[HDNG]INTRODUCTION:[EHDNG][PARA][BULL] Formerly Oxford Polytechnic[EBOLD][PARA][BOLD]For general information about Oxford: [EBOLD]see [ULNE]University of Oxford[EULNE].[BOLD] [EBOLD][ITAL]Oxford Brookes is unlike its famous neighbour in many ways. Despite being in the same city of ivory towers and dreaming spires, Oxford Brookes dodges any of the dusty stuffiness of [ULNE]Oxford University[EULNE]. The students, however, are just as partial to punting pissed, falling in the river and strolling through Christchurch meadows.[EITAL] It has 3 modern campuses: the main Headington site at Gipsy Lane is 1 mile outside Oxford's centre in the suburbs,[ITAL] [EITAL]away from that hazy churn of academic ritual[ITAL].[EITAL] It is compressed into a [ITAL]cramped [EITAL]11 acres of 60s blocks of glass and concrete ([ITAL]but is not as bad as it sounds[EITAL]). The newest site is Headington Hill Hall, a 15-acre estate which used to belong to Robert Maxwell, just across the road from Gipsy Lane. The other site is at Wheatley, housing the education and business courses on its 65 acres, 5 miles further out into the countryside.[HDNG]ATMOSPHERE:[EHDNG][PARA][ITAL]Oxford is so geared towards students that it would be a sad student who failed to enjoy themselves here. The fact that students can say they study at Oxford (carefully dropping the 'Brookes'), and the genuinely high academic standards, have meant that Oxford Brookes has proved a popular option for middle class kids, snobbish about other former polys. This, and the sheer expense of living in Oxford, has encouraged a affluent selection of bright and lively students.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]THE CITY:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][ITAL][STAT][BULL] Population: 109,000 [BULL] London: 55miles [BULL] Bristol: 55miles [BULL] Birmingham: 55miles[ESTAT][EITAL][PARA][ITAL]If tourists want to 'do' England properly, they must 'do' Oxford. They must tour the colleges, go for a punt on the river and possibly drop in to one of the city's many museums:[EITAL] the famous Ashmolean (archaeological and artistic treasures); the Bate Collection; Christ Church Gallery; History of Science Museum; Museum of Modern Art; the Oxford Museum; the Pitt Rivers and the University Museum. However, it's not all atmospheric shots from 'Morse'; real people do also live in Oxford and for them there are plenty of shops (including 2 shopping malls), banks, a market, public libraries, and enough new and 2nd hand bookshops[ITAL] to fill a village on their own[EITAL]. On the seedier side, there are also 2 brothels in Jericho, North Oxford. Also,[ITAL] amongst Oxford's more dubious honours,[EITAL] the city has one of the worst homelessness problems outside London.[HDNG]TRAVEL:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Trains: [EBOLD]Trains draw up at Oxford Station, close to the steps of the city's most central colleges. Main line service to London, Paddington (1hr), Birmingham, Edinburgh, Bristol, etc.[PARA][BOLD]Coaches: [EBOLD]As well as National Express, there are 2 other coach companies (Oxford City Link and Oxford Tube). [ITAL]For London, the bus is much cheaper, more frequent and only slightly slower than the train. [EITAL] National Express services to London (ú5.50, 1:40hrs, every 20mins), Bristol (ú1.10 2:25hrs,5/day), Birmingham (ú6.50, 1:25hrs, every 2hrs).[PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] 5 mins off the M40. Also on the A40, A34, A23, A43 and A420. However, there is very restricted access to the city centre and parking is either limited or expensive. Car theft is also a problem - remember the University is only a few miles from the infamous joyriders of Blackbird Leys.[PARA][BOLD]Hitching: [EBOLD]Pretty good on the M40 or the larger local A roads, but get out of the city by bus.[PARA][BOLD]Local: [EBOLD]Several local bus companies with frequent and cheap services (40p to get as far as digs in Jericho), [ITAL]but they're not really worth it for shorter trips[EITAL] and they give up at about 11pm.[PARA][BOLD]Taxis:[EBOLD] Enough of them, but they cost about ú3 a mile.[PARA][BOLD]Bicycles:[EBOLD] [ITAL]Ah yes. Paradise on pedals.[EITAL] Oxford is flat, many roads are closed to cars and most colleges have sheds. [ITAL] Everyone cycles - it's an integral part of being an Oxford student. Two words of warning: (i) a good lock and a cheap bike is the safest defence against theft; and (ii) pedestrians, beware of pedal-powered hells angels. That's 21 words. [EITAL][PARA][PARA]The University provides a free bus between the Gipsy Lane and Wheatley sites every 1/2 hour, which takes about 15 minutes. The modular course structure (see Special Features below) means that some students have academic commitments on both sites.[HDNG]LIBRARIES and COMPUTERS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Books: 300,000 [BULL] Periodicals: 2,500 [BULL] Study places: 790[ESTAT][PARA]There are libraries on both sites and 24hr access to some of the hundreds of net-worked PCs, [ITAL]but the computer facilities are a bit over-stretched.[EITAL][HDNG]CAREER PROSPECTS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Careers Service [BULL] No of staff: 6full[ESTAT][HDNG]SPECIAL FEATURES:[EHDNG][PARA][BULL]Oxford Poly (as it was) was one of the first British colleges to develop a modular course structure and now offers over 1,000 options ('units'). Students chose the courses they want and collect points for each one, so that, after 3 years, they've got enough points for a degree - [ITAL]just like Tiger Tokens.[EITAL][PARA][BULL]There's a no smoking rule in all areas of the University, except the SU Bars.[PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]FAMOUS ALUMNI:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA]Neil Edwards (rugby); Jim Fallon (rugby); Andrew Logan (creator of the Alternative Miss World); John Pilkington (BBC); Adrian Reynard (racing car manufacturer); Tim Rodber (rugby).[HDNG]FURTHER INFO:[EHDNG][PARA]Prospectuses for undergrads, part-timers, postgrads and professional courses. The SU publishes an alternative prospectus.[PARA][PARA]
