Plans for admissions tests to scoop the cream of Oxford applicants have sparked fears that students from non-traditional backgrounds will be deterred. With growing numbers of students attaining perfect A-level scores, a new entrance exam (the BMAT) has been introduced for prospective medical students. The admissions department has revealed that Oxford is also likely to introduce entrance tests for Law and other ‘popular’ subjects such as History. It is feared that tests would favour students from schools with a tradition of attending Oxbridge and that richer students could be coached. But with nearly 1000 applicants for 150 places, the University has argued that there is no other way of differentiating between medical candidates. Jane Minto, Admissions Director, said “The current process is not enough. A lot of people who apply are enormously well qualified; it is not possible to differentiate between academic achievements.” Oxford Admissions Coordinator, Dr William James, also defended the decision, saying, “If we took the test results and GCSE grades we could identify that half the applicants had no chance. It would be a kindness not to bring them to Oxford for three days.” But OUSU President Helena Puig Larrauri expressed doubts over the scheme. “The BMAT has a lot of problems,” she said. ’Students in schools without an Oxford tradition will be disadvantaged. It also has a fee, which many students may not realise. This is also a matter of image – we should be working to widen access.”ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

A book worth £15 000 stolen from Christ Church Library has been found in Japan. The 1552 pocket edition of De Humani Corporis Fabrica by the Belgian anatomist Andreas Vesalius is the only book of 73 not recovered from a theft in the early 1990s. The books were all stolen by Simon Heighes, a lecturer who smuggled books out one by one, and later served two years in prison for his offence. The University traced the path of the Vesalius which was first sold on to Sotheby’s by Heighes and bought by an American book-dealer. It was later bought by Shoten Ohi in Tokyo before being privately sold to a Japanese university. Ohi repeatedly ignored letters from Christ Church before he was persuaded to attempt a retrieval of the book. “I’d love to resolve the problem but I don’t like the way Oxford have treated me,” he said. “They treat me like a criminal.” The dispute has turned into a bitter row between the University and Japan. David Morris, Oxford University’s representative in Japan, said: “The case brings shame on the Japanese educational establishment.” Nihon Shika Daigaku, a wealthy private university of dentistry, has acknowledged that it does have a copy of the 1552 book although it has not been confirmed that it once belonged to Christ Church.”ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

Hugo Young 1938-2003 Hugo Young, one of Oxford’s most prominent alumni, was described on his death as “for 20 years – the Guardian”. Graduating in Jurisprudence Balliol College, Young went on to become the Chairman of the Guardian Trust where he became its effective proprietor. His early biography of Margaret Thatcher, One Of Us, was his contribution to biographical writing and established himself as a major critic of Thatcherism. Perhaps one of the most notable things about Young’s journalism was the manner with which he retained the air of social grace that he acquired at Oxford. A spokesman for high culture, he never adopted the tenets of the 1960s cultural revolution as so many of his contemporaries did.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

Lord Blake of Braydeston 1916-2003 Lord Blake was best known as a historian of the Tory Party, and was described as judicious in his treatment of it. Starting off as a student and then tutor in Politics at Christ Church between 1947 and 1968, he later became a Censor (1950-55), Senior Proctor (1959-60), Pro-Vice Chancellor (1971-87) and Provost of Queen’s College between 1968 and 87. His biography of Disraeli earned him a peerage from Prime Minister Edward Heath. At Christ Church he played a major part in representing the College’s interest in the struggle to prevent a road being built across Christ Church meadow. Lord Blake’s distinguished literary career was marked by his Ford Lectures delivered in 1972 which became The Conservative Party from Peel to Churchill.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

Jeffrey Archer chose Oxford University as the venue for the relaunch of his political career. The peer and convicted perjurer addressed a meeting of the Howard League for Penal Reform held at New College on 18th September, suitably entitled “After Crime.” Speaking alongside University academics, Lord Archer proffered his insider knowledge on prisoner drug abuse and the need for incentives to increase education in prisons.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

Two men charged with the manslaughter of a Wadham student have both pleaded not guilty in the latest judicial hearing regarding the tragic event. Appearing at Bristol Crown Court, 44 year old David Aitkenhead, and Richard Wicks, 32, were again released on bail, with no trial date having been set. Kostadin Yankov, a first year biochemistry student, died as a result of injuries sustained when being fired from a human catapult.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003

University academics are to lecture on board the Queen Mary 2, the largest liner ever built, in an attempt to educate her largely North American passenger list on the politics, culture and history of the UK. The Queen Mary 2, due to be launched next January, has set aside 20 000 ft of floorspace for educational purposes, including ‘Oxford Discovery’, produced in liason with the Oxford Centre for Continuing Education.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

The University will remain at the forefront of British vaccine innovation due to the recent launch of a Centre for Clinical Vaccinology and Tropical Medicine. Officially opened on 25th September, the centre will ‘work at the interface between research and clinical practice’ on vaccines for global diseases such as meningitis, TB and HIV as part of the UK’s commitment to reduce the worldwide burden of infectious diseases.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

Ryan Li, Cherwell photo editor, Torsten Henricson-Bell, Cherwell editor, and Clare Bevis, Isis former editor and feature writer, have been shortlisted for the Guardian Student Media Awards 2003.ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003 

Sarah McWhinney names the winners and losers in tenancy deposit disputes… Edd Southerden was in his second year and living out along the Cowley road when he went down to his basement one night to find himself wading around in three inches of raw sewage. “We didn’t realise what it was at first,” he said. “It had filtered through the bricks so all the particles had been left outside. It wasn’t so much poo as poo-juice!” Further investigation revealed that the sewage pipe in his house had become blocked over two years previously, leaving waste accumulating until it forced its way back into the house in a flood of mouldering effluent. Amazing as it seems, stories like this are far from rare in Oxford. Our landlords were recently branded the second worst in the country and the Student Union declares itself regularly deluged with complaints relating to substandard housing and unscrupulous property practice. Most relate to the ongoing problem of reclaiming housing deposits, which are often pocketed by crooked landlords in an attempt to make quick profits. “It seems to be all tactics,” said Nigel Simkin, Vice President of Mansfield JCR, who spent the summer trying to reclaim over £400 of deposit money for each of his housemates and eventually had to resort to the threats of a solicitor. “Students are the worst hit, as we don’t have jobs and can’t afford to lose such substantial amounts. Landlords know that most students can’t afford to take legal action, which leaves them able to take advantage.” Adam Thoday of Homefinders Letting Agents was quick to refute such a claim, calling the suggestion that landlords deliberately withheld deposits “grossly unfair.” “Deposits are categorically not a profit-making part of the contract”, he emphasised. “There are a few cowboy landlords out there, but then there are anywhere.” But are landlords really to blame? Perhaps not. Kate Davenport, of University of Oxford Administration and Accommodation Services, suggested that the delay in returning deposits and the seemingly unjustified costs often seemed to stem from letting agents rather than landlords themselves. But Adam Thoday contradicted her, pointing out that as regulated bodies, letting agents are often a safer option than landlords operating on a freelance basis. “Landlords tend to be after quicker profits,” he said. “As part of the National Approved Letting Service and the National Association of Estate Agents letting agents are bound by the rules, unlike landlords.” Rosie Buckland, OUSU VP (Welfare), blamed the problem on the lack of an independent third party to regulate the exchange of money throughout tenancy deals. “Unlike many university cities, we don’t have an accreditation scheme, which leaves students vulnerable to dodgy landlords,” she told Cherwell. OUSU are attempting to free students from this situation with plans to institute a housing bank – a website where students can search the database for landlords and letting agents and read the accounts of previous tenants. “This will free tenants from the landlord spin,” said Buckland. Edd Southerton and his housemates blamed the University for their predicament. “Colleges owe a responsibility of care to their students which they utterly fail to fulfil,” said Edd. Asked whether he had found the University Accommodation Offices helpful, he replied, “Not really – most of our information was got through the Citizens Advice Bureau.” Premiere, who deal with the Cowley Road area, expressed surprise at the ranking, saying, “We do a good job and most of our tenants are happy.”ARCHIVE: 0th Week MT2003