Short courses and events
Study with Oxford online or in person
Start or continue your learning journey with Oxford Lifelong Learning at any time of life!
You’ll join a highly diverse learning community: students of all ages, from all backgrounds and from all over the world. Learn more about the different types of open-access short courses we offer below.
- 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, hone your skills in small workshops and hands-on practical sessions, or explore the city of Oxford with a walking tour.
- Lecture series are a series of weekly lectures on a given topic, providing a comprehensive introduction to your chosen subject. All can be watched online, with many taking place in a hybrid format – so you can choose to attend online or in person.
- Weekly learning programmes include courses that meet weekly in Oxford, online courses with live sessions, and flexible online courses.
- Professional development short courses are designed with academic experts from across the University and beyond, allowing professional learners from across the globe the opportunity to benefit from Oxford University's excellence in research and teaching.
- Summer schools: Join us in Oxford for personal enrichment, academic progression or professional development. Many summer schools can be taken for credit; others require no coursework and are non-assessed.
Upcoming courses
In-person day/weekend • Short courses
In a world of economic instability and social breakdown, dystopia has become the reigning form through which we imagine the future. This event will review four versions of dystopian fiction and consider how they reflect changes in Western society.
- Sat 11 Apr 2026
- 9:45am – 5:00pm
Online - live • Short courses
This course introduces you to the basic principles of Classical Latin. It provides a firm basis of grammar, sentence structure and vocabulary of the language, through which you will be able to read and translate into English Roman drama in adaptation.
- Mon 13 Apr 2026 – 22 Jun 2026
- 10 meetings
- 5:30 – 6:30pm
Online - live • Short courses
Investigate the emergence of architecture, from the earliest towns of the Neolithic to the Roman Empire. Explore urban form, construction materials and techniques, and discover how these how ancient building cultures influenced each other.
- Tue 14 Apr 2026 – 23 Jun 2026
- 10 meetings
- 3:00 – 4:00pm
Online - live • Short courses
Ancient Greek is the language of Homer, Sophocles, Plato, the New Testament and many other texts. This class is for students who have either completed Ancient Greek 1 or have prior knowledge of Ancient Greek from elsewhere.
- Tue 14 Apr 2026 – 23 Jun 2026
- 10 meetings
- 4:30 – 5:30pm
Online - live • Short courses
This course introduces you to the basic principles of Classical Latin. It provides a firm basis of grammar, sentence structure and vocabulary of the language, through which you will be able to read and translate into English Roman drama in adaptation.
- Tue 14 Apr 2026 – 23 Jun 2026
- 10 meetings
- 12:30 – 1:30pm
Online - live • Short courses
This online course provides an overview of how to trace family history in Britain from the present day to the 16th century using a range of digital and archival sources.
- Tue 14 Apr 2026 – 23 Jun 2026
- 10 meetings
- 11:00am – 12:00pm
