My OSP Experience – A Glimpse into the Oxford Pre College Summer Program

By Liam Edward Thurlow, Virginia, United States

Liam joined our Oxford pre college summer program in 2024. A high school student from Virginia, United States, he chose the Economics and Finance track and quickly became one of the most engaged and reflective voices in his cohort. In the blog below, Liam shares his firsthand experience of what made his time at the Oxford Scholars Programme truly transformative.

My time at Oxford in the Oxford Scholars Program (OSP) was a time I will never forget. From making lifelong friends, to debating at Oxford Town Hall, to flying a plane, every part of my experience was unforgettable and I’d like to share some of my favorite aspects.

The most important aspect of OSP is obviously the curriculum, and let me tell you, it doesn’t disappoint. I was a student in Economics and Finance and thoroughly enjoyed both parts of the class. The fellows/instructors are amazing, the work is fun and is student driven, and the class is not stressful more than it is genuinely enticing. You are there to explore what interests you, not memorize stuff for a test. Both halves of the class involved a student-based project for final presentations, and students are given incredible freedom to decide what to do their projects on (I can promise I would not be allowed to recreate my economics project in a normal classroom). Overall, the classes are great, not stressful, and they emphasize teamwork and genuine interest in subjects.

Now, if you have researched the program, you will know that the extracurricular activities are incredible. As a side note, many activities I enjoyed aren’t scheduled extracurriculars, you are given a great deal of freedom to explore Oxford. There is a great culture of trust between students and staff which allows for this freedom. The staff are incredible and will accommodate almost anything: for religious reasons I needed to miss an excursion, they allowed me to, no questions asked.

Now back to the extracurriculars, my personal absolute favorite thing was flying a plane. I mean come on, flying a plane over Oxford is pretty cool. We also explored the city, found delicious restaurants, went into London, among many other fun things. Because I was doing Economics and Finance, my excursion was to the London financial district where we met with executives at Moodys and Barclays. It was very fun. It was valuable towards my career as one day I might be on the trading floor of Barclays, and that leads me into my final favorite aspect of OSP (there are of course many more but just for this).

The connections, the life experience, the value you will get out of OSP is immeasurable. After my time at OSP, I now have connections all across the world, from Dubai, to Shanghai, to Islamabad, to Al Qassim—I have friends all across the globe. The kids at this program form a special bond with one another. After almost a year, I talk daily with many of my friends who live thousands of miles away from me. On top of enjoying these people’s company, they are also very valuable acquaintances to have. If I’m ever in Dubai and need a place to stay, I know who to call—same goes for all of the aforementioned cities. It is incredibly eye-opening to learn about different cultures, especially for me as an American who lives in a very homogeneous part of the US. My friend Ali David and I still talk almost every day about theology as he is a devout Muslim and I’m a devout Catholic. He had totally changed my mind on many issues as he has a lived experience that I would only get to learn about by meeting him at OSP.

Overall, I’d do almost anything to get back to OSP for the first time. I am glad to have enjoyed my time with a very special group of kids and staff. I hope those who go in the coming years have as much fun as I did.