During my first year, I had around 10-12 lectures per week, with 2 or 3 every weekday morning. It was an early start most days with lectures starting at 9, but Oxford is such a beautiful city, so it’s nice to be up and about! In the afternoon, I had a tutorial, a class, or did some work. Despite the high number of contact hours, I still had time to hang out with friends, get involved in college life and university societies, and learn to row!
Every Friday we had a day in the lab, where we’d do practicals. Some of my favourites included studying the effect of metabolic poisons on mitochondria, and sythesising antibiotics. Once a term we also did shadowing, where a postdoc or DPhil student showed us the research they were doing in a lab in the biochemistry department, which was a great opportunity to see what we could do in the future!
My second year has so far consisted of lectures online (because of COVID-19), usually 2 per day. We’ve had one practical in the lab over 2 days, and a few online ones, based on immunology and molecular modelling. Every week I write an essay for a tutorial, and sometimes we get tutorials from tutors in other colleges that have different areas of specialism, so you’re always learning from someone who is an expert in their field!