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Last day in Oxford...

by Natalie Ilott, Edith Cowan University

Friday 13 August


Another week has flown by and unfortunately my time in Oxford is drawing to a close. This week has been just as, if not more, intense and demanding as the first, with a typical student-like last minute rush to finish my paper and presentation for Wednesday morning (I didn’t make it to bed until 2am!). This week’s seminars and lectures have lived up to the first week’s and as I walked away from my last seminar this morning it struck me how strange it is going to be not to see everyone on Monday morning. As some of my classmates have described it, it feels like we have been living in a bubble these last two weeks, with our days so structured and centred within the College. But unfortunately that bubble is about to burst as we all start preparing for our travels after Oxford.



As well as being very studious, I also managed to see a little more of Oxford this week, visiting the Covered Markets (where they do amazing pies and milkshakes), the centuries old Bodleian Library, Christ Church College (which contains the Great Hall where scenes from Harry Potter were filmed), the house where author J.R.R. Tolkien used to live and Blenheim Palace (the birthplace of Winston Churchill). Although I’m feeling a little worse for wear after last night’s celebrations (down at the local Royal Oak and out for some dancing) I am planning to head into the city centre for some last minute shopping and to pick up some souvenirs.


Tonight will be the farewell dinner, how time flies, it doesn’t seem that long ago that we were meeting each other for the first time, all filled with expectations and hope for what the two weeks would hold. Now we can look back and reflect on what we have gained from this incredible experience. I’ll save my individual reflection, however, for my final blog, but right now it’s time for one last walk into the city, now where's my trusty umbrella?...














Natalie Ilott is the Study Abroad/Exchange Officer from Edith Cowan University. She travels to the University of Oxford summer school courtesy of the University of Oxford, AirAsiaX and AIM Overseas.



Read Natalie's other posts on her Oxford experience:
And off to Oxford I go
Welcome to Oxford
I survived the first week
Lessons from Oxford

I survived the first week at Oxford!

by Natalie Ilott, Edith Cowan University

Sunday 8 August

It’s Sunday evening and I am on my third cup of tea for the day as I relax in a comfy chair in one of the High Street cafés and attempt to make a start on my essay. I frustratingly write and rewrite the first paragraph several times before I decide instead to update my blog…


Well what a week it has been. My days have been filled with thought-provoking seminars on African politics, plenary lectures given by Oxford scholars who are leaders in their respective fields followed by four to five hours of self study in the library. The Oxford ethic is intense and the amount of information you are expected to take in is, at times, a little overwhelming. But if I am feeling somewhat challenged then I am also feeling immensely inspired. The professor is impressively accomplished, although I am learning as much fromthe regular dinner table conversations as from the seminars (well not quite as much!). My classmates are themselves an elite bunch, completing their Masters, PhDs, working in government positions, for NGOs and a range of other interesting occupations.

St Antony’s College is easy to settle into and the college library, at least, is starting to feel like home. The weather has been pretty average, and by that I mean grey skies and drizzle, but today the sun was out in full force and the skies were blue for most of the day (my prayers have been answered!). After a fairly routine and focused week I have managed to get out and explore Oxford this weekend, along with all of the other tourists who seem to have invaded the city. It is quite a small, quaint place with the different University Colleges scattered throughout. Carfax Tower, the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford Castle, the Alice Shop and the Botanic Gardens are just some of the sites that I have taken in, as well as a quick punt up the Oxford canal, a typical English afternoon tea of jam and scones and a ½ pint of lager at the Eagle and Child pub. I am feeling like a right Brit!

Although I still have a paper to hand in and a presentation to give, I am proud that I have made it through this first week, and on that note I finish my cup of tea and turn my thoughts back to my essay…





Natalie Ilott is the Study Abroad/Exchange Officer from Edith Cowan University. She travels to the University of Oxford summer school courtesy of the University of Oxford, AirAsiaX and AIM Overseas. 

 Read Natalie's other posts about her Oxford experience:
And off to Oxford I go
Welcome to Oxford
The last day in Oxford
Lessons from Oxford

Welcome to Oxford...

by Natalie Ilott, Edith Cowan University

Sunday 1^st August

After a very seamless 21 hours of travelling I eventually arrive in London, largely well rested thanks to the comfort of the new flatbeds on AirAsiaX, how will I fly Economy again?! The train ride to Oxford is also rather uneventful, a bit of last minute reading and some silent prayers to the weather gods in hope that the English sun will make at least some appearance in the next two weeks. And then I find myself standing (expectantly) in front of the arched wooden door that is the entrance to St Anthony’s College. This is it…

After the administration side of my arrival is complete I am left to move into my room, located on the third floor of an old building. As I drag my belongings up the three flights of stairs I quietly thank my sister for not allowing me to bring the bigger suitcase I wanted! My room is huge with a view overlooking the narrow lane outside, and as I unpack my clothes and textbooks I start to think that it may not be so difficult to find my student roots again.

After a quick power nap I am able to meet and mingle with the professor and other students in my program at the orientation session and welcome dinner, we turn out to be an eclectic bunch of cultures and backgrounds, which should make for some interesting discussions in our African Politics seminars. If first impressions are anything to go by I think I am definitely in for a very inspiring two weeks.

It’s not long though before jetlag starts to set in and I am falling asleep to the sound of the bell tower across the road chiming out the ninth hour. Welcome to Oxford….

Natalie Ilott is the Study Abroad/Exchange Officer from Edith Cowan University. She travels to the University of Oxford summer school courtesy of the University of Oxford, AirAsiaX and AIM Overseas. 

 Read Natalie's other posts about her Oxford experience:

And off to Oxford I go
I survived the first week at Oxford

The last day in Oxford
Lessons from Oxford