Congratulations on getting into the 21^st ranked private school in the country (kinda). There are a few things that you should know as you embark on this journey. As a first generation college student, I wish someone had been blatantly honest with me as I was making the decision of where to attend. I remember going on a tour of Oxford, the only college tour I could attend, and being baffled by the friendliness and rosiness of everyone I encountered on campus.

To this day, I remember the person that gave my tour and every single lie half-truth he told me to convince me to go. In order to save some of you the strife and headache of unrealistic expectations, I have created a short compilation of insights/advice on Oxford College and what attending there is really like. I hope it helps.

First and foremost, it’s important to remember that college is officially a business. With tuition prices of $60k/year, it is important to remember that any official person you ask about attending any college (I,e, tour guides, faculty, etc.) will bend the truth to make their college seem like the most wonderful place on Earth.

In reality, Oxford is far from being Diet Disneyland^TM, and more than likely, you will have a love-hate relationship with it. Therefore, in order to really get the true Lipton^TM on the college, it is important for you to step outside of your comfort zone and engage with actual students on your tour. As many as possible, really, because no one person’s experience is identical to another’s, and this way you will be able to hear the unfiltered, (somewhat) unbiased opinions of what being there is like.

Among Oxford’s strengths are smaller class sizes, non-research-oriented faculty, and a small student body. This means that students have the ability to engage with professors, who actually know their names and notice when they are absent, and build a community. For some, this is a great thing, as they believe a closer community and more engagement is what they need academically and socially, as it allows for a chance to be more involved. For others, this means heightened social and academic requirements and expectations, as grades are composed of a range of activities (including participation) and attendance is mandatory.

Many people become so absorbed in the negative aspects of things, that they don’t take advantage of the opportunities presented to them. Go to your professor’s office hours (especially if you don't like them). Those interactions could become leadership positions and recommendations later on. Build relationships with faculty and other students. It could be the key to having an amazing Oxford Experience. Go to events. They are literally less than 5 minutes away, usually involve free stuff, and can be very educational and enjoyable. The more you monopolize Oxford’s strengths and challenge yourself outside of your comfort zone, the better your Oxford experience will be.

Among Oxford’s weaknesses are its location, its limitations, and its size. Many people say that attending Oxford is like attending Boarding School. Oxford is a fraction of the size of my high school and at times, it felt more like high school than my actual high school did. From the gossiping and drama (because everyone basically knows everyone) to the way certain teachers could hound you, at times it felt as though instead of growing within my college experience, I was stagnating/digressing.

Many people will also compare their experiences at Oxford to the experiences of their friends back home that attend different colleges, as they will discuss how they go to parties, Greek life, and other aspects of “fun” college culture, and feel as though they are experiencing a non-alcoholic version of their friend’s alcoholic beverage.

If you are going to College for “fun”, don’t go to Oxford. Oxford has no nightlife. Seriously. Even McDonald’s closes before midnight in Covington. And the Transit system is a joke: arrival and departure times are inconvenient, it’s almost always late, and oftentimes you’ll find yourself fighting for a seat or even kicked off due to lack of seats (if you don’t have a car, make friends with someone that does).

Further than that, there will be severe limitations on classes and clubs, and while they claim you will have access to Atlanta’s perks, you won’t. Upon asking my advisor if it was possible for me to attend Korean courses on Atlanta campus due to their lack of offering them at Oxford, I was told a flat-out no. As a result, I will either have to pay for summer courses or stay at Emory longer in order to complete the requirement.

While you will take a wider range of courses at Oxford, if you are not pre-med or pre-business, it is more than likely that you will need to take extra courses in order to get your degree (and sometimes even the pre-med kids have to due to limited class sizes and offerings). Ultimately, ‘liberal arts’ at Oxford really just means taking a bunch of classes outside of your major in order to graduate from a pre-professional college. Ultimately, whatever you lose, you gain in some other way and it is most important that you are aware of the tradeoff.

At Oxford, the cost of quantity is quality, as it is limited in its clubs and academic offerings, but what it does offer, it delivers the best experience possible to its students. There will be times that you will not believe you are getting your money’s worth. There will be times that you feel you are exactly where you are supposed to be. You will laugh and cry. You will be happy and sad. You will experience something that a very small percentage of people on this planet experience.

Ultimately, you will come out a different person, and a part of a very small, tight-knit community. (Seriously, Oxford people are amazing.) While Oxford isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, whether it comes out more bitter or sweet is dependent upon you whether you choose to make the most of what you are given or focus on what you believe you should have. Good luck.

“There exists limitless opportunities everywhere. Where there is an open mind, there will always be a frontier.” – Charles Kettering