The majority of undergraduate and graduate students apply to OSAP for Associate Member status, for which a minimum of 3.0 GPA is required. Many North American campuses have indicated a preference for this status because the fees are lower but with the high academic quality assured by OSAP. While Associate Members are not degree candidates at Oxford University they are taught to the same standard by Oxford tutors who normally teach degree candidates. Students with Associate Members status may enroll for one term, two terms, or the entire academic year.
Associate Member status for undergraduates also offers affiliation in the Junior Common Room (JCR). The Junior Common Room is the equivalent of the Student Union of each college at Oxford University. Graduate students with Associate Member status will be affiliated with the Middle Common Room (MCR) of an Oxford college where they can socialize with Oxford University graduate students.
By prior arrangement, these students are academically supervised by their U.S. home colleges, not by their college in Oxford.
Within Associate Member status, OSAP remains responsible for discipline and pastoral care, not the Oxford college, although all visitors must follow the rules of the college (please see the OSAP “Regulations and Waiver”.)
Normally, Associate Members take one primary course of 9 tutorial meetings per term, and one secondary course of 5 tutorial meetings per term. Provided that the standard tutorial regime is completed, the average Associate Member is recommended to receive 14 U.S. semester credits for each term they study in Oxford.
For more information on choosing your Oxford tutorials, click here.
Prior to departure, it is important to get approval from the study abroad office and academic department of your home campus to ensure the credits you earn while studying with OSAP transfer toward the degree from your home campus. This credit transfer approval process is and must be entirely the responsibility of the student. If your home campus requires a transcript from an accredited North American institution of higher education OSAP may be able to arrange for one from our American school-of-record, provided that it is applied for well in advance.
Given the components necessary for each transcript, and the potential time it takes to compile each transcript and receive the necessary approvals and signatures, students are advised that transcripts are typically issued 5 to 7 weeks from the end of the term, at which point a hard copy is sent both to the student’s permanent address and to their home university registrar.
For more information on academic credit and transcripts, click here.
For a current listing of the full-length terms available to Associated Members, as well as the relevant dates and fees, click here.
For a current listing of the shorter, summer terms available to Associated Members, as well as the relevant dates and fees, click here.
To begin or update your Associate Member application, click here.
Students who wish to apply for Associate Member status should use our online application and indicate their preference for Associate Member status. A complete online application will include the submission of:
Once the application is complete, and all supporting documentation received, the OSAP Academic Director, with the assistance of the Academic Advisor, will review the file and will make a preliminary decision to accept or reject the applicant. The file is subsequently passed to the Senior Tutor, who will make the final admissions decision. The decision of the Senior Tutor is final.
OSAP has accepted students from over 600 colleges and universities since 1985. In some cases, the home college vets the applications for OSAP before their students are allowed to apply directly to OSAP (please check with your study abroad advisor).
If the student is accepted, he or she is notified of the decision (usually within two to four weeks of completing an application), and OSAP issues an acceptance letter.
Associate Members who wish to stay in Oxford for more than two terms (i.e. for six months or longer) are sponsored by OSAP for a Tier 4 General Student Visa on behalf of the Oxford University college.
To begin or update your Associate Member application, click here.
"I enjoyed my tutorials immensely and think this system of teaching to be one of the best I have ever encountered. It allowed me to become more interested than I have ever been in my subjects."
"My academic program was excellent. Much more work than expected. My law and ethics course was amazing--definitely worth the work...I wrote 13 essays!"