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The JCR (Junior Common Room) - other than being the two rooms in which we hang out as shown in the Facilities section - is the name of the Student Union for Magdalen of which all Magdalen students are automatically a member. We are blessed with a fantastic JCR owing to the fact that we are an unusually active JCR and therefore an exceptionally good one. It’s all about services, fun and representation.
Services
The JCR is run by a committee of about twenty-five students who are all responsible for running various services around college,
and the committee is headed up by the JCR President. The committee is responsible for ensuring that all the facilities and events run
smoothly, and that as many people as possible in college are having the best time they can, albeit through setting up fun things to do
or providing welfare support. The JCR committee members also put together publications such as The Bogsheet (Magdalen’s gossip
newsletter), the Freshers’ Handbook and this Alternative Prospectus.
Fun
Members of the JCR Committee organise not only the usual cheesy college Bops but also many other diverse events.
There are welfare doughnuts (a chance to catch up with friends gorging on yummy food), films, wine tastings, barbeques,
President teas, punting trips and Easter egg hunts to name but a few. Every Sunday members of the JCR committee also cook JCR Brunch,
a lovely greasy affair, setting you back a measly few pounds, giving you a chance to eat off the hangover and/or read the Sunday papers.
Representation
The JCR is a democracy with the entire JCR electing the JCR Committee, anyone is allowed to stand, and everyone is allowed to vote.
The JCR reps run all the services and facilities you have read about elsewhere, but even if you are not on the committee itself,
everyone’s input is welcome with General Meetings being held fortnightly giving a forum for anyone to put ideas to. Not only
does College provide us with a pretty massive budget to play with annually but the JCR also gets unprecedented representation in College
decision making. It makes for an involvement of a wide range of people meaning that we really do get the best out of the opportunities
that the JCR as a whole are presented with.
All in all it makes Magdalen amongst the most fun, vibrant and active colleges JCRs to be part of.
Welfare
Starting university is a daunting prospect for many freshers, especially considering the overwhelming fact that this isn’t
any university, many people feel massive expectations from parents, tutors, and even themselves. Therefore, it can sometimes take a
little adjustment to get used to college life but fortunately we have a wide range of support on hand to help you out if necessary.
The frontline of defence are the JCR Welfare team who provide a friendly face and someone to chat to if you are feeling down in the
dumps. They also run Welfare Doughnut parties and Feel-Good film nights to give you a chance to chill out and get to know the Welfare
team, as well as providing confidential Welfare Drop-in Sessions if you need someone to talk to. In addition to the Welfare team there
are a range of other JCR committee members that you can talk to if you have particular concerns such LGBT, Overseas and ethnic minority
students (see the Equal Opportunities section).
When you arrive you will also have been assigned your College ‘mum’ and ‘dad’, two second year students who are
specifically here to help you settle in when you arrive both academically and socially. Backing up the JCR welfare support mechanisms are
Personal Tutors. Your Personal Tutor provides someone outside your subject who you can turn to if you are unsure of the way your academic
career is going. Considering changing course? Unsure if Oxford is the right place for you? Contemplating post-graduate studies? Your Personal
Tutor can advise you on all these sorts of decisions. All together there is a huge network of support in Magdalen both on peer and tutor
level that is there for you at any time throughout your degree if you should need it.
Academics
Oxford is often regarded as a place where your nose is constantly to the grindstone but whilst we do have more work than the average
university it does not mean that it is all work and no play. At Magdalen we have an ethos of passion for both intellectual and
extra-curricular exploration. The tutors here are friendly yet challenging without being too strict, and whilst the fact that we are
consistently high up in the Norrington Table can seem intimidating and appear to suggest that it’s all about work, there is a great
propensity for Magdalen students to be well rounded individuals, as can be seen with some of our famous alumni, Ian Hislop, Oscar Wilde
and Louis Theroux being personal favourites.
Equal Opportunities
Magdalen is a diverse community. The sole requirement for entry is academic excellence. The College and the JCR (the Magdalen student union)
are committed to ensuring that anyone should be able to come to Magdalen and be treated as an equal, regardless of social background,
nationality, ethnicity, regional accent, marital status, age, sexual orientation, gender, disability, religion, or indeed anything else.
To this end there is a strong support structure in place for students, designed to ensure equality of opportunity for all, both at College
and JCR level, with good levels of communication and co-operation between the two. The JCR has an Equal Opportunities Committee designed
to emphasise the importance of equal opportunities, who meets at least once a term to deal with any problems an undergraduate might
encounter while at Magdalen as a result of their particular circumstances. All JCR members are welcome and invited to bring issues to the
committee.
Magdalen is dedicated to breaking down barriers to entry for disabled students and some converted undergraduate rooms and
facilities such as hall provide access for wheelchair users. Moreover, the college is responsive to the variety of needs each individual
might face as a result of disability and works hard to ensure these needs are met. There are also extensive provisions in place to help
dyslexics and those with learning difficulties, such as provision of special equipment and the payment for tests if one is recognised as
dyslexic once at Magdalen. College works with the university officers to ensure that all Magdalen members have the best opportunity possible
to complete their exams. Extra time and laptop use are just a few of the provisions that current members use to ensure that learning
difficulties do not impede upon their work or results.
Magdalen takes a strong anti-racist stance. The JCR Admissions officer works with the Tutor for Admissions to try to increase
application from ethnic minority backgrounds. Ethnicity is not, and should not, be a reason to prevent an application to Magdalen.
Magdalen also aims to help overseas students in every way possible. Other foreign students are similarly represented by the JCR Overseas Reps,
who organises 'teas for overseas' (and the occasional cocktail party) to bring such students together, and who also helps with any problems
they face as a result of being an overseas student, such as storage issues over the vacation and extra information before arrival in the
first term. There is also a strong community of visiting American students at Magdalen, who are fully integrated into JCR life both in
extra-curricular and bopping ways.
The JCR also has an LGBT representative elected each year whose one goal is to serve the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
community at Magdalen. They arrange and inform about LGBT events throughout Oxford by means of their confidential mailing list, and
ensure LGBT interests are represented within the JCR. Former LGBT Reps are also on-hand and willing to lend an ear or give support if
desired.The LGBT rep is also active in the wider LGBTSoc, the university society and convey relevant information to JCR members.
Magdalen is a welcoming environment that accepts people of every background as equals, and seeks to fulfil the different needs of
each and every student. Entry is based solely on academic ability and discrimination against individuals is not tolerated. Care is taken
to ensure that support is forthcoming for those with particular needs and individuals are given personal help. The JCR as the undergraduate
community is a particularly welcoming and accepting body of all its members, no matter how old, what race or sexual orientation.
FinanceWhatever your worries might be about coming to university, to Oxford, and to Magdalen, finance should certainly not be among them. To an outsider Oxford may have an air of prestige and grandeur, and it would be easy to come to the mistaken assumption that this has to come with its costs. But the reality is different – Oxford is much more down to earth than often portrayed, and as the Oxford student’s lifestyle isn’t hugely different to any other, it follows that it costs much the same. As for any student the costs mount up – tuition fees, accommodation, food, academic materials, getting out, and all of the rest of life’s essentials have to be paid for. But none of these cost any more at Oxford than anywhere else. Accommodation at Magdalen is made cheaper by that fact that you can live in College for all of your course – this means that you only have to pay for accommodation during Oxford’s short, eight-week terms, so that it works out cheaper than living out, and saves having to negotiate with landlords and utilities companies. College also provides cheap meals in hall, and there are various book grants which mean you should never need to pay for anything that you need to study from. In fact, just about the only thing college doesn’t subsidise is your social life – though we’re working on it.
As well as the fact that studying at Oxford isn’t going to cost you any more than anywhere else, students at Oxford and in particular Magdalen are much more comfortable than students elsewhere, because of the financial support on offer. There are a range of bursaries on offer from Oxford University, which are aimed at students who fall within the reduced fees category. But the best support comes from Magdalen, which provides a fund of some sort for just about every activity you could possibly think of. The biggest fund is a general purpose Student Support Fund, which pays grants to students for living costs and anything else which they might need. This fund consists of a massive amount of money which is given out in grants of £500 to £2,000 a year to just about anyone who applies, with not too many questions about income asked. The fund is not just meant for people who are really struggling but anyone who thinks they could use a little extra, so that even if you don’t usually qualify for support grants you could still be able to apply. There other more particular grants for sports, travel, creative projects and other activities, from which is not unheard of for college to give students £200 for a few weekends away playing golf. These grants are all provided so that students shouldn’t ever need to worry about finance at all. Magdalen prides itself on its academic performance and would never allow any student to be affected by worries about their finances, and can afford to make sure that it doesn’t happen. So far from there being any financial reservations about coming to Magdalen, students here are really much better off than at most other universities.
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