THE RECORD Online

Spring 2000

My Oxford Experience

by Kelly Fife '00

I went to Oxford, England for the 1999 fall semester to study at Oxford University. Oxford is a bustling, active city about two hours west and a little north of London by bus. Oxford University is made up of 39 smaller colleges, which are each distinct entities. Yet, there are specific functions that the University sponsors, such as lectures and debates at the Oxford University Union. Through the CCCU, I studied in association with Keble College in the northern part of the city. There were 62 students in the program, 35 of whom were from CCCU schools. The others came from a variety of colleges and universities throughout the United States.

My program of study was significantly different from the traditional American classroom experience. Their system is set up based on tutorials consisting of one student and one professor. As they meet for one hour, once a week, the student reads a paper she has written based on the reading list and question given by the professor the previous week. I had two of these tutorials. The World of Romance mainly discussed Arthurian legend, and the second was the Development of Early Church Doctrine to 461 A.D. in which I wrote papers on the major Christian thinkers from the 2nd through 5th centuries. Besides these two tutorials, I also had a seminar class on Reformation Thought with Alister McGrath. For this, we mainly discussed material we read and gave a major presentation to the other students toward the end of the term. The size of the seminar ranged from two to six people. As a member of the program, we were also required to take a general course for the first month with all of the other 61 students. We had two lectures a day with field trips on Wednesdays. The material we covered centered on the Medieval period, but varied from literature to science to religious movements. We visited Bath, Gloucester, Warwick Castle, Wells, Stratford-upon-Avon, as well as several other places. These outings provided a wonderful opportunity to get to know others in the program.

The author (second from left) enjoys a spot of tea with her fellow CCCU
international program students in Oxford, England.

As the British would say, I had a “smashing” time in England. The weather, food, people, places and, yes, sometimes even the studying, was quite enjoyable. England is a unique place in terms of travel because of the varied methods of transportation and the country not being very large. It is relatively easy to get on a train in London and be in Scotland seven hours later. Because of this convenience, I not only visited England, but also Wales, Scotland, the Lake District in northern England, Ireland and France. The weather was beautiful with sunshine almost every day, and from what I heard, this was quite unusual for the fall. I met a variety of English people. While some upheld the stereotype of the stuffy and rather reserved Englishmen, many people broke the mold of what I expected. I was in a college age group at the church I attended, and I felt like part of a family. I’ve made lifelong friendships with people from the program and from church.

One of my most memorable moments while learning was in my seminar with Alister McGrath. Each week he gave a lecture on Reformation Thought at Wycliffe Hall where he is the president of the college. We went to the lectures and then had a discussion afterward. One week during the lecture as I was taking notes, I raised my pen toward my cheek to pause in thought. As I did, the tip of my pen accidentally brushed across my cheek. Normally, a pen mark on one’s cheek would not be any problem. However, unbeknownst to me, the pen had had a glob of ink on the tip, which was now on my cheek. I innocently began rubbing the blue mark off my face. The small glob became a very large blue mark. As one of my friends stated at the time, “You look like a smurf.” The most memorable part of the whole event was looking up to see the smirk on Dr. McGrath’s face as he watched the events unfold.

A question that commonly arises when I talk about England is, “Of the places you visited, which was your favorite?” I must admit that each experience was great in different ways, but if I must choose, I would say the Lake District. I went with a group of five girls to northern England to see the lakes that I had heard were so beautiful. We went in early November when the trees were changing colors. Arriving in Windimere, we traveled by ferry to Ambleside and walked to Grassmere. The mountains, trees, waterfalls, and quaint towns were most beautiful I’ve ever seen. As a quilt of many colors seemed to cover the mountains, the lake reflected the myriad of autumn colors, and we stood in awe of the beauty around us. Our leisurely pace was a welcome relief from the busy schedule of the Oxford academic life. We visited Wordsworth’s home and grave in Grassmere and enjoyed the beautiful countryside before heading back to Windimere to shop. While we shopped, we found out that this is also the home of Beatrix Potter. This was just one many of my memorable experiences across the ocean.

This experience has changed my life in more ways than I can count. It has broadened my horizons, challenged me academically, made me aware of American culture and the conveniences that I take for granted, and given me a new perspective on my faith in God (as well as ways that I may not even realize yet). I highly encourage every student to study abroad for a semester. It doesn’t cost any more than studying at GC (for some places like England you have to buy your plane ticket), and your experiences and friends will give a new depth to your college journey.

Last updated: May 19, 2000