Oxford

Today’s short talk 1. What is PPE 2. Why come to Oxford 3. How to apply to Oxford 4. Questions and Answers

PPE – the course  First year: Set courses in Politics, Philosophy and Economics  Second and Third years: Normally two of the three branches Choose 8 ‘papers’ from more than 70 courses You may choose to submit a thesis instead of an exam paper

Course choices (see Philosophy  Ethics  History of Philosophy  Knowledge and Reality  Plato: The Republic  Aristotle: Nicomachean Ethics  Philosophy of Mind  Philosophy of Religion  Philosophy of Logic and Language  Aesthetics and the Philosophy of Criticism  Medieval Philosophy: Aquinas  Medieval Philosophy: Duns Scotus and Ockham  Philosophy of Kant  Post-Kantian Philosophy  Theory of Politics  Frege, Russell and Wittgenstein  Later Philosophy of Wittgenstein  Formal Logic  Intermediate Philosophy of Physics  Philosophy of Mathematics  Philosophy of Science and Social Science  Philosophy of Science  Philosophy of Cognitive Science  Philosophy and Economics of the Environment  Jurisprudence

Economics  Macroeconomics  Microeconomics  Quantitative Economics  Microeconomic Theory  Money and Banking  Public Economics  Economics of Industry  International Economics  Command and Transitional Economics  Economics of Developing Countries  British Economic History since 1870  Econometrics  Comparative Demographic Systems  Economics of OECD Countries  Economic Decisions within the Firm  Finance  Game Theory  Mathematical Methods  Philosophy and Economics of the Environment  Labour Economics and Industrial Relations

Politics  Theory of Politics  International Relations  British Politics and Government  Political Sociology  Comparative Government  Modern British Government and Politics  Government and Politics of the US  Politics in China  Government and Politics of Japan  Politics in Europe  Politics of the European Union  Politics in Russia and the Former Soviet Union  Politics in Sub-Saharan Africa  Politics in Latin America  Politics in South Asia  Politics in the Middle East  International Relations in the Era of Two World Wars  International Relations in the Era of the Cold War  Political Thought: Plato to Rousseau  Political Thought: Bentham to Weber  Marx and Marxism  Sociological Theory  Sociology of Post-Industrial Societies  Social Policy  Labour Economics and Industrial Relations  Comparative Demographic Systems  Quantitative Methods in Politics and Sociology

Why come to Oxford? 1. Tutorial teaching 2. World class expertise 3. Intellectual development 4. Foundation for the future

Tutorial teaching  Discussions with a tutor with two or three students  Write essays per term  Receive feedback  Experiment with and discuss new ideas

Intellectual development  Organise your time  Prepare for tutorials  Think critically  Present your argument  Think under pressure

Application process 1. Come to see Oxford and choose any college 2. Register to take test 3. Read widely and critically

What do students need? ★ Useful A levels (although not mandatory): Maths and History ★ Predicted A A A at A2 ★ Good GSCE results (for your school) ★ Good pass on the Thinking Skills Assessment

Application process Reallocation Interview 3 x no. of places Redistribution (about 10%) for another interview Offer known by January (TSA results out on 14 th Jan)

How to register for the TSA  Go to: You need to ensure two things: 1. Test centre registration (can take place now) 2. Student registration (via test centre from 1 st Sept)

Thinking Skills Assessment A centre (probably the school) must register the student for the TSA test BEFORE 14 OCTOBER ★ Multiple choice about problems ★ Short essay The TSA tests for critical thinking, problem solving and concise essay writing.

Try the TSA test ★ Download a specimen paper ★ Do the test in the time permitted ★ Do it again! ★ Don’t forget to practice the essay too: see if you can condense your argument to two sides.

Preparing for interviews Read a book and discuss it with an adult (not your parents). 1. Try a book that you have both read. 2. Try to explain a book that they haven’t read.

Good Luck! Next Test date: 9.30am Wednesday 7th November 2012 Do ask questions