NUSI 2019

The first Nuffield Undergraduate Scholars Institute took place in the summer of 2019, between 1 July – 8 August. Six undergraduate students from universities around the UK came to Nuffield for six weeks of living in College, conducting research, and exploring what life might be like as an Oxford graduate student in the social sciences. Their first two weeks here were spent in an intensive course on research methods taught by NUSI Director Professor David Kirk and Nuffield Research Fellow Dr Marti Rovira. The participants then put their research skills into action during a four-week research internship. NUSI ended with an afternoon of informal presentations sharing the participants’ research.

NUSI 2019 Research Internships

The projects undertaken by summer participants spanned a number of social science disciplines, including economics, sociology, politics, criminology, social policy, and demography. Specific projects included:

• How improvements in quality of health impact on the value of life
• The state of adult care in Britain
• An overview of the causes and consequences of cybercrime
• The politics of immigration in the UK
• Geographical representation in legislatures: a cross-national comparison
• The evolution of public spending and the growth of the welfare state

Talks and Workshops

Outside of training and research, the participants attended informal lectures by various members of the Nuffield and Oxford University community about cutting-edge social science research, and life in academia.

Presenters included:

• Professor Tyson Brown
• Dr Sarah Clifford
• Sir Andrew Dilnot
• Professor Raymond Duch
• Professor Luciano Floridi
• Professor Jane Green
• Professor Ridhi Kashyap

The Oxford University Careers Service and Social Sciences Division also provided workshops and talks on subjects including:

• Google for Academic Research
• How to draft your “Elevator Pitch”
• Is Postgraduate Study Right for Me?
• How to create compelling research posters

Social and other activities

Each NUSI participant was paired with a current Nuffield student mentor; the student mentor team was active in organising social events, as well as providing information and advice about College life.

NUSI participants also joined the UNIQ+ summer school for a varied programme of academic and social events including research talks, College dinners, and trips to the Oxford Botanic Garden and punting on the river. Punting trip arranged for UNIQ+ and NUSI participants

NUSI and UNIQ+ students, mentors, academics and staff