Academics

Graduate Program in Liberal Studies > Oxford Summer Program

The Graduate Program in Liberal Studies at Lake Forest College offers its students and alumni the opportunity to live and study at Oxford University during the summer.

Participants will undertake a program at Exeter College, where they will study, live, and dine. A single room with a shared bath is provided for each student. Meals are served in the college dining hall. With the exception of weekend lunches, room and board are included in the program fees.

Exeter College

Courses are offered in two sessions, each lasting three weeks, in July and early August. During a session, a student selects two courses from either of the two Exeter summer programs, English Literature or History, Politics & Society. All classes are taught as seminars by Oxford tutors and supplemented by plenary lectures. Before the program begins, students will be given a list of preparatory readings that they are expected to complete before arriving at Oxford.

Exeter Great Hall

A three-week session of two courses counts as one Lake Forest College course.

Tuition and fees vary with the exchange rate. The amount does not include the costs of air transportation, books, and personal expenses.

Students may also enroll in a session not for credit.

For more details and an application form, contact Carol Gayle in the Lake Forest College M/LS Office (847.735.5083 or gayle@lakeforest.edu).

Applications are due by the middle of March preceding enrollment.

Justin Boley remembers his experience at Oxford:
 
The Oxford program was one of the most enjoyable adventures of my life. I spent several weeks studying and meeting with engaging scholars and prominent public figures, including a member of the House of Lords and the President of Ghana. I found myself working daily with a wide variety of international students. Whether it was sharing a local ale with a history teacher from North Carolina, or taking photos of the chapel with a mathematics Ph.D candidate from Stanford–it was always easy to find interesting debate and stimulating conversation. One of the things I will remember most about my experience in Oxford is the sense of history I felt in the streets and the halls. Although the academic lectures and the weekly debates were surely a great experience in themselves–there is nothing quite like peering through the gates where John Locke took notes, or sharing a meal at the Eagle and Child table where J.R.R Tolkien and C.S. Lewis created their worlds of fantasy.

Nancy Wolters remembers her experience at Oxford:

For three weeks in July, 2005, I lived the life of an Oxford student at Exeter College in Oxford, U.K, where I was enrolled in the Oxford Summer Programme in English Literature as part of the M/LS program at LFC. It turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life.

Passing through the large wooden doorways of this 14th century college, I entered a different world – away from the noise of tourists in the nearby city streets of Oxford and removed from the usual fast tempo of my life. In the cool green quadrangle of Exeter, the world was suddenly quiet – the cooing of pigeons and the sound of bells were occasionally joined by music drifting out of the chapel. My dorm room was plain but comfortable, with a toilet and shower on another floor, shared with the other six occupants in my stairway. Meals were served in the historic dining hall which is reminiscent of a Harry Potter movie. Much to my surprise, the food was delicious!

The two classes I selected were Shakespeare’s Tragedies and 19th Century Fiction, for which I had spent the weeks prior to my departure working on completing the required reading. There were about 100 students in my session – half in English Literature and half in History, Politics and Society. All English Lit students attended the plenary lectures together at 9 am each morning. These lectures were led by prominent Oxford scholars and covered English Literature chronologically, beginning with Beowulf and ending with Modernism, touching on fascinating topics along the way, such as the Hidden Histories of the Oxford Dictionary, Contemporary Fiction, and Oxford in Literature.

Each of my tutorial classes was two hours long and met two days a week, giving me Friday afternoon off. My fellow students and I would often continue our discussions in a local pub after class. The Undercroft, the cellar bar beneath the dining hall, was also open for our enjoyment following our dinners. The college planned optional excursions in the evenings and on the weekends. Many students were teachers by profession and although most of my classmates were American, we had students from all over the world as well. The ages ranged from 20 to 70. In addition to reading and classroom discussion, we were expected to write a 2,000 word paper for each course and so we spent many hours in the computer lab which was open 24 hours a day. Walking along the cobblestone streets, reading by my open window, doing research in the Bodleian Library, I could feel the constant presence of the generations of scholars who preceded me at this very special and unique establishment.

After three weeks of wonderful lectures, great meals, super discussions, new friendships and a lot of hard work, we had our closing reception in the dining hall where we received our certificates. I hated to leave the peaceful stone walls of Exeter. But fortunately, somehow it comes back into my mind every day.