Thursday saw the students in Jowett Walk fully engaged in the city. After a morning of lessons, the students split into separate parties to explore for themselves Oxford and one of its cultural jewels.
One group of students went on a Scavenger Hunt around the city centre, with tasks to find different places and objects, and perform different actions, while exploring the town. The event was tremendously popular: Max, from Poland, said that it was his favourite thing so far, and that he especially enjoyed finding answers to the clues scattered across the city. The game was tightly contested and ended with ten students receiving a prize of sweets— but as they later shared them with their friends, nobody was disappointed.
Others headed to the Ashmolean Museum, one of Britain’s finest collections of artefacts and art, housed in a grand 17th-century edifice not far from the Eagle and Child, the pub frequented by CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien while they discussed their literature. The students at the Ashmolean also took the chance to head to the museum’s underground café— and, with the weather outside the warmest it has been so far, the coolness of the drinks and the vault was pleasant.
Business students were excited today to register their companies, indicating on their papers the shareholders, managers and the company name. The task ahead of them remains one that will require all their wits: they must now focus on their business plan and begin to contemplate fundraising and their profit margins. There are some very inventive project designs, including one for a multi-purpose GPS app, and another for a fire-response guidance program. The students are extremely passionate about their projects, especially Elton, from the Canary Islands, Athenae, from Greece, and Dylan, from the US— and they were happy to offer business advice to Rebecca, one of our counsellors!
In the evening, the students returned to Jowett Walk for a night of activities, including the ever-popular sports on the Balliol fields (yesterday Frisbee and a game of football).