In Focus

Imagine walking with C. S. Lewis along the River Cherwell, taking tea with John Wesley in the dining hall of Christ Church College, sitting in afternoon tutorials with Percy Bysshe Shelley, and waking each morning to see the gray spires of Oxford University piercing the Anglican sky. For 18 Azusa Pacific University students, this scenario will become a reality this fall as they pack their notebooks and board a jet for England. While they will not actually encounter those aforementioned alumni, they will follow in the footsteps of many brilliant and erudite scholars by participating in a long tradition of academic excellence, all made possible through APU's new Oxford Semester Program.

Affiliated with the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies at Keble College (1 of 45 colleges that make up the Oxford University system), and administered through the Oxford Study Abroad Program, the Oxford Semester is designed to enable 15-20 APU students to become "associate students" at several Oxford University colleges. Applicants are expected to demonstrate well-defined academic objectives, maturity, and self-discipline, as well as possess a cumulative grade-point average of 3.30 or higher. It offers an unparalleled opportunity to sharpen their academic and research skills, explore questions of faith, and experience the history and culture of Great Britain.

Mel Shoemaker, D.Min., director of the Honors and Oxford Semester programs, will accompany the 18 students this September. He explains that while the participating students will study at Oxford, they will not matriculate in the Oxford society, but will work toward a degree from APU. The cost for the semester is the same as being in residence on the APU campus, plus the application fee, international health insurance, and travel to and from England.

While at Oxford, the students will have a wide variety of study and research options available to them, as the university has specialists in almost every academic field. All teaching is through the "tutorial system," a highly individualistic approach that incorporates weekly meetings with the instructor, small-group discussions, and extensive independent reading and research in the student's chosen field. Students will take one six-unit primary tutorial, one three-unit secondary tutorial, and one three-unit seminar, all culminating in written essays and examinations. In addition, the students will meet with Shoemaker for a weekly colloquium on faith and learning, with instruction in church history and the life and teachings of Jesus.