University of Oxford UNIQ Summer Schools German Residential Course

You need to be studying German at A level, or speak it to an equivalent level, on top of meeting UNIQ's general rules. That means being in your first year of sixth form at a UK state school or college (grammar schools count, and home-educated students can apply) and being under 18 at the time of the residential, with narrow exceptions for some Northern Ireland students and those whose schooling was set back a year. You also need to be a settled UK resident or expect to qualify for home fee status when you apply to university. You can't have more than one completed A level, and anyone who has already been on UNIQ is disqualified.

Past those minimums, places aren't first come, first served. UNIQ offers places on your grades and your background together. It strongly prioritizes students who have been in care, and it takes Free School Meals eligibility and your wider socioeconomic background into account, which can include checking your home postcode against a deprivation index. If something disrupted your exams, the extenuating circumstances section of the form is where to explain it. UNIQ works with over a thousand students a year across all its subjects but doesn't say how many places German has.

• Year group

  Year 12 in England or Wales, Year 13 in Northern Ireland, S5 in Scotland, or the first year of the IB Diploma.

• England, Wales or Northern Ireland

  Normally at least six GCSEs, with one or more at grade 7 or A (or equivalent).

• Scotland

  Normally at least six National 5s, with one or more at grade A.

You arrive on Monday, stay four nights in an Oxford college and leave on Friday, with the teaching packed into Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Most of the course is about German, with language sessions plus lectures and discussions on topics such as literature, theater, film and linguistics, from the medieval period to today. You'll also have a tutorial, which Oxford calls an important part of student life there, and a taster of one or two languages you could start from scratch at Oxford, such as Italian, Portuguese or Russian.

Evenings bring optional social activities with your college group, drop-in sessions, tours and plenty of time with current undergraduates. The week ends with a mini conference that brings together all the UNIQ students in Oxford that week. UNIQ calls the week very intensive, so finish any school project due around then before you go. There's nowhere to practice music or train for sport, either.

Yes. UNIQ charges nothing to students or schools and pays for your travel, accommodation, meals, staff and teaching. You'd only pay for travel yourself if you miss UNIQ's travel deadlines or lose your ticket, and fuel isn't reimbursed if someone drives you. Snacks, souvenirs and anything you forget to pack are on you. UNIQ asks families who are worried about paying for anything during the visit to get in touch.

Current Oxford undergraduates, called ambassadors, take you to lectures and seminars and stay with you in your college. Each college is run for the week by a Site Manager, a senior ambassador who organizes drop-ins, tours and evening events. You'll have your own lockable bedroom. Some rooms have a private bathroom, but many college buildings are historic, so you may share a bathroom with a few other participants on a gender-segregated corridor.

Every college offers a vegetarian option at meals. UNIQ tries to cater for halal, kosher and other religious diets but can't guarantee them, so tell the team what you need as soon as you're offered a place. The same goes for disability or access needs, which you don't have to declare when you apply.

1. 1

   Applications open on 15 December 2026, which is also when UNIQ expects to confirm which week each subject runs.

2. 2

   Fill in the online form with your grades and background, choose a first and second course, and nominate a teacher at your school or college.

3. 3

   Submit the complete form by 13:00 on 19 January 2027, because unfinished or late applications aren't considered.

4. 4

   If you spot a mistake after submitting, email uniq@admin.ox.ac.uk quickly, since there's only about three days after the close to make changes.

5. 5

   Decisions arrive by email by early March. If German is full, you may be offered your second choice or a place on a reserve list, and you have one week to accept any offer.

6. 6

   Your school is then asked to verify your details, and you'll attend a regional launch event in spring and an online briefing in May or June before the residential.