About the Programme
Participants will be taught by an incredible team of internationally recognised legal experts, gain a taste of the Oxford experience and what it might be like to study at an English university.
The course includes more than 60 contact hours, made up of:
- lectures, taught with the whole programme group
- seminars, taught in cohorts of 12
- tutorials, taught in groups of 4
You will have the opportunity to engage with exciting concepts and practical problems, assisted and encouraged by the tutors who teach Oxford students. Participants will be put into seminars and tutorials with similar levels of experience, to help each group be challenged and develop effectively. This gives you the best a summer school can offer, but with a distinctive Oxford character and in line with Oxford's modes of teaching.
Core Content
The core teaching will be in 8 modules, giving a taste of the traditional bedrock of the law as well as some emerging areas and specialist topics.
Each module will introduce key issues, rules and important debates about law, challenging participants to think deeply about what law is, what it should be, and how to apply it.
The Core modules include:
| Criminal Law | Property Law | Constitutional Law | Contract Law |
| Tort Law | Law and Technology | Jurisprudence | Environmental Law |
Enrichment Activities
We are offering a full package of enrichment activities. They complement the core areas of law, and reach out into new ideas and offer new perspectives. They include:
- Insight into the lived reality of the legal system and how individuals and communities engage with law, drawing on the expertise of the internationally renowned Centre for Socio-Legal Studies;
- Unique introduction to the cutting-edge legal research happening at the University of Oxford;
- Information on careers opportunities;
- Interaction with distinguished leaders in the legal world; and
- Sessions on legal reasoning and legal writing.
Daily Timetable
A typical day will follow this schedule:
*We have pre-recorded half-hour introductory videos, one for each subject day. You can watch them at any time before the Summer Programme starts, but please make sure you watch the relevant introduction video before the day's core lecture.
| *07.45 | Last chance to watch the pre-recorded introduction video for the day’s core lecture |
| 08:15 | Registration with cohort leader, discussion of issues of interest from day before |
| 08.45 | Live "Core" lecture scoping the main area of law for that day and setting work for the seminar |
| 09.30 | Break, with cohort online space open for social engagement |
| 09.45 | 45 minutes personal study; materials to work through for the seminar |
| 10.30 | 1 hour seminar with tutors; 12 students and 3 tutors |
| 11.30 | "Deep dive" lecture going into depth and preparing for the tutorial |
| 12.30 | Break |
| 13.00 | Personal study for half an hour to prepare for the tutorial |
| 13.30 | Tutorial in groups of 4 |
| 14.30 | Break, with cohort online space open for social engagement |
| 14.45 | Themes Lecture, live but recorded, drawing ideas from the day and linking out to wider issues |
| 15.15 | Enrichment lecture on a different topic, live and recorded or pre-recorded |
| 16.15 | Day finishes |
Outcomes of the Programme
- Understand the structure of the UK legal system, roles of key legal actors, legal reasoning and legal culture.
- Have thought deeply about the ideas underpinning key areas of English law in particular.
- Considered, through the enrichment sessions, the full range of what a legal system entails, from cutting-edge legal research to understanding the law in context in its lived and social reality.