The programmes build on the outreach and access work already being undertaken across the collegiate University and aim to support breaking down barriers, encourage academic aspirations, and provide opportunities for students to learn more about what university is like.  

Among them is BeUNIQ – an ambitious programme for UK state school students in Years 10 and 11 from groups who are currently under-represented among Oxford undergraduates. The BeUNIQ team is currently working with 14–16-year-old students from Bangladeshi and Pakistani heritage in five schools in Birmingham, Bradford and Oldham, running interactive and educational sessions alongside current Oxford students and academics. 

Designed to support the higher education goals and early aspirations of young students participating in the programme, BeUNIQ aims to foster skills such as oracy, academic confidence and self-efficacy, and to encourage participants to consider themselves as strong candidates for Oxford’s flagship outreach programme, UNIQ, and potentially for study at Oxford. 

Working with schools, students, families, and the wider local community, BeUNIQ provides bespoke and sustained engagement and support and provides essential resources and information for students thinking about the next step in their academic journey, including support with the application process for UNIQ.  

UNIQ offers Year 12 students the opportunity to participate in a programme of online admissions support as well as an academic residential in Oxford and has been attended by more than 14,500 students from under-represented backgrounds since it launched in 2010. Many participants have since gone on to gain a place to study at the University, often getting involved in the programme as student ambassadors during their time in Oxford.

Watch some short films about the BeUNIQ and UNIQ summer schools.