Part III of Four Parts: Part I Part II Part III Part IV
Here’s a list of 50 interesting things I learned and observed from a Vancouver / Canadian / North American perspective on the environment, the town, the university, the colleges and Christianity.
COLLEGES
31 Oxford’s system is unique with 38 colleges and 6 permanent private halls. Students apply centrally through the university, but designate their preferred halls. The life of the student then largely revolves around the hall with they live and study and build community.
32 So, the university is a large federal system of colleges and halls. They can’t control the tuition charged. And the university provides an amount to each college for them to provide the education to students. So, colleges need to be quite resourceful in terms of delivering the goods.
33 The federal system of colleges and halls is a great way to promote entrepreneurial activity. Each college needs to define itself uniquely and then attract resources beyond the central university budget in order to thrive. There are some older colleges—Balliol, University, Merton—were founded in the 13th Century and have considerable accumulated resources. The more recent colleges—from the last couple hundred years or so—need to be nimble.
34 Walking around Oxford is like being surrounded by a number of mini castles. Magdalen College, with its impressive structure, meadow and paths—where C.S. Lewis pondered while walking—is a great example. The colleges are built on a quadrangle model. Walls to the outside with the grass on the inside. Interesting note: do not walk on the grass! In Canada, we have enough grass we can afford to lose a few blades—not in the UK.
35 Most of the colleges have a small entrance with a porter and a sign that will say “No Visitors” or “Charge for Visitors” of GBP3 -5. However, if someone is coming with holy and noble intent for “Evensong” (evening chapel service in song, with no sermon and little reading) then it would be unrighteous to either question their motives or to charge them a fee.
36 Each college has a unique history and founding. Some of the older colleges go back, of course, to the founding of the university. Others have a specific focus. Harris Manchester College, for example, only has students 21 and over.
37 The colleges all have a formal hall dinner, usually one night of the week. If you think of Harry Potter you get the basic idea. Long tables of students, standing at attention, as the head table marches in. The principal’s gavel hits the table, an opening prayer is said, and the festivities begin.