<p>My daughter is interested in applying to Oxford. We've visited, she's in LOVE with Europe and it's culture and history and Oxford in paticular. I love the 3 year program, she loves the idea of tutorial learning. It's just a great "fit". She has the stats they're asking for in order to be competitive. </p>
<p>BUT...she is interested in both philosophy AND music. I know there is no basic/core curriculum like there is in the U.S. But I also know they have "clubs" (drama/choir, etc. ??).</p>
<p>One page of Oxford's website describes the college life by saying you'd select 1-3 areas of study (or something like that).</p>
<p>Who here attends Oxford and can describe what that really means? Is it like a double major, or a major and minor? Or can you really NOT do that...it only means 1-3 areas WITHIN your concentration of study. </p>
<p>If she was accepted to the music program...she CANNOT take philosophy classes or vice versa?</p>
<p>There are a few courses that are "joint" - for example, English and History or Philosophy, Politics, and Economics. The rest are single-school. One does not take "classes" - but a mix of tutorials, language seminars (as necessary), labs (as necessary), and lectures.</p>
<p>Your daughter could apply for Music, but there is no Philosophy course. There are, however, courses in Philosophy and Theology, Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, Philosophy and Physics, and Philosophy and Modern Languages. She would be able to informally sit in on lectures in any other discipline she chooses - but given the focused nature of her program and the lazy nature of college students, this is uncommon. </p>
<p>If your daughter is a member of the class of 09, however, now is a bit late; Oxford just sent out its final decisions - the deadline was October 15th.</p>
<p>I applied to Cambridge, not Oxford, but I have a couple friends who tried Oxford, and what you have to realize is the process is so different from America. You must send in an international interview form by September 20th which is an application unto itself, and they care nothing for ECs at all. They prefer you to have 3 AP grades of 5 in a subject related to what you want to study BY THE END OF JUNIOR YEAR. That;s what my interviewer told me, even if they say that you only need 4/5s or can use 3 SAT IIs they really want the AP grades and they want them before senior year. Also they claim they only want 1400/2100 on SATs but again, the interviewer told me that they really want 1500. And you only study the subject you apply for, nothing else. so if you want, say, math, you can never just be like "oh, i want to learn french, maybe take a beginners course". And the going rate for acceptance is tough for internationals: 10% at Oxford and even a little less at Cambridge. But if you want it go for it - just be warned, you have to start the process VERY early, and know EXACTLY what you want.</p>
<p>This is a link to the Oxford course list. If the combination your daughter wants isn;t there, she can't study it. End of discussion. That is how it works. You sign up for a 3 years course in it's entirity. You cannot usually change your mind. Within each course there are some options, but you cannot choose options outside of your course. You are welcome to attend any lectures you like, as ajadedidealist said, but you only sit exams for the course you are registered for. Nothing else counts. The terms "minor" and "major" mean nothing. You do one course and that's it. There are a million "societies" but these are what students do in their spare time (like ECs, but in the UK it's ok to do them for fun, not as a competitive enterprise). These do not count towards any qualification.</p>
<p>My personal opnion is you must be VERY sure of your course of study to enjoy Oxford, and to even get past the interview. It is all about being focussed on your subject. The ideal "well-rounded" American student is the worst possible candidate. If your daughter is not sure I would strongly advise her NOT to apply to the UK. She can do a year abroad at Oxford through many American colleges where she can take the major and minor she wants.</p>
<p>Thanks to all for your help. My D has a 4.5 gpa, taking 8 A/Ps and had 4s in 9th/10th, expecting 5s from here on out, 2250 SAT. So, while she's probably borderline, she should be at least competitive. Same on the music front. I know it's a long shot. I was just confused a bit about the concentrations. I've POURED over the university's website. But there is a page that speaks to "selecting 1-3 fields of study and concentrating only on those". So I wanted to clear that up. Perhaps it's just their way of defining "PPP", for example. Thanks all.</p>