Accommodation
Merton graduates enjoy high-quality accommodation. Merton is normally able to offer single accommodation to nearly all new graduate students who require it.
It is not possible to choose your accommodation at Merton, but if you have specific requirements we will do our best to take these into consideration. If you have such requirements, please contact the Accommodation Manager as soon as possible to discuss.
Room Deposit
A room deposit of £100 is required to be paid within 4 weeks of the date of the letter offering you a place at Merton College to secure your room. This deposit will be credited against your first term bill for accommodation. You may pay the deposit by:
- Cheque payable to "Merton College, Oxford"
- Bank transfer to Merton College:
- Account number: 30650137
- Sort Code: 20 65 18
- Reference: Your Surname + "Room Deposit"
- Debit/Credit Card (except American Express). Please contact the College Accountant if you wish to use this option.
Single accommodation will only be confirmed on receipt of a satisfactory financial guarantee, which has been approved by the College Accountant. For further information about the College financial guarantee see the University website.
Cases where grant confirmation is given late in the summer will be borne in mind when we make accommodation allocations, but candidates should bear in mind that the College is unable to guarantee accommodation to those who provide satisfactory evidence of funding late in the year.
If you take up Merton accommodation, the rent for your room will be charged termly in advance.
There is no application form to complete in order to apply for accommodation; this will be allocated to you and the location advised upon arrival. Graduate students are normally offered accommodation in their first year, and thereafter may enter the rooms ballot organised by the Middle Common Room.
New graduates may arrive on the Friday before the start of Michaelmas term as per the published University Dates of Term (i.e. for 2013-14, the arrival date is Friday 4 October, as term begins Sunday 13 October). Arrival before that date is by request only to the Accommodation Manager and approval is based solely on verifiable academic requirements. Any extra nights are chargeable at a daily rate of £18 (2012-13 figure).
Just under 100 graduates are accommodated in Holywell Buildings, a modern facility in central Oxford, set in attractive landscaped quadrangles and close to the University science area and the Bodleian Library. All rooms in Holywell Buildings have private bath or shower rooms, and are equipped with telephone and Ethernet connections. There are communal kitchen and laundry facilities. Other single accommodation, in houses with communal kitchens and Ethernet connections, is concentrated in Manor Place, close to the Social Sciences departments.
Accommodation for couples
The College also offers a small number of one-bedroom flats for couples on the Iffley Road about ½ mile from the city centre and information about these may be obtained from the Domestic Bursar. The College regrets it is unable to offer family accommodation and graduates are advised to contact the University Graduate Accommodation Office for options.
Facilities
Graduates at Merton College enjoy:
- Two libraries for the use of College members only—including the oldest continuously functioning library for university academics and students in the world
- Internet access provided free of charge from student rooms, as well as access to computer rooms with free printing and cheap photocopying, available 24 hours a day
- A beautiful Dining Hall with high-quality, low-cost food for students
- The elegant Middle Common Room, where graduates can relax in luxurious leather sofas, read newspapers and magazines, watch movies, play chess and other games, and generally unwind and recharge
- The College Bar, with a good range of affordable beverages and regular quiz nights
- A TV Room with video and DVD equipment
- Access to a Games Room, complete with a free pool table, table football, darts and games machines
- The Fellows Garden, an idyllic place to read, work or relax - and with WiFi access
- Merton College Sports Ground, including sports pitches, pavilion, grass and hard tennis courts, and squash courts
- Merton College Boathouse on the River Isis (Thames)
- Real Tennis Court in Merton Street which can be used by the college Real Tennis Club
- 4 pianos and 2 chapel organs available for students for practice
- Chapel services
- Welfare Officers from the student body as well the Chaplain, Welfare Dean and university support services
- College Nurse
- Venues which can be booked without charge by students for club or society events and performances or recitals
Food
Merton College Hall
Eating together is an important part of Merton's communal life. The Hall provides a stunning setting, the staff are friendly, and the food is excellent, as well as good value. You can even follow goings-on in the Kitchen via their Facebook page.
Graduates eat alongside undergraduates. Formal Hall occurs more frequently than in many Colleges and is very popular but there is a speedier alternative available too. The swipe card system means you only pay for the meals which you consume. Vegetarian options are always available and, wherever possible, the College will try to meet special dietary requirements.
Meals are available throughout the year, with closures confined to short periods at Christmas and Easter.
Over a substantial part of the Long Vacation, the Fellows, Lecturers and graduates take meals together and there are places for graduates at every High Table Guest Night in term.
Breakfast
Continental breakfast with cereal, toast, fruit, croissants tea or coffee.
Lunch
This includes a main course, pudding, salad bar, cheese and biscuits, fruit and often soup too.
Supper
Served at 6.15 p.m., supper comprises a main course and dessert.
Formal Hall
Served at 7.15 pm and includes three courses. Students are required to wear gowns.
Communal kitchens are available for those who wish to self-cater and the Bar's toasted sandwiches have a devoted following.
Location
See a map of Oxford City Centre (Merton is marked as number 21).
Go on a virtual tour of Merton College.
Academic Life
Merton has a Dean of Graduates with overall responsibility for the academic progress and wellbeing of its graduates. All graduates are also assigned a College Adviser, a Fellow of the College in the same or a closely-related subject who will meet them from time to time, often over lunch or dinner.
Each term there are two SCR-MCR talks, held after dinner, given by a mix of current graduates, Fellows and visitors.
Graduates are also encouraged to join college-based research groups, in the History of the Book Research Group, Global Directions and Bio-medical Research Group and Life Sciences Research Group.
The College has various funds to support graduate research
The majority of subjects have a College Society to which members of all three common rooms belong. These hold an annual dinner and sometimes other events.
Social life
Graduate social life in College is centred on the Middle Common Room (MCR), which is accommodated in a medieval Hall in Front Quadrangle.
The MCR is run by elected graduate officers who are responsible for organising social events and for the provision of newspapers, journals, television and video, and snacks and refreshments. Graduates are also members of the Junior Common Room (JCR) and can participate in undergraduate events such as the regular Bops at the Pavilion and the Arts Festival. Graduates play their part in the College's sporting, dramatic and musical life. See the MCR website and JCR websites for further details.
There is also the University of Oxford Newcomers' Club, an organisation whose aim is to help the newly-arrived wives, husbands or partners of visiting scholars, graduate students and newly appointed academic members of the University to settle in and to give them the opportunity to meet people in Oxford.
Disabilities
Merton is committed to providing equality of opportunity for people with disabilities, including prospective applicants. Any concerns they may have about attending open days or interviews or with queries about any issues of accessibility should be raised with our Admissions Officer in the first instance. Where appropriate, we will endeavour set up email contact between potential applicants and current students with disabilities.
The College is in the town centre and can offer some adapted accommodation and disabled parking. As one of the oldest colleges, Merton does unavoidably have some areas that are not as accessible as we would like. The Lodge is fully accessible and the Hall is accessible only with assistance.
Once disabled students have been admitted, Merton provides support that is co-ordinated by the Academic Administrator.
For more information on Disability Support in the University contact:
Disability Office
Tel: +44 (0)1865 289825
Fax: +44 (0)1865 289830
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Evidence of an MCR port tasting