Physics

visiting students

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Physics at St Edmund Hall offers Visiting Students the opportunity to study a broad range of topics in physics through Oxford lectures and tutorials.

Programme Information

Programme structure
Choosing your courses

Programme structure

Physics tutor Professor Philipp Podsiadlowski giving a talk on gravitational waves

Due to the nature of the course, applicants who apply for a full academic year will be given priority.

The Physics course at Oxford, based in one of the most diverse Physics departments in the world, aims to take students close to the existing limits of knowledge in many aspects of the physical world.

Visiting Students can normally study at the level most appropriate to their previous academic experience; Visiting Students spending their third year at Oxford will often slot into the second-year Physics course. Students with the appropriate background may instead take selected third-year subjects.

Students studying Physics as their sole option will normally follow a programme across Michaelmas, Hilary and Trinity Terms. Visiting Students taking Physics as a Minor may instead select one subject per term from the available options.

Visiting Students normally do not take the laboratory (practical) course while at Oxford, and are expected to fulfil their laboratory requirements at their home institution in other years.

We expect all visiting students to take part in a short course in Hilary Term on presenting scientific research. This assessment does not always translate into credit with the home institution, but is considered a core part of training at Oxford.

Trinity Term is also a time for revising all the physics learnt in the year in preparation for end-of-year exams. Assessment is based on the whole year, including written work, tutorials, and tests.

Choosing your courses

Physics can be taken as either a Primary or Secondary subject.

For Visiting Students taking Physics as a Primary subject, please write ‘Physics’ in the relevant terms on the Visiting Student application rather than listing individual subjects. For Visiting Students taking Physics as a Secondary subject, please select from the below list of subjects, one per term. Your final subject list will be agreed in consultation with the tutors.

The list of subjects below is indicative rather than definitive, as the timing and availability of courses, particularly the short options in Trinity Term, can change from year to year.

Students wishing to take third-year courses should already have a background comparable to completion of the second year of the Oxford Physics course. Students may also omit some Physics subjects where they wish to take a non-Physics Minor subject alongside Physics.

Full details on physics course and background information on Physics at Oxford can be found at the Department of Physics website, and in particular the Physics Undergraduate Course Handbooks linked to the undergraduate course website. The Course Handbook includes detailed syllabi as well as when subjects are typically offered in a given year.

Visit the Department of Physics website