Accommodation

College Accommodation

The College endeavours to provide single accommodation in College-owned or managed accommodation during the first year of study for as many graduates based as possible, provided that they return a completed financial guarantee in time. Priority is given to those coming to the College from the greatest distance and those likely to experience difficulties in the local accommodation market.

Please ensure that you inform the Admissions Office of any special requirements, e.g. disabled facilities.

There are 78 single rooms with en-suite facilities at the main college site. There are also 42 rooms at St Catherine’s House on Bath Street. This is a 15 minute walk or a 5 minute cycle from the college.

The rooms on the main college site have shared mini-kitchens, and the rooms at Catz House have shared bathroom and cooking facilities. The College provides laundry and internet facilities. Residential agreements run for 38 weeks. More information can be found on the main college website.

University Accommodation

Oxford’s Graduate Accommodation Office has a variety of accommodation on offer, including places for couples and families. Even if you are not sure whether you’ll need University accommodation, it is good idea to put your name on the waiting lists as soon as possible, as the waiting periods are long – often over a year. There is no obligation to take accommodation that is offered to you. And so long as you reply and say “no” to an offer within a specified time, your name goes back onto the list in the same place. For full details, including descriptions of properties, see the Graduate Accommodation Office website.

Private Rental Accommodation

Those who don’t live in College or University accommodation… live out! Oxford students tend to cluster in two main areas of town: in East Oxford, especially the area around Cowley Road, Iffley Road, and St Clements; and in North Oxford, from Jericho up through Summertown. North Oxford rents are generally a bit higher. Leases usually run for 1 year, beginning sometime in the summer (July, August, September).

As you’ll discover, Oxford is not the easiest or cheapest place to sort out private accommodation, but you’ll find that your fellow MCR members are excellent sources of advice (and flatmates!). Here is a list of resources which should help you begin your search:

  1. Have a look at our very own Catz MCR Accommodation Guide 2015
  2. OxGradHousing is a Facebook group to advertise house-shares, rooms in houses and short lets to Oxford postgraduate students.
  3. The Oxford University Student Union has a living out guide.
  4. The Accommodation Office has an excellent mailing list of private accommodation which has (mostly) been vetted. This list is updated regularly and often has properties that are unavailable elsewhere.
  5. Spareroom is a free service for placing ads for flatmates/housemates, rooms in shared houses etc.
  6. Daily Info has lists of rooms in shared houses and complete flats/houses. This site has high traffic and often a very quick turnover of properties, particularly at the start of the academic year.
  7. The Oxford Gazette has a small advertisements section which has rooms/houses to let. This is often overlooked as a source of information, but the properties can be on the expensive side.