Oxford University Press

Oxford University Press publishes for three primary markets: research, education, and English language teaching. Its mission is to create world-class academic and educational resources and make them available as widely as possible.

History

Oxford University Press (OUP) has a rich history which can be traced back to the earliest days of printing. The first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, just two years after Caxton set up the first printing press in England. The University was involved with several printers in Oxford over the next century.

From the late 1800s OUP began to expand significantly, opening the first overseas office in New York in 1896. Other international branches followed, including Canada (1904), Australia (1908), India (1912), and Southern Africa (1914).

Today, OUP is a global organization with more than 5,000 employees worldwide.

Publishing

OUP products and services are sold in most of the countries of the world in a wide range of languages. It delivers an annual turnover of more than £800 million.

Products cover a broad academic and educational spectrum, partnering with technology providers to make content available to users in a range of formats. A growing proportion of content published by OUP is produced primarily as digital outputs, from research articles to school workbooks.

OUP has become familiar to millions through a diverse publishing program that includes scholarly works in all academic disciplines, bibles, music, school and college textbooks, children's books, materials for teaching English as a foreign language, dictionaries, and academic journals. 

The main criteria when evaluating a new title for publication are its quality and whether it supports the aims of furthering education and disseminating knowledge.

Structure

OUP's governance structure is written into the University of Oxford statutes. The affairs of Oxford University Press are overseen by a group of delegates appointed from the academic staff of the University.

The Delegacy meets fortnightly during academic term-time under the chairmanship of the Vice-Chancellor, receives reports on the management of OUP from the Chief Executive and Finance Committee, and reviews and authorizes publications.

The Delegacy has established a Finance Committee which, under the general authority of the Delegates, directs and manages the business, assets, and finances of the Press. The Finance Committee consists of a chairman elected by the Delegates, the Vice-Chancellor, the Senior Proctor, six Delegates, and four individuals possessing high qualifications in business or finance (comparable to independent non-executive directors on corporate boards), together with the Chief Executive, the OUP Finance Director, and up to five senior officers of the Press appointed by the Delegates.

The Chief Executive of the Press is responsible for running Oxford University Press, and is also known by the traditional title of Secretary to the Delegates.