Workload at Oxbridge - honest feedback please!

[rhubarba]

Hi - I’ve read quite a lot on here about the workload at Oxford / Cambridge being more ‘intense’ than at other universities. I wonder how much of this is self-perpetuating hype and how much is reality? If you have DC at these universities, are they constantly overwhelmed? How bad can it actually be? I was specifically wondering about social science subjects at Cambridge (DD starting later this year). Do they really have to write three essays per week? Is there time to have a social life? How much pressure is there? Please be honest!

@Ericasdog

...and, in keeping with the topic of the thread, is the Oxbridge workload worth it given the above??

Yes. I would rather the regular, individual attention you get at Oxford and Cambridge in their tutorial/seminar system for the thousands of pounds a year all universities are charging for their degrees, than enormous lecture halls, comparatively limited contact time and minimal feedback of most other universities, all for the same price. After all, if the student is not producing much, how much feedback can they actually receive? The most common of student complaints seem to be lack of contact time and feedback for the price of the degree, after all.

Back when DD1 started at Cambridge, we went to a parents' lunch at her college at the end of the Easter term. The master gave a talk and told us that the cost of educating an undergraduate scientist in their college was a little over £17k per year (2017-8). Overseas students subsidise this to some extent. Having seen the contact time DD had and the number of 2:1 supervisions per week, I can well believe it. Whilst it galls me that my degree was entirely tax-payer funded back in the 1980s yet my DDs don't have that privilege, the cost to them is around half of what it actually costs.

Now she is a PhD student there, supervising 1st years and doing lab demonstrations. She still works pretty hard. Her hourly payrate for supervising is only based on her contact time with the students, so although it looks pretty good for a young graduate, when you factor in the prep and marking, it's not fantastic. She also has regular meetings with their tutors to check on their progress and feedback issues. It has given her a whole new appreciation of my teaching career!

Does anyone have any insight into Linguistics v Modern Languages in terms of workload, particularly reading and essays. DD is a keen linguist and very hard worker, but she reads quite slowly. She also really enjoys maths and problem solving, which made me think she might enjoy Linguistics.

Hi @ColouringPencils
At Oxford (not sure about Cambridge), you can only study linguistics with another subject, so PPL (philosophy, politics, linguistics) or linguistics + a modern language.
Workload is similar I think, maybe a little more for modlangs + linguistics than for straight languages, or it seems more because the departments don't always coordinate.
Linguistics also involves biology, and is quite broad at Ox so she has to know she'd enjoy at least the majority of the topics. Although my linguistics friends always seem to have a preference for one branch or another.

Lectures end up less compulsory for languages.

Oh and you have to read just as much I think, just that for modlangs it's primary texts + secondary reading, whereas for linguistics it's more theory.

PPL is Psychology, Philosophy and Linguistics at Oxford (sorry, I looked it up, because although Philosophy seemed a reasonable pairing with Linguistics, I couldn't really see what Politics had got to do with it).
www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/undergraduate/courses/course-listing/psychology-philosophy-and-linguistics

Linguistics on its own is available at Cambridge.
www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/linguistics

Oops sorry! I don't actually know any PPl students, got it mixed up with PPE

@colouringfoxes

Oops sorry! I don't actually know any PPl students, got it mixed up with PPE

I could only think of Philosophy, Politics and Law...

Thank you @colouringfoxes @MarchingFrogs that is helpful