQ society decided to invite David Kuria to speak, Meghan Bailey, who organised the talk, said, “There has been a considerable amount of news coverage on the treatment of LGBTQ people in East Africa over the past few years – most notably the murder of two prominent gay activists.”

She continued, “Members of our society often wonder what they could do to help reduce violence and discrimination towards LGBTQ people in places where attitudes are more hostile than here in the UK. My answer to this has always been to work in solidarity with the local LGBTQ rights movements in other countries, which is why having David speak to the group was so important.”

Bailey witnessed the discrimination against LGBTQ citizens in Kenya firsthand while working for a NGO in Mombasa 5 years ago. She told Cherwell, “Gay men were regularly being refused access to doctors etc; there was occasional violence, even murders, that were going undocumented. It was also becoming popular to have ‘exposés’ in the news – people taking secret cameras into areas where gay men and trans women were known to spend time and then selling photos or videos to the major Kenyan news providers.”

Lance Price, Executive Director of the Kaleidoscope Trust, which invited Mr Kuria to the UK, said, “David is an inspirational and very brave man who is willing to stand up and be counted on a continent where for generations gay people have been forced to keep their heads down or risk physical attack or worse.”

Sandra Robertson, the head of Oxford University Endowment Management, has sharply criticised the standards of the private equity business.

Ms Robertson manages £1.4bn for the university, its charitable trusts and colleges. Speaking at the Private Equity & Venture Capital Association conference in London last Thursday, she called the self-justification and ethics of the industry into question.

She argued that if the industry wanted to continue to raise money, it would have to demonstrate its worth and stop taking undeserved fees. Ms Sanderson said that in the last decade private equity had on generated an average return of only 8.5pc despite buoyant credit markets.

She commented that the industry was comparatively unsuccessful compared to other asset classes such as credit or equities. The difference, she said, was that private equity contained more hidden fees and charges.

“You make it so hard for us to invest and you can’t pretend to be exceptional any more. Times have changed, and in the West we live in a lowgrowth deleveraging environment.

“The industry is at an inflection point. It has gone from a cottage industry to a global industry. Entrepreneurs have been replaced by brands, and partnerships replaced by organisations.

“The industry supports a huge ecosystem, from M&A advisers, debt advisers, layers, accountants, consultants, debt providers, and much more – that is a lot of mouths to feed and that means a lot of fees.”

She described herself as “quite frankly disgusted” by the way in which large companies make money from management fees and not through ‘carried interest’ — payment from investment profit.

Ludovic Phalippou, Lecturer at the Said Business School and expert in private equity said Ms Robertson’s basic message was “clear and correct”, though he suspected her comments had been taken out of context by the media. He explained “in large private equity companies hidden fees are extremely big so they don’t have the incentive to work hard and get bonuses.”

Ms Robertson told the paper the speech “was designed to be heard by an audience who are very knowledgeable about private equity”.

She added, “The comments from the general press seem to have taken things out of context. I do believe that private equity done well is a useful part of portfolios.”

The latest admissions statistics show that more students applied to each Oxford place than each Cambridge one.

In 2011, Cambridge University offered 25.3% of its undergraduate applicants places to study at the university compared to only 17.6% at Oxford. According to official statistics from respective university websites, Oxford received a total of 17,343 applicants, giving 3047 offers whilst Cambridge received 15,344 applications and gave 3879 offers.

The Various university league tables annually rate Oxford and Cambridge differently. For example, the 2012 QS World University Rankings placed Cambridge at second behind Massachusetts Institute of Technology with Oxford down in fifth place. However, the Times 2012 World University Rankings place Oxford at second after the California Institute of Technology, with Cambridge five places behind at seventh. 

One second year Cambridge student commented, “Statistics can be so subjective. Looking at the proportion of offers to applicants shows nothing about the true and varied calibre of students that apply to both institutions. Frankly there are so many fronts where Cambridge is stronger than Oxford and looking at things like this just ignores that fact.”

However some students do not see the two universities as directly comparable due to a belief that Oxford is generally more suited for Arts and Humanities students whereas Cambridge is one better based around Maths and Science. As one second year PPE student stated, “If you’re good at science and staying indoors go to Cambridge. If you don’t melt in the sunlight and want to be able to speak, come to Oxford.”

In recent years, Cambridge have surpassed Oxford’s attempts to increase the proportion of state educated students within the university, this year’s new undergraduates being made up of 63.3% state school pupils compared to only 57.7% at Oxford.

However both universities present roughly equal statistics in terms of male-female split amongst first year undergraduates. One Spanish student claimed that, “To be honest stats are irrelevant. Cambridge is like Jeremy Kyle, I only go there when I want to feel better about my life”.

This latest batch of admissions statistics have not only shown a difference university wide but also at a subject level. In various subjects there is significant discrepancy in the proportions of offers made compared to applications between the two universities. One example is Classics where 54% of applicants were successful at Cambridge compared only 40% earning a place at Oxford. Courses sharing the same title regularly differ between the two institutions.

One second year Classics student from St Anne’s stated, “Classics at Oxford is harder in the sense that it’s really ancient language based whereas at Cambridge it’s basically a glorified English lit degree.

Oxford students studying in Lebanon have been left unharmed but shaken by a bomb attack in the capital Beirut last Friday, which killed eight people. The Foreign Office temporarily raised the country’s listing to a Red Zone last week, strongly advising against all travel in the region.

The classification was revised over the weekend, and downgraded to an Orange Zone. They now “advise against all but essential travel to the whole of Lebanon.” Oxford University confirmed that seven students from the Faculty of Oriental Studies are currently on their year abroad there.

There has been a recent upsurge in violence in Lebanon over the summer. Friday’s bomb attack was particularly significant as Wissam al-Hassan, the head of a government security agency, was killed. The explosion could reportedly be seen and heard all over the city, while that night the streets were empty and all bars and clubs were closed. 

The students were unharmed, and described themselves as being “overcautious.” A University spokesperson said, “The Faculty is in frequent contact with the students and the University is closely monitoring the situation in Lebanon.” Students also received e-mails from the Foreign Office explaining that it wouldn’t be necessary to leave the country, but that they should continue to remain abreast of any developments.

It is as yet unclear whether the University has a contingency plan in place to anticipate any escalation of the situation, in light of last year when students were evacuated from Egypt in the midst of the Arab Spring. Farhaana Arefin, a 2nd year French and Arabic student from Balliol College, is currently living in Beirut on her year abroad.

She and other students are staying in Achrafiye, only a mile away from Sassine square, the site of the explosion. She said, “Sunday was obviously Wissam al Hassan’s funeral, so we were indoors all day. By Monday, the situation on the streets seemed fine. Beirut’s bounced back! Most Lebanese people I’ve spoken to recently have seemed pretty casual; this city has seen far, far worse. I feel safe here again, and, until further notice, definitely plan on spending the rest of the year here.”

She added that this week, students had been more scared “about having to give a ten minute long presentation in Arabic against the sporadic gunfire we could hear around us. For me, life seems to have returned to normal.’

Oxford University has joined a national campaign supporting experiments on live animals for medical research. The campaign was first launched two years ago, initially backed by 41 organisations. Supporters include the coalition government, Cancer Research UK, Arthritis Research UK, Parkinson’s UK, pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline as well as other universities such as Cambridge and Durham.

The campaign justifies use of animals in medical research with claims that life sciences sector develops vital treatments and cures which benefit both animals and humans, stating, “We need to increase understanding of normal biological functions and disease. Where possible, we use cells grown in a lab, computer models and human volunteers. When this isn’t possible, research may involve animals.”

David Willetts, the Science Minister, said, “The Government is committed to working to reduce the use of animals in scientific research, but we do recognise that there remains a strong scientific case for the careful regulated use of animals in scientific research and that this does play a role in ensuring new medicines are safe and effective.”

More than 3.79 million licensed animal procedures were conducted in British laboratories in 2011, with the vast majority being conducted on mice. Public support for animal testing is currently declining, with a poll by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills finding that 66 per cent support it for medical research, a drop from the 2010 figure of 76 per cent.

Many scientific and academic organisations have been reluctant to acknowledge their use of animal experiments due to the threat of being targeted by animal rights activists. Oxford researchers have previously been targeted by arsonists.

The director of the Wellcome Trust, an organisation supporting the campaign, said, “There are understandable reasons why some members of the research community have been reluctant to speak out in the past, in the face of intimidation. The Government has acted firmly and helped build an environment in which it is safer to carry out and speak out about animal research. It is now up to us — funders, academia and industry — to build on this and create a culture of greater openness and transparency.”

An Oxford University spokesperson commented, “The University of Oxford was happy to sign up to this declaration and we look forward to seeing how all parties can take this forward.”

There have been recent disruptions in British animal research after transport firms refused to import animals used for scientific experimentation. Life sciences companies argue that by giving into animal rights activists, they are hindering potentially life-saving research and undermining a £4 billion industry.

However, concerns regarding these experiments remain. Penny Hawkins, senior scientist

at the RSPCA, is worried about a lack of transparency in the scientific community, arguing that they should “not just talk about the potential benefits of research.”

Public attitudes in the latest polls appear to be against the pharmaceutical industry and seem concerned over how effective the regulations on animal testing are, with 33 per cent mistrusting the regulators.

Ms Hawkins commented, “These results reflect a deep public concern about animals who suffer in the name of science.”

The chief executive of the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, Michelle Thew, commented, “We have been requesting transparency on animal experiments for many years, rigorously opposed by the research industry. If, however, they are now serious about favouring greater openness, then it is time they back up their claim by disclosing exactly what they are doing to animals and why.”

Balliol College’s 750th anniversary commemoration ball has been met with concern from JCR members.Issues surrounding ticket costs, white-tie hire, as well as the ball’s ‘opt-out system’ have all caused controversy.

At a JCR meeting last Sunday, Balliol student Will Tummon proposed a motion singling out the “extortionate” requirement for students to wear white-tie, as  well as the potential stigma attached to anyone who chose to opt-out .He called for the JCR to endorse a change to the ‘opt-in’ system and to encourage its members to refuse to pay the ticket price of £150 until financial details were clear. He also pressed for the ticket price to be reduced by at least half for JCR members.

The original motion submitted by Tummon was not passed; however, an amended version, proposed by Sam Ellis and Omid Pakseresht, passed without opposition. The amended motion shared concerns about the ball possibly being too expensive for some students and resolved to work with the college’s Welfare and Housing Officers in exploring financial aid options, such as subsidising some tickets. It also pledged the JCR’s full support to the Ball Committee.

Tummon told Cherwell, “The amendment has made some progress in that it should help advertise the existing welfare provisions available to JCR members who might like to attend the ball but can’t for financial reasons.’

However, he continued, “Perhaps the college might consider chipping in rather more for its own birthday party, since it sits upon an endowment of about £64m, and a large proportion of its students are sitting upon a growing pile of debt. Such an act of fairness might best demonstrate the progress our wonderful institution has made, rather than galvanize the idea of Oxford as exclusive.”

Sam Ellis commented, “The original motion gave the JCR a great opportunity to discuss the price of commemoration balls. The main point to address was that members of the JCR might be priced out of the ball.

”Tessa McGuire, President of Balliol Ball, said that the ticket price of £150 was “justified by virtue of the unlimited food, beverages and first class entertainment that will be provided.” One Balliolite disagreed, commenting, “I think £150 is pretty high, especially given that it’s for Balliol’s 750th anniversary.”

Magdalen JCR members opposed to increased catering charges are spending fourth to sixth Week as ‘hall refugees’, after their motion to go on strike from Magdalen Hall has come into effect

.Meg Trainor, President of the striking JCR, stated, “At the General Meeting on Sunday 7 October, Magdalen JCR voted to go on Hall strike from 22 October until 4 November. As College did not change their position on the charge in the interim, the strike began on Monday. All JCR members have been boycotting Hall, and many have volunteered to provide alternative food options during the strike. On Monday 22 October, JCR volunteers served over 80 portions of homemade lunch and dinner to fellow JCR members.”

The college’s bursary justified the proposed catering charge as a deficit reduction method for the catering department. One option for future students included a termly redeemable £150 charge and an additional termly fixed charge of up to £70. The proposals were rejected by 80% of the JCR, which published a detailed document criticising the charges as, “unnecessary and deeply unfair.” 

Third year PPPist Kate Eccles is serving soup and a roll at lunch for £1. Proceeds go towards a local charity. She said, “We thought that what people needed in this time of crisis was a nice bit of soup… We had a good turnout yesterday; we sold about 30 bowls of soup which was great.”

Magdalen’s Grove D Kitchen has been providing meals from  £3 Third year Chemist Elena Harty, one of the volunteers cooking there, said, “Morale is great; everyone’s doing a great job to make this a success, both in and out of the college. So many other colleges have offered their support and we really appreciate it.”

JCR Presidents at the third week Intercollegiate Presidents’ Committee offered their support. Queen’s President Jane Cahill asked her JCR “to invite a Magdalenite to dinner to quell their hunger, and to make sure they are meeting their dietary requirements and they resist the temptation to break the strike.’