Tia McBurnie

Schools Liaison and Access Officer

Hi! I'm Tia and I'm the Schools Liaison and Access officer for Merton College. I pretty much do what it says on the tin; liaise with schools and support access and outreach initiatives to encourage high achieving applicants from a diverse range of backgrounds to apply to Oxford (and hopefully, Merton!).

A large part of my role is hosting and organising school visits to the College. Within this, I put on talks informing prospective students about what it's like to study at Oxford and how to understand the application process; e.g sessions on Personal Statements and Interview preparation.

Before becoming SLAO, I read Human Social and Political Sciences over at the University of Cambridge. My undergraduate college did outreach - just like the work I do now - at my school, and made a world of difference in building my confidence and skillset; supporting me to make a competitive application to the University. During my degree, I was involved in both College and University wide access work, dispelling myths and developing students' knowledge about what it's like to study there, and how they can get there themselves.

I am also happy to visit schools personally, delivering workshops like the ones mentioned above. Similarly, I offer virtual sessions throughout the year. For further information about the ways I can support students, teachers, and parents, please explore the Outreach section of the website here.

If you have any questions about arranging a visit, getting involved or the application process to Oxford more generally, please email me at schools@merton.ox.ac.uk, and be sure to check out @mertonoutreach on Instagram and TikTok!