Oxford had always been my dream university, but throughout the whole application process I never thought I would make it. I ended up being the only person in my year group to be offered a place and was even in two minds about whether or not to accept it- could a northern, state school student really find a place amongst the stereotypically southern, privately educated Oxford crowd? It is true that us northerners are underrepresented, and I really noticed that when in freshers’ week I was just introducing myself as Alana from Cumbria to try to cut down on the amount of explaining I had to do, whilst everyone from the south seemed to know the reputation of each other’s schools and their notable alumni. Even now, guesses about my accent have included Geordie, Scottish and even Cornish! If anything, I’ve found that this has strengthened my northern pride and has pushed me to make my mark whilst I’m here, whether that’s by getting involved in outreach schemes, teaching my friends some classic Cumbrian twang (leading to intense arguments about how to pronounce poor and moor), or introducing Greggs into their sheltered lives.
Despite all the worries I had, I’ve met some of the most amazing people here- privately educated and state, and from the North, South and Midlands- and I can’t imagine being anywhere else, Oxford has really become a second home. I would wholeheartedly say not to let the Oxford stereotype put you off from applying or having the experiences you’ve always wanted to have. Sometimes imposter syndrome does hit, but I know how hard I and every other northern student has worked to get here, and that we deserve a place here just as much as anyone else does. There are other people with the same background as us and the Northerners Society is the perfect place to meet them.
