Information for Visiting Students
Congratulations on achieving a place on the Visiting Student Programme at Oxford. We look forward to welcoming you to Hertford College and Oxford.
Welcome to Hertford College!
As Director of the Registered Visiting Student Programme at Hertford I would like to warmly welcome you into our college community. As visiting students, you are highly appreciated members of our college, adding to the diversity of our student body. Both our undergraduates and graduates enjoy the opportunity to get to know you and learn about what brought you here and what life is like in universities in different parts of the world.
I would like to congratulate you on getting your place here. You have gone through a competitive application process and you have all done extremely well. It is a courageous decision to leave your familiar surroundings, friends and family in the middle of your university career and travel, not only to a new country, but also to a new and unfamiliar university. Please be assured that there are plenty of people to support you here at Hertford and we will all do our very best to make you feel at home and help you to make the most of the varied intellectual and social opportunities offered by both Hertford College and the University of Oxford.
When you arrive at Hertford College you will be met by our lovely, friendly Porters in the Porters’ Lodge. They will call our Welcome Ambassadors – Hertford undergraduates – who will show you to your room, take you out to a pizza dinner on your first or second night and generally be a guiding, friendly presence on your first days here. During the orientation week, following your arrival, you will meet our visiting student administrator, Emma Budd, who is based in the Academic Office and can advise and support you on all non-academic matters. You will have inductions from our Librarian, Alice Roques, who will introduce you to both the Hertford College Library and to the wider Bodleian Libraries system and catalogue. You will meet our study skills tutor, Dr Catherine Sloan, who runs popular workshops on all aspects to do with studying more effectively and managing your time well. Our wellbeing co-ordinator will tell you about the many sources of help we have in college and the University to support both your physical and mental wellbeing. I will have individual meetings with you all on your first day and I look forward to getting to know you. I organise your academic programme here, meeting you regularly throughout term, and am your first port of call if you have any worries or anxieties about work or life in Oxford.
Hertford is well known as a friendly college, and you will soon make friends with other students in your accommodation. You are members of both the undergraduate body (the JCR or Junior Common room) as well as the graduate body (the MCR or Middle Common room). Both the JCR and MCR organise fun social events throughout term, giving you the opportunity to join in and meet people. Additionally, there are all sorts of societies and sports clubs you can join to have fun and get involved in college and university life. These range from theatre and music and creative writing groups, to debating societies, and rowing clubs.
So, a big welcome to Hertford College! We hope you will be very happy here and we look forward to getting to know you.
Dr Josephine Reynell, Director of the Registered Visiting Student Programme
Term dates
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Michaelmas Term 2024
- Humanities and History Seminar arrivals: Saturday September 7th
- Full Academic Year arrivals: Sunday October 6th
- Term ends: Saturday December 7th. September Seminar students must depart Sunday December 8th
Students here for the full academic year may choose to stay at college over the Christmas vacation or to leave their belongings tidily in their room. Those staying over the vacation may be asked to temporarily move rooms during this period. Please note that college closes completely for 10 days between Christmas and New Year during which catering services are not available.
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Hilary Term 2025
- New Hilary and Trinity Terms arrivals: Monday January 13th
- Academic Year students return for Hilary Term: No later than Thursday January 16th
- Term Ends: Saturday March 15th
Students here for the academic year and two term option do not have to vacate their rooms or can leave their belongings tidily in their rooms over the vacation.
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Trinity Term 2025
- New Trinity Term arrivals only (10-week programme): Thursday April 17th
- Academic Year and Hilary and Trinity Term students return for Trinity Term: No later than Thursday April 24th
- All Academic Year and Hilary and Trinity Term students must depart: Sunday June 22nd
- Trinity Term only (10-week programme) students must depart: Sunday June 29th
Arrival information & travelling to Oxford
Currently, students arriving in the UK no longer need to self-isolate due to the Covid pandemic. We recommend that you keep up to date with the latest UK Government Travel Guidance before travelling.
If you are travelling to Hertford College straight from the airport, the following information may be useful for you to know before you travel.
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Transport from Heathrow
When you arrive at Heathrow, we recommend you use the coach service called ‘The Airline’. This service runs from Heathrow to Oxford and takes around 90 minutes depending on traffic. Visit The Airline website to find out more information and to plan your journey.
When you arrive in Oxford we recommend you alight at the High Street/Queens Lane stop (J1) — all stops are announced over the speakers on the coach. From there Hertford College is only a two-minute walk up Catte Street. Hertford College is on the right directly across from the Bodleian Library. If you alight at Gloucester Green Bus Station in Oxford (the last stop), you can choose to walk, which will take around 15 minutes or catch a taxi.
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Arriving at the college
On arrival at Hertford College, please make your way to the reception area known as the Porters’ Lodge. Once you have informed the Lodge that you are a new visiting student, they contact Dr Reynell or our Welcome Ambassadors and arrange for you to be taken to your accommodation by taxi. If you have any immediate questions about Hertford or Oxford, please do ask them!
Living at Hertford
You’ll be part of our community at Hertford College and get to meet your fellow undergraduate and graduate students. The following information gives you an idea of how to prepare and what to expect.
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What to pack
We do recommend that you pack carefully and don’t bring more than you can mange to comfortably carry. Oxford has plenty of shops and Hertford is in the centre of the city.
The weather here in the UK can be very variable and you should pack accordingly. Bear in mind, many of our buildings are old and not well-insulated in winter and that the weather may be wet at any point in the year. As most people largely walk around the city, please include comfortable shoes. For formal hall, a smarter outfit (no jeans or trainers) will be required.
Recent students have recommended bringing a few comfort snacks or items, a good quality plug adaptor, and noise cancelling headphones.
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Leisure
Hertford College and the University of Oxford have a huge range of clubs and sports with which you can get involved. Please look at the following links to see what is on offer:
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Accommodation
During your time here at Hertford, you’ll be staying in one of our accommodation annexes located a short walk from the heart of our beautiful city and its facilities. Nearby there is the open space of Christ Church Meadow and the River Thames.
All bedrooms are single occupancy but with shared bathrooms and kitchens. Each bedroom has a bed, desk, sink, chair and clothes storage cupboard. Your bed will be made up ready for your arrival, and you will be provided with a spare set of bed linen, towels, and a blanket. All rooms have Wi-Fi. Kitchens have basic cooking equipment for use by the Visiting Students, and you will have two of each of the following in your room: dinner plates, bowls, side plates, cups and cutlery.
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Meals
Whilst at Hertford, you have a termly meal allowance per 8-week term. Once your meal allowance has been used, any additional meals you take in College can be paid for using your UPay account or by debit/credit card. Main meals will cost around £3-£6 depending on the number of courses you purchase. There are also optional, formal dinners that cost from around £10. Further details will be given on arrival.
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Porters' Lodge and mail
The Porters’ Lodge is Hertford’s reception area where you will find friendly porters on duty 24/7. They should be your first port of call when there is an emergency and can assist with general enquiries, including lost keys.
The Lodge is also where all your mail will be delivered. You will have a designated Visiting Student ‘pigeon hole’ (known as a ‘pidge’ for short) where your mail will be put for you to collect. It is not possible to have deliveries to your accommodation address.
The address you should use for all mail whilst at Hertford is:
Name
c/o Visiting Student Programme
Hertford College
Catte Street
Oxford
OX1 3BW
UK
If you are having a parcel delivered, the Lodge will email you once it is ready for collection from the post room.
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Bodleian Library
Libraries will play a big part during your time at Oxford, whether providing access to online articles on your reading list or helping you find that elusive book. The Bodleian Libraries is the library service supporting the University and can help you get the most out of your course. Find out how the libraries can help you by visiting our Getting Started webpage which introduces and signposts you to all aspects of our services. You can also watch our instructive Bodleian Libraries Welcome Video which takes you through the basic steps of using the libraries and finding the resources on your reading lists.
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Glossary of Oxford terms
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Accessing the NHS and UK Emergency Services
If are unwell or have an emergency situation, you can contact the Lodge on 01865 279400. They are available 24 hours a day. Details about how to access the NHS (National Health Service) can be found on How to access NHS services in England if you are visiting from abroad – NHS (www.nhs.uk). The UK police, ambulance and fire brigade can be contacted on 999 in an emergency. For non-urgent situations, the police can be contacted on 101.
Health, welfare & wellbeing
The health and safety of our students and staff is our highest priority.
Please see the attached letter from the College Doctors at the Northgate Health Centre, 15 Market Street, Oxford, OX1 3EF. Students should register using the Campus Doctor Link by 13th September.
It is strongly recommended that you are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 before travelling to Oxford. The more students who are fully vaccinated, the safer our community will be, and the less disruption there will be to your university experience. Please also read the information on the University’s vaccine webpage and this letter from the University’s Student Welfare & Support Services about recommended immunisations.
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Support for disabilities and chronic conditions
Please let us know if you need support or adjustments on account of a disability or a chronic health condition (including physical and mental health conditions or a specific learning difficulty). Please contact our Director of Visiting Students, Dr Josephine Reynell, to discuss arrangements as early as possible. We will work with you to see how best we can support you, in consultation with University’s Disability Advisory Service.
Similarly, you may contact Josephine if you think that you would benefit from additional support as you adapt to student life at Hertford (for example, if you have experienced or are managing a difficult set of circumstances or have received more structured support at school or college). Josephine would be happy to speak with you about welfare and wellbeing support at Hertford. Please address any questions to Josephine via visiting.students@hertford.ox.ac.uk
Finding out more & who to contact
We’ve created an interactive map to help you get your bearings in Oxford: Hertford College sites and transportation are visible but you can see lots more by clicking the tabs on the left-hand side, including shops, banks, healthcare, libraries and directions. You might also like to listen to a guided audio tour of the city and watch our virtual tour of Hertford College.