Online short courses and events
Join a worldwide community of adult learners
Explore a topic in depth over one or two days; extend your knowledge over several weeks with a lecture series or a weekly learning programme.
Explore the different online course types below.
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Short online courses (Flexible): These have no live-time meetings, so you can study when it suits you.
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Short online courses (Live): These have weekly 1-hour online meetings to attend.
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Day and weekend events: Include livestreamed lectures and small online workshops.
Upcoming courses
Online - live • Short courses
The course focuses on analysing original passages from some of the greatest ancient Greek authors, tackling some challenging grammatical and syntactical phenomena and learning about ancient Greek culture and thought.
- Mon 12 Jan 2026 – 23 Mar 2026
- 10 meetings
- 4:30 – 5:30pm
Online - flexible • Short courses
Why do animals behave the way they do? In this course we will look at the full range of behaviours found in the animal kingdom, from simple escape behaviours to complex tool use and their evolution.
- Mon 12 Jan 2026 – 27 Mar 2026
Online - flexible • Short courses
This course examines the rise and fall of the British Empire and its manifold legacies in Britain and beyond.
- Mon 12 Jan 2026 – 27 Mar 2026
Online - live • Short courses
Based on Harvard's famed introductory course in computer science, CS50 is now available at Oxford. This course teaches you how to solve problems, both with and without code, with an emphasis on correctness, design, and style.
- Mon 12 Jan 2026 – 08 Jun 2026
- 21 meetings
- 7:00 – 8:00pm
Online - flexible • Short courses
This course explores the riches of northern European art from c.1480 - 1580; artists including Dürer, Bosch, Holbein and Bruegel will be studied.
- Mon 12 Jan 2026 – 27 Mar 2026
Online - flexible • Short courses
We think we know, but do we? We think we are free, but are we? We think our actions are moral, but are they? What is this reality we take ourselves to live in? The oldest questions meet the newest technology in this online introduction to philosophy.
- Mon 12 Jan 2026 – 10 Apr 2026
Flexible learning with Oxford
As well as short online courses, we also offer flexible Oxford University qualifications and professional development programmes. Many can be studied fully online, some require short residencies in Oxford.
Short online courses
Our short online courses are taught in two alternative teaching formats - flexible or live. All of these courses are usually 10 weeks long.Distance learning
Study with Oxford from anywhere in the world. From part-time Oxford University qualifications and professional development programmes (CPD), to online short courses.Low-residency programmes
Our low-residency programmes allow students the flexibility of studying primarily from home, with short residential stays in Oxford.Continuing professional development
Professional development with Oxford University. From short courses and training in Oxford and online to flexible graduate programmes and bespoke courses.