I'll be easy spot, the guy with the hat begging for change with a Monty Python accent saying: "Alms for an ex-undergraduate?"

kidding. ;)

Excellent... on a slightly related note, does anybody know how much preparatory reading is advisable for the Jurisprudence course? I'm about to head overseas for a holiday before I arrive, and want to know if I should pack some (not so light) reading to accompany me!

Hi all,

do you know if we will have essay assignments and hence have to stay in Oxford during the breaks? Will colleges normally offer accommodation for the whole 9-month period? Thanks for your advice.

Any one heard anything? Anye news on reading?

Does anyone know anything about the insolvency course at oxford? Who takes it? As it wasn't offered last year, I am finding it difficult to find any information about it. The handbook on the webpage still seems to be the one from 2005/2006. Thanks!

Alistair:

I did the BCL in 2004/5 and can advise that the Con Theory course in my year was, quite frankly, dreadfully dreadfully taught. There was no structure to speak of, there appeared to be no purpose to the seminars (which quite often were led by invited DPhil students, and would then be hijacked by other DPhil or MPhil students with similar research interests), and tutes were quite often a joke. If the composition of the teaching team has changed, then the story may be different this year. But if it hasn't, it'll be a great pity because the topics in the syllabus (or what passed for a syllabus in my year) are so interesting in their own right. I came from a public law background, and taught the subject for two years at my old university - but the Oxford Con Theory course effectively killed whatever inherent interest I already had in the subject-matter to begin with. In fact, it was my lowest scoring exam in the BCL Finals!

Best to see if you can get an opinion from someone who took the course in 2005/6. Better yet, get to Oxford and see if you can attend a couple of initial seminars. I don't think you have to pin down your courses right off the bat.