Wadham Cornwall Reading Party 2024

For many years there has been a Wadham Reading Party during the Easter vacation: a mixed group of about 12-14 undergraduate students, from different subject-areas, has spent a week in a large old house by the sea in Cornwall. There is no formal tuition during the week; we all take the opportunity to get on with our own reading and writing. It is an ideal opportunity for finalists to have a change of scene from Oxford libraries, but it has always worked well also to have some undergraduates from other years who want to do some serious vacation work.

About seven hours a day, in two sessions of strictly enforced quiet time, are reserved for academic study. The rest of the day is devoted to indoor or outdoor relaxation, with many opportunities for informal conversation, and (since the exercise is entirely self-catering), for household chores such as shopping and cooking. Money left by a former Fellow of Wadham for just this purpose (the Lennard Bequest) is used to help with the expenses of travel, rent, and food during the week; those taking part will additionally need to supply not more than £10 a day, besides purely personal expenditure.

The success of the reading party depends on those taking part being good at getting on easily with others in an unfamiliar environment; having the capacity for sustained periods of work without disturbing others; being able to enjoy a week in a remote spot, cut off from the blessings of urban civilisation (limited internet access, poor mobile phone coverage); and making practical contributions, without needing to be urged, towards the running of the household and the corporate welfare of the party. It is not the sort of working holiday that suits everyone; but hundreds of Wadham students have derived great pleasure and academic benefit from it.

If you are free 16 - 23 March inclusive, and think you would enjoy being on the Reading Party, please send an email to peter.thonemann@wadham.ox.ac.uk by the end of second week, Friday 26 January 2024, giving your name, subject and year, a brief idea of your activities and interests, and any credentials you conceive yourself to possess for being a contributive and helpful member of such a group. It would be helpful to know if you drive and if you might have access to a car, and also if you have a student Railcard. If there is anything else you would like to know about the Reading Party, please send an email to Peter Thonemann.

It would be sensible to consult your tutor(s) before applying, as they are generally consulted by us about the virtues (or otherwise) of prospective participants. Once the final list has been selected, the applicants will be informed by the end of third week. Reports, of a kind, on the 2023 Reading Party and 2022 Reading Party are available if you would like to know more.