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“St Catherine’s has a fantastic community among its undergraduates, postgraduates and staff. I cannot recommend Catz enough to prospective students who are thinking about applying.”
Liam, DPhil Geography and the Environment
St Catherine’s College (known as ‘Catz’) has one of the largest graduate intakes of all of the colleges admitting both undergraduate and graduate students. We admit students from a wide mix of disciplines and backgrounds, which makes our community a particularly lively and stimulating place to study, socialise and live.
Since its foundation, Catz has aimed to integrate graduates closely into the academic and social life of the College. The focus of graduate life in the college is the Middle Common Room or ‘MCR’ on the top floor of the Ainsworth Graduate Centre.
The Ainsworth Graduate Centre, completed in 2020, provides a new hub for our graduate community. It is a multi-functional building housing the MCR, seminar rooms and versatile spaces for study and events.
The MCR is also a term used to describe the graduate student body, which provides support and advice for peers beyond the regular academic structures at Oxford.
The MCR committee represents the interests of graduate students at Catz, and offers a multitude of academic, social and sporting events for graduate students, including a weekly special graduate dinner in Hall and regular graduate seminars. The annual Graduates’ Dinner takes place in May. Graduates are also members of the undergraduate Junior Common Room (JCR) and have access to all its facilities.
With over 400 members of many different nationalities, the Catz MCR is one of the liveliest and most stimulating graduate communities in Oxford.
“Social events in the MCR and affordable dining in the Hall lead to great interactions, providing a family-like environment. Also, the gym and the availability of weekly yoga and meditation sessions are helpful for great physical well-being. I don’t think I would have got so much care in any other college.”
Viveka, DPhil Engineering Science
Graduate study at Oxford is a distinctive experience: all graduate students are members of both a department or faculty and a college. This allows graduates to experience studying in both a large internationally-renowned institution and a smaller college community.
Students must be accepted by the relevant department or faculty before they can be considered by a college. Please see the University’s online Graduate Prospectus for a list of available courses, information about fees and funding, an Application Guide, and an online application form. You can state a college preference on your application form, or if you have no preference, can allow the system to do this for you. If you have any enquiries about studying as a graduate student at St Catherine’s, please email us.
At Catz, we are happy to consider applications for any programme of study offered by the University, but subjects related to the interests of the College Fellows are especially encouraged.
Our Tutor for Graduates, also a Fellow of the College, is responsible for the interests and welfare of graduate students at Catz. All graduates are also allocated a College Advisor (in addition to their University Supervisor) in or near their subject field. College Advisors will be able to offer support and advice to their graduate students.
