Bright Matter

Bright Matter is open to women, trans and non-binary students in Year 11 and 12 with an interest in studying STEM subjects at university. It is run jointly by St Anne’s, Mansfield, Magdalen, St Catherine’s, St Hilda’s, Christ Church, Oriel, Wadham and Worcester Colleges.

This programme aims to support students in developing their interest in STEM subjects at university, introducing them to STEM at Oxford and its application process, and to build a network of peers with whom to connect. We aim to boost confidence, provide a sense of belonging and opportunities to engage with current students, academics and staff at Oxford.

In previous years this programme has been run with other colleges from both Oxford and Cambridge. Our 2027 programme has expanded to include participation from nine colleges from across the University of Oxford, reflecting the success and excellent feedback our programme has received year on year.

Structure

Bright Matter consists of a launch workshop covering ‘Applying to Oxford’, held in January . The launch session will be followed by individual sessions on each STEM subject offered at the University of Oxford. Sessions will be led by a college tutor or faculty member and will cover subject insights, an introduction to the subject at undergraduate level, a short academic taster session, and Q&A with current students.

Later in the year each College will host their own visit day for selected  students, giving students the opportunity to visit the University of Oxford, and find out more about the University’s teaching style. 

Each online session will run 16:30-17:30, on the following dates:

Applying to Oxford/Launch: Thursday, January 7, 2027
Biochemistry: Tuesday, January 12, 2027
Biology: Wednesday, January 13, 2027
Biomedical Sciences: Thursday, January 14, 2027
Chemistry: Tuesday, January 19, 2027
Computer Science: Monday, January 25, 2027
Earth Sciences: Thursday, January 21, 2027
Engineering: Tuesday, January 26, 2027
Human Sciences: Wednesday, January 27, 2027
Materials Science: Thursday, January 28, 2027
Mathematics: Tuesday, February 2, 2027
Medicine: Wednesday, February 3, 2027
Physics: Thursday, February 4, 2027
Psychology: Tuesday, February 9, 2027
Philosophy of Science: Monday, February 8, 2027
Competitive Applications: Thursday, February 11, 2027

Sign Up

The first part of this programme is non-selective, and open to all Women, Trans, and Non-Binary students in Years 11 and 12.

Please use our sign up form here: Bright Matter 2026-27 – Fill in form 

Students who wish to attend one of the taster days will be invited to do so following their attendance at one or more of the online sessions, and will be contacted by one of the colleges directly. 

100% of Students

Felt this series connected them with their peers in STEM.

90% of Students

Felt more reassured that they would fit in with their student cohort.

90% of Students

Felt more confident about applying to University after this series.