St Hilda's College
St Hilda’s offers compelling reasons as a choice for graduate students: a commitment to excellence and equality, a stunning riverside location, a welcoming atmosphere, and a wealth of scholarships, grants and facilities.
The dining hall and south building of St Hilda's College. Credit: Oxford University Images / John Cairns Photography
About the college
St Hilda's has one of the most beautiful settings in Oxford. The buildings and gardens stretch along the banks of the River Cherwell which flows under nearby Magdalen Bridge. From the lawns, you can enjoy one of the best views of Oxford's dreaming spires.
The college offers a unique blend of upholding Oxford's scholarly traditions while fostering a relaxed and accessible environment. Its tranquil setting has many lawns that students can enjoy freely as well as river punts to borrow. St Hilda's is also the only college with circular tables in its dining hall, enabling friendly and informal mealtime gatherings. All these elements exemplify the distinctive approach of St Hilda’s, which with its dynamic community of fellows, staff and students, makes it an inspiring and vibrant college.
St Hilda’s offers extensive financial support for students, emphasising an inclusive environment conducive to success. This support extends beyond academic needs, providing assistance in navigating challenges as they arise. The college provides various opportunities, including fully-funded Clarendon-linked scholarships and direct awards for graduate study in the social sciences, and extensive support through its travel for research and study grant scheme. Furthermore, a diverse array of networks, established by former students, actively mentor and guide graduates as they embark on their career journeys.
Key facts
| Students (total*) in 2025-26 | Full-time places in 2027-28 | Part-time places in 2027-28 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taught graduates | 140 | c. 126 | c. 10 |
| Research graduates | 165 | c. 130 | c. 5 |
| Undergraduates | 425 | N/A | N/A |
*Total across all year groups (see source data)
1893
College tour
Facilities
The Kathleen Major Library, named in 2005 after a former librarian, historian and Principal of the college, has seven reading rooms over three floors, with seating for 158 readers; the library collection is one of the most extensive of all Oxford Colleges. The galleried main reading room, dating from 1935, looks out over the River Cherwell and the ‘dreaming spires’ of Oxford.
The library has a small rare book collection as well as special collections in law and medieval history. Together with the college archive, the rare books are kept in a state-of-the-art archive store, where temperature and humidity levels are closely controlled.
Internet access is provided free of charge in all student rooms and other areas within the college.
The Jacqueline du Pré Music Building situated on the college site offers St Hilda’s students outstanding practice and performing facilities, as well as being the venue for prestigious concerts, recording sessions, and community music events. The Director of College Music helps students organise musical events and recital series, and conducts one of the student choirs.
The college has an on-site gym and facilities for association football, lawn tennis, and rugby. In recent years, St Hilda’s has had successes in a variety of sports, including rowing, netball, rugby, and football. St Hilda’s is also the closest Oxford college to the Oxford University Sports complex on Iffley Road, where facilities include a power-lifting gym, rowing tank, Olympic-sized swimming pool, and running track. The sports complex offers St Hilda's students a fantastic discounted annual membership.
St Hilda’s College welcomes applications from disabled students. The college has adapted rooms for students with mobility requirements, and the library has full disabled access. Candidates who are considering an application are advised to contact the college to discuss their requirements in confidence. The college has a Disability Fellow, a senior member of college who is there to offer practical help and support. Arrangements for assistance can be made on an individual basis, and the college aims to respond to the needs and requirements of all students.
St Hilda’s offers strong welfare support, with a Welfare Officer, college nurse and counsellor on site each weekday in term-time, and a doctor here each week. Three Junior Deans take responsibility for welfare issues in the evenings and at weekends during term-time. In addition, each graduate student has their own College Adviser, and senior college officers are happy to be contacted for advice and support.
St Hilda's Middle Common Room (MCR) is a lively community and is the place to make friendships, share ideas and have a great social life outside the limits of your own department or faculty. The MCR provides a large, and growing, range of events, conferences and workshops bringing together graduate students, early career academics and senior fellows. Our MCR space for graduate students opened in September 2020, and overlooks the river making the most of our beautiful setting.
Accommodation and meals
Accommodation for new graduates is allocated on a first come, first served basis once funding has been confirmed. The college owns several graduate houses throughout the city where rooms can be offered to most first- and second-year graduates who want them. All accommodation is single occupancy.
You will find some of St Hilda's graduate accommodation on the streets around the college near Cowley Road with its independent shops, restaurants and supermarkets. Other graduate accommodation is in the north of the city, close to the University’s science areas, approximately 1.9 km (1.2 miles) from the main college site.
Spacious and attractively decorated, all of the college's accommodation has well-equipped kitchens and communal areas. Most rooms are quite large. Scouts (housekeepers) clean rooms weekly, and empty rubbish bins and clean kitchens and bathrooms.
The college's Dining Hall offers a variety of food (including vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options) that is sustainable, local and seasonal.
It is open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner in term-time Monday to Friday, with brunch on Saturdays and traditional Sunday dinners.
A range of dietary needs is catered for (including religious dietary constraints) with meat-free Mondays and meat-free meals throughout the rest of the week.
All students pay a compulsory catering credit each term, which is redeemed against food purchased in the dining hall. For those who want to cook their own food, kitchens are available in the accommodation. For a quick snack, the dining hall is open between meals.
Courses
For entry in 2027-28
This college accepts graduate students for the following courses:
- MPhil + DPhil in Economics (full time)
- MSc in Advanced Computer Science (full time)
- DPhil in Ancient History (full time and part time)
- MPhil in Ancient History (full time)
- MSt in Ancient History (full time)
- MSt in Ancient Philosophy (full time)
- MSc in Applied Cancer Science (full time)
- DPhil in Astrophysics (full time)
- DPhil in Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics (full time)
- DPhil in Atomic and Laser Physics (full time)
- Bachelor of Civil Law (full time)
- DPhil in Biochemistry (full time)
- MSc by Research in Biochemistry (full time)
- MSc in Biodiversity, Conservation and Nature Recovery (full time)
- DPhil in Biology (full time)
- MSc by Research in Biology (full time)
- DPhil in Biomedical Sciences (NIH OxCam) (full time)
- BPhil in Philosophy (full time)
- DPhil in Cancer Science (Clinician) (full time)
- DPhil in Cancer Science (Intercalation) (full time)
- Cancer Science CDT (Biological background) (full time)
- Cancer Science CDT (Maths/Physics background) (full time)
- DPhil in Chemistry (full time)
- MSc by Research in Chemistry (full time)
- DPhil in Classical Languages and Literature (full time and part time)
- MSc in Clinical and Therapeutic Neuroscience (full time)
- DPhil in Clinical Epidemiology and Medical Statistics (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Clinical Medicine (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Clinical Neurosciences (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Clinical Neurosciences (full time and part time)
- MSt in Comparative Literature and Critical Translation (full time)
- MPhil in Comparative Social Policy (full time)
- MSc in Comparative Social Policy (full time)
- DPhil in Computer Science (full time)
- DPhil in Condensed Matter Physics (full time)
- MSt in Creative Translation (full time)
- DPhil in Criminology (full time and part time)
- MSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice (full time)
- MPhil in Development Studies (full time)
- MSc in Digital Scholarship (full time)
- DPhil in Economic and Social History (full time and part time)
- MPhil in Economic and Social History (full time)
- MSc in Economic and Social History (full time)
- DPhil in Economics (full time and part time)
- MPhil in Economics (full time)
- MSc in Economics for Development (full time)
- DPhil in Education (full time and part time)
- MSc in Education (Child Development and Education)
- MSc in Education (Comparative and International Education) (full time)
- MSc in Energy Systems (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Engineering Science (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Engineering Science (full time)
- DPhil in English (full time and part time)
- MSt in English (650-1550) (full time)
- MSt in English (1550-1700) (full time)
- MSt in English (1700-1830) (full time)
- MSt in English (1830-1914) (full time)
- MSt in English (1900-present) (full time)
- MSt in English and American Studies (full time)
- MPhil in English Studies (Medieval Period) (full time)
- MSc in Environmental Change and Policy (full time)
- MSc in Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation (full time)
- MPhil in Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation (full time)
- Executive Master of Business Administration (EMBA) (part time)
- MSc in Experimental and Translational Therapeutics (part time)
- DPhil in Experimental Psychology (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Experimental Psychology (full time and part time)
- MSt in Film Aesthetics (full time)
- DPhil in Finance (full time)
- MSc in Financial Economics (full time)
- MSc in Genomic Medicine (full time)
- DPhil in Genomic Medicine and Statistics (full time)
- DPhil in Geography and the Environment (full time and part time)
- MSt in Global and Imperial History (full time)
- MSc in Global Governance and Diplomacy (full time)
- MPhil in Greek and/or Latin Languages and Literature (full time)
- MSt in Greek and/or Latin Languages and Literature (full time)
- MSc in Health Service Improvement and Evaluation (full time)
- DPhil in History (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (British and European History 1700-1850) (full time)
- MSt in History (British and European History 1700-1850) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (Early Modern History 1500-1700) (full time)
- MSt in History (Early Modern History 1500-1700) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (History of War) (full time)
- MSt in History (History of War) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (Intellectual History) (full time)
- MSt in History (Intellectual History) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (Medieval History) (full time)
- MSt in History (Medieval History) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (Modern British History 1850-present) (full time)
- MSt in History (Modern British History 1850-present) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (Modern European History 1850-present) (full time)
- MSt in History (Modern European History 1850-Present) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (US History) (full time)
- MSt in History (US History) (full time and part time)
- MPhil in History (Women's, Gender and Queer History) (full time)
- MSt in History (Women's, Gender and Queer History) (full time and part time)
- DPhil in History of Art (full time and part time)
- MSt in History of Art and Visual Culture (full time)
- MPhil in History of Science, Medicine and Technology (full time)
- MSc in History of Science, Medicine and Technology (full time)
- DPhil in Information, Communication and the Social Sciences (full time and part time)
- MSc in Integrated Immunology (full time)
- MSc in Intellectual Property (part time)
- DPhil in Interdisciplinary Life and Environmental Science (full time and part time)
- MSc in International Health and Tropical Medicine (full time)
- DPhil in International Relations (full time and part time)
- MPhil in International Relations (full time)
- MPhil in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies (full time)
- MSt in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies (full time)
- DPhil in Law (full time and part time)
- MPhil in Law (full time)
- MSc in Law, Governance and Artificial Intelligence (full time)
- MSc in Law and Finance (full time)
- MPhil in Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics (full time)
- DPhil in Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics (full time and part time)
- MSt in Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics (Advanced Study) (full time)
- MSt in Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics (Research Preparation) (full time)
- Magister Juris (full time)
- DPhil in Management (full time)
- Master of Business Administration (MBA) (full time)
- Master of Public Policy (MPP) (full time)
- MSc in Mathematical and Computational Finance (full time)
- MSc in Mathematical and Theoretical Physics (full time)
- MSc in Mathematical Modelling and Scientific Computing (full time)
- MSc in Mathematical Sciences (full time)
- DPhil in Mathematics (full time)
- MSc by Research in Mathematics (full time)
- MSc in Mathematics and Foundations of Computer Science (full time)
- MSc in Medical Education (part time)
- MSc in Medical Physics with Radiobiology (full time)
- DPhil in Medical Sciences (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Medical Sciences (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Medieval and Modern Languages (full time and part time)
- MSt in Medieval Studies (full time)
- MSc in Modelling for Global Health (full time)
- MPhil in Modern Languages (full time)
- MSt in Modern Languages (full time)
- DPhil in Molecular and Cellular Medicine (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Molecular and Cellular Medicine (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Molecular Cell Biology in Health and Disease (full time)
- DPhil in Musculoskeletal Sciences (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Musculoskeletal Sciences (full time and part time)
- MSt in Music (Composition) (full time)
- MPhil in Music (Composition) (full time)
- DPhil in Music (Composition) (full time and part time)
- MSt in Music (Musicology) (full time)
- MPhil in Music (Musicology) (full time)
- DPhil in Music (Musicology) (full time and part time)
- MSt in Music (Performance) (full time)
- MPhil in Music (Performance) (full time)
- MSc in Nature, Society and Environmental Governance (full time)
- MSc in Neuroscience (full time)
- DPhil in Neuroscience (1+3) (full time)
- DPhil in Oncology (full time)
- MSc by Research in Oncology (full time)
- Oxford 1+1 MBA Programme (full time)
- DPhil in Particle Physics (full time)
- MSc by Research in Pharmacology (full time)
- DPhil in Pharmacology (full time)
- DPhil in Philosophy (full time)
- MSt in Philosophy of Physics (full time)
- MSc by Research in Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics (full time)
- DPhil in Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics (full time)
- DPhil in Politics (full time and part time)
- MPhil in Politics (Comparative Government) (full time)
- MPhil in Politics (European Politics and Society) (full time)
- MPhil in Politics (Political Theory) (full time)
- MSc in Politics of Global Challenges (full time)
- DPhil in Primary Health Care (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Psychiatry (full time and part time)
- MSc by Research in Psychiatry (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Public Policy (full time and part time)
- MSc in Radiobiology (full time)
- DPhil in Social Data Science (full time and part time)
- MSc in Social Data Science (full time)
- DPhil in Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Social Policy (full time and part time)
- MSc in Social Science of the Internet (full time)
- MPhil in Socio-Legal Research (full time)
- DPhil in Socio-Legal Studies (full time and part time)
- DPhil in Statistics (full time)
- MSc by Research in Statistics (full time)
- DPhil in Surgical Sciences (full time)
- MSc by Research in Surgical Sciences (full time)
- MSc in Sustainability, Enterprise and the Environment (full time)
- MSc in Theoretical and Computational Chemistry (full time)
- DPhil in Theoretical Physics (full time)
- MSc in Water Science, Policy and Management (full time)
- MSt in Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (full time)
- MSt in World Literatures in English (full time)
- MSt in Yiddish Studies (full time)
Location
The college is just off Oxford’s busy High Street, close to the University Examination Schools, with the Bodleian Library, museums, laboratories and departments just a short way beyond this. St Hilda’s is also approximately 1.1 km (0.7 miles) from East Oxford, famed for its vibrant mix of independent shops, world cuisine restaurants, cafés and bars.
Contact details
For application process enquiries, please refer to our frequently asked questions.