Courses
Oxford University’s Department for Continuing Education welcomes students of all ages and backgrounds, from anywhere in the world. We offer a wide range of adult education courses: from day events, weekly classes and summer schools to part-time undergraduate and postgraduate programmes.
Find out more about the different course types below, or view all upcoming courses.
Open-access short courses
- Day and weekend events run in person or online, with some offered in both formats. Explore a topic in depth over one or two days with multiple speakers or hone your skills in small workshops and hands-on practical sessions.
- Weekly learning programmes are studied over one or two terms. These include courses that meet in Oxford, online courses with live-time sessions, and flexible online courses. Most of these courses are taught at undergraduate level, require coursework and may be studied for credit.
- Lecture series are a series of six weekly lectures on a given topic, providing a comprehensive introduction to your chosen subject. All are held in person in Oxford, with the majority also being livestreamed.
Oxford qualifications and professional development
- Undergraduate award courses (certificates, diplomas and advanced diplomas) are equivalent to, or taught at, first, second and third-year undergraduate level. Some have online study options and two are taught entirely online.
- Postgraduate programmes (certificates, diplomas, master's degrees and DPhils) are a great way to continue your studies and further your knowledge, progress in your career, or learn for personal enrichment. Some are taught mostly online, some are formed of short residencies in Oxford.
- Professional development programmes (CPD) include short courses and Oxford qualifications and are geared toward working professionals in many fields, including the health and medical sciences, technology, business, environment and sustainability.
Summer schools
Join us for a study holiday in Oxford – for personal enrichment, academic progression or professional development. Many summer schools can be taken for credit, while others require no coursework and are non-assessed.
Find a course for you
Our search tool allows you to search and filter based on your own preferences.
Upcoming courses
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
The Cold War posed difficult challenges for European countries both East and West. This lecture series analyses how six European leaders navigated their way through this period.
- Fri 18 Oct 2024 – 22 Nov 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Online - live • Short courses • Lecture series • Hybrid - in person or online
Acknowledged to be a relative liberal in domestic policy, Nikita Khrushchev’s foreign policy was a complicated mixture of hard-line repression and conciliatory diplomacy with the US and NATO. This lecture examines the contradictions of ‘co-existence’.
- Fri 18 Oct 2024
- 2:00 – 3:15pm
Online - live • Short courses • Hybrid - in person or online
Landscape is everywhere: an obvious subject for art which has inspired many of Britain’s greatest painters. This day school explores three centuries of struggle and passion that changed the way we look at the world, from landscape painting to Land Art.
- Sat 19 Oct 2024
- 10:15am – 5:30pm
In-person day/weekend • Short courses
A comprehensive introductory workshop covering time management, reading critically and selectively, taking notes, and planning and writing essays for undergraduate-level study.
- Sat 19 Oct 2024
- 9:45am – 5:00pm
In-person day/weekend • Short courses
Would you like to learn how to read medieval handwriting in original documents? This weekend takes you through the basics of the most common scripts, covering the history of handwriting and taking practical examples from popular record types.
- Sat 19 Oct 2024 – 20 Oct 2024
- 9.45am Sat - 5.00pm Sun