✨ Summer in Oxford Information Session ✨
Wednesday, October 29 | 12:15 - 1:15 pm
Join us for an info session to learn more about the Patman Center’s Summer in Oxford program—a unique opportunity to study, travel, and engage in meaningful dialogue while earning academic credit.
Oxford Professor, Daniel Rowe, from the Rothmore American Institute, will be in attendance to answer your questions!
(A zoom link will be emailed to registrants before the event)
Step Into Centuries of Scholarship
In partnership with The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy at The University of Missouri, The Patman Center is excited to offer $10,000 fellowships to ten UT-Austin students to support their participation in the Kinder Institute's Study in Oxford program.


Summer 2026 Courses
Students will choose one main course and 1-2 practicums.
Students will choose one main course and one practicum while participating in the program. Students are welcome to take two practicums if they would like, but only one main course.
Main Course Option I: The Glorious Revolution in Oxford - (GN HON 3231H)(4-credits)
A place-based course for students participating in the Kinder-RAI Oxford Summer School. Explores British history from the ascension of James I and IV in 1603 through to the Glorious Revolution in 1688 and its domestic and global legacies thereafter.
This course provides an entry point into the study of global history through an intensive examination of the Glorious Revolution in England, its repercussions throughout the world, and its legacies and meanings over time. As an extension of the Kinder Honors “Revolutions and Constitutions” sequence, the course approaches the Glorious Revolution as a laboratory for place-based learning as well as a chance take a deep dive into the world-wide significance of a revolution often touted as a milestone in constitutional history. The cornerstone of the Kinder-RAI Summer School, the class is embedded into a four-week study abroad experience at the University of Oxford. This 4-credit hour course combines three credit hours of classroom learning with an additional 1-credit hour of experiential engagement through a suite of intellectually complementary fieldtrips and excursions to places of interest in Oxford and its surrounds.
Download the syllabus:
Main Course Option II: Democracy in Theory and Practice in Oxford - (GN HON 3232H) (4-credits)
A place-based course for students participating in the Kinder-RAI Oxford Summer School. Explores the theory and practice of democracy with respect to themes of freedom, justice, accountability, and governance.
This course provides an entry point into the study of liberal democracy and political institutions from comparative and area-specific perspectives. It explores how timeless democratic themes of freedom, justice, accountability, and governance for the common good have shaped the development of political institutions and governments in the United Kingdom, Europe, and wider world. Special attention will also be paid to some of the most important thinkers and prominent ideas that underpin modern liberal democracies.
As well as taking a deep dive into the world-wide significance of democratic theory and practice, this course uses the United Kingdom and Oxford as a laboratory of place-based learning. This 4-credit hour course combines three credit hours of classroom learning with an additional 1-credit hour of experiential engagement through a suite of intellectually complementary fieldtrips and excursions to places of interest in Oxford and its surrounds.
Download the syllabus:
Practicum options (choose one or two): Practicum I - Museums - (GN HON 3070H) (2-credits)
An interdisciplinary experiential course for students participating in the Kinder-RAI Oxford Summer School. Focused on themes related to public history and applied historical skills.
The museums of the University of Oxford contain some of the world’s most significant collections, and have been sites of academic research, scholarly debate, and public learning for more than 400 years. The Ashmolean Museum, the world’s first public museum, opened in 1683 with an experimental laboratory in the basement. Nearly two hundred years later, the Bishop of Oxford, Samuel Wilberforce, and the scientist Thomas Huxley debated Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution in front of an audience of 500 on the first floor of Oxford’s Natural History Museum. Much more recently, in the 2020s, the Pitt Rivers Museum has reconsidered how to display and present its Victorian era collections, and discuss with visitors the histories of anthropology, and archeology as academic disciplines.
Students in this course will explore the history and development of these museums, and consider how museum objects are used for research, and as documentary evidence to communicate history to public audiences. The course will also introduce key scientific methods used in cultural heritage research, with visits to laboratories and the opportunity for supervised practicals with some techniques. Through sessions in museum galleries, expert lectures, hands-on object handling, and practical workshops, students will learn to ‘read’ objects and interpret their historical significance. Engaging with collections and specialists, students will develop skills to bring history to life through the things it left behind.
Read the syllabus here:
Practicum options (choose one or two): Practicum II- Policymaking - GN HON 3070H) (2-credits)
An interdisciplinary experiential course for students participating in the Kinder-RAI Oxford Summer School. Focused on themes related to public policy and politics.
The University of Oxford has had close ties to world leaders, and geopolitics from the very beginning. Thirty-one Prime Ministers, and at least 28 other world leaders have studied or taught at the University. The famous Oxford Union debating society, meanwhile, has hosted speakers including Madeleine Albright, Jimmy Carter, Benazir Bhutto, Queen Elizabeth II, Henry Kissinger, Jawaharlal Nehru, Ronald Reagan, and Desmond Tutu. Researchers within the University also frequently collaborate with international organizations, and national and local governments across the world. A great deal of this knowledge and expertise sharing happens through thinktanks, geopolitical risk analysis organizations, professional commissions, or policy briefings.
Students in this course will consider how researchers engage with policymaking communities and bring their expertise to bear on present-day political and policy conversations. The course includes visits to important sites of political debate and policy exchange, and interactions with experienced practitioners. Students will learn how to communicate with policymaking communities locally, nationally, and internationally, and analyze complex geopolitical issues. Over the course of the month, students will create a real-world policy brief that assesses an aspect of contemporary geopolitical change. At the same time, they will develop skills to effectively shape policy through clear, informed, and neutral writing and research.
Read the syllabus here:
Summer 2025 Courses Offered
The Glorious Revolution in Oxford
This course provides an entry point into the study of global history through an intensive examination of the Glorious Revolution in England, its repercussions throughout the world, and its legacies and meanings over time. As an extension of the Kinder Honors “Revolutions and Constitutions” sequence, the course approaches the Glorious Revolution as a laboratory for place-based learning as well as a chance take a deep dive into the world-wide significance of a revolution often touted as a milestone in constitutional history. This 3-credit hour course is linked to an additional 1-credit hour experiential class, which offers a suite of intellectually complementary field trips and excursions to places of interest in Oxford and its surrounds.
Experience Oxford
Week 1: The English Civil War and Interregnum in Oxford
Oxford was a key location in the English Civil War– the base for several thousand royalist troops, the royal court, and the center of the Royalist government. The colleges became reluctant hosts to the King and his army, and earthworks and fortifications were constructed across central Oxford. The Royalist surrender of Oxford was also negotiated in a house in nearby Marston. Students will visit various sites in Oxford pertaining to the Civil War, and view artifacts relating to the republic period in the Ashmolean Museum.
Week 2: Paths of Power Tour of London
Many of the defining political events of the Civil War and Glorious Revolution eras took place in central London. Charles I was executed outside Whitehall Palace’s magnificent Banqueting House, William and Mary were crowned as joint monarchs at Westminster Abbey thirty years after Oliver Cromwell had been buried at the church, and key debates occurred within the Houses of Parliament. During this field trip, students will visit critical sites of action in the course, and examine the spaces, places, and built environment of the Civil War and Glorious Revolution.
Week 3: Hampton Court Palace
William and Mary eschewed many of the trappings of seventeenth century European monarchy. Not only did they accept limits on royal power through the Billof Rights, but they also remade the ceremonial and aesthetic trappings of English monarchy. Nowhere was this more visible than at their preferred residences: Kensington Palace and Hampton Court Palace. During this trip, students will visit Hampton Court Palace, and explore how–under the direction of the famous architect Sir Christopher Wren, the old Tudor palace and gardens were married with new baroque style elements. As will become apparent, the blending of the old and new was a phenomenon that extended far beyond constitutional arrangements in this era.
Week 4: Visit Bath
In the wake of the Glorious Revolution, English society embrace the urban and the commercial. Towns played an increasingly important role in intellectual and political life and were held up as markers of Georgian politeness, and sociability. This was especially true in one of the boom towns of the eighteenth century: Bath. Students will spend the day in Bath exploring Georgian and Stuart sites. The visit will encourage students to think about how the social, cultural, and constitutional upheavals of the late seventeenth century led people to imagine themselves in new ways. At the same time, students will consider how events and trends in Britain informed events and trends elsewhere in Europe and North America.
Practicum I: Oxford Museums, and Using Objects to Understand History
The museums of the University of Oxford contain some of the world’s most significant collections, and have been sites of academic research, scholarly debate, and public learning for more than 400 years. The Ashmolean Museum, the world’s first public museum, opened in 1683 with an experimental laboratory in the basement. Nearly two hundred years later, the Bishop of Oxford, Samuel Wilberforce, and the scientist Thomas Huxley debated Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution in front of an audience of 500 on the first floor of Oxford’s Natural History Museum. Much more recently, in the 2020s, the Pitt Rivers Museum has reconsidered how to display and present its Victorian era collections, and discuss with visitors the histories of anthropology, and archeology as academic disciplines.
Students in this course will explore the history and development of these museums, and consider how museum objects are used for research, and as documentary evidence to communicate history to public audiences. The course will also introduce key scientific methods used in cultural heritage research, with visits to laboratories and the opportunity for supervised practicals with some techniques. Through sessions in museum galleries, expert lectures, hands-on object handling, and practical workshops, students will learn to ‘read’ objects and interpret their historical significance. Engaging with collections and specialists, students will develop skills to bring history to life through the things it left behind.
Practicum II: Geopolitical Analysis and Policy Engagement
The University of Oxford has had close ties to world leaders, and geopolitics from the very beginning. Thirty-one Prime Ministers, and at least 28 other world leaders have studied or taught at the University. The famous Oxford Union debating society, meanwhile, has hosted speakers including Madeleine Albright, Jimmy Carter, Benazir Bhutto, Queen Elizabeth II, Henry Kissinger, Jawaharlal Nehru, Ronald Reagan, and Desmond Tutu. Researchers within the University also frequently collaborate with international organizations, and national and local governments across the world. A great deal of this knowledge and expertise sharing happens through thinktanks, geopolitical risk analysis organizations, professional commissions, or policy briefings.
Students in this course will consider how researchers engage with policymaking communities and bring their expertise to bear on present-day political and policy conversations. The course includes visits to important sites of political debate and policy exchange, and interactions with experienced practitioners. Students will learn how to communicate with policymaking communities locally, nationally, and internationally, and analyze complex geopolitical issues. Over the course of the month, students will create a real-world policy brief that assesses an aspect of contemporary geopolitical change. At the same time, they will develop skills to effectively shape policy through clear, informed, and neutral writing and research.
Two Part Application
Apply for The Patman Center Fellowship
If you would like to apply for The Patman Center's $10,000 fellowship please see details below. Fellowship awards will be dispersed Spring 2026, prior to the students' departure. Applications are due no later than November 20, 2025.
Apply to The University of Missouri
Students who wish to attend the Summer in Oxford program will apply to the University of Missouri as a non-degree seeking applicant. Our partners at the Kinder Institute will walk you through this process, so when you are committed to attend, please reach out to:
Dr. Billy Coleman
Associate Director, Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy
Department of History
Affiliate Faculty, MU Honors College
University of Missouri
colemanw@missouri.edu
Program Dates
2026 Program Dates
Monday, July 6: Arrival day (check into accommodation)
Tuesday, July 7: Start of program
Saturday, August 1: End of program
Sunday, August 2: Departure date (check out of accommodation)
Course Credit
Undergraduate and Graduate Students Welcome
UT-Austin students, both undergraduate and graduate students, are welcome to attend the Summer in Oxford program. Students will apply to the University of Missouri as non-degree seeking applicants and receive a course transcript from the University of Missouri upon completion of the program. It is up to the student to apply for a transcript and to submit it to UT. Additionally, it is up to students to talk with their academic advisor in their UT-Austin department to decide whether the courses will transfer and align with one of your degree requirements. Often times, students take these courses as electives. Students are welcome to attend the program and not transfer credit to UT as well. Since this program is geared towards honors undergraduate students, graduate students will need to decide if they advocate for course credit or attend without transferring credit.
Important to Note
If you want credit transferred to UT-Austin from the University of Missouri, then students can not attend the Summer in Oxford program any later than the summer after their Junior year. Students may not take the program in the summer of their Senior year as they will be unable to get credits transferred in enough time to graduate in May.
UT Admissions Evaluation of Courses - Recommended Prior to Departure!
Current UT students are strongly encouraged to submit an Evaluation of Courses Form prior to departure. Once you have received the official course syllabus from Dr. Coleman at University of Missouri, you can submit it to UT-Austin Office of Admissions for review.
* Please note: Students should have talk with their academic advisor in their respective advising departments prior to submitting the form and prior to departure.
Transcript Information For When You Return
After you have completed the Summer in Oxford program, you will work with the University of Missouri to get a transcript for your coursework to send to UT-Austin.
All transcripts must be submitted in paper format, not electronically. It is up to the student to coordinate this and more information about how to do so can be found at the UT Admissions Transcript Information site.
International Students @ UT
If you are an international student at UT-Austin, you will need to talk with Texas Global prior to applying to the scholarship. You will need to make sure that you are able to apply to University of Missouri and also get a travel visa to London.
Questions?
Please email educationabroad@austin.utexas.edu with any questions regarding course transcripts or transfer of credit.
Program Costs
Program fees are dependent on how many credits you take:
6 credits - est. $12,757.60
8 credits - est. $13,892.80
Program costs cover all tuition and credit hours, weekday lunches and dinners (including formal dinners), all costs associated with administration and teaching of the program, housing and accommodations for four weeks in the Oxford dormitories, a Bodleian Library card, and expenses for up to four excursions throughout Oxford and its surrounds (including London).
Program fees do not cover flights to and from the UK, airport transfers, or personal expenses such a cell phone coverage or general spending money.
The Patman Center fellowship covers a significant portion ($10,000) of the program fees, but not the entire expenditures for the trip. Students should plan accordingly.
Apply to the Patman Summer in Oxford Fellowship
How to Apply:
Ten, $10,000 fellowships will be awarded to UT-Austin students, either graduate or undergraduate, who wish to attend the Kinder Institute's Summer in Oxford program.
Narrative
Applicants must submit a 3-5 page narrative, double spaced answering the following questions:
- Please tell us a little about you! (Where you are from, unique aspects of yourself, degree program at UT-Austin, expected graduation date and career goals).
- Why do you want to attend the Summer in Oxford program?
- How does attending the program support your professional or personal growth?
- What goals would you have for yourself while in the program?
- What challenges do you anticipate needing to overcome while there, if any?
Resume
Applicants should submit a professional resume with their email address, phone number, and UTEID at the top.
Academic Transcript Consent
Fellowships will be awarded to UT-Austin students who are in good academic standing, which means has a 3.3 GPA or higher. In the body of the email, please share "Yes" or "No" for consenting to us reaching out to your academic advisor to see if you are indeed in good academic standing for this program.
Applications close: November 30, 2025 by 11:59 pm.
All applications for the Summer in Oxford 2026 Patman Fellowship are due no later than 11:59 pm on Sunday, November 30, 2025 by 11:59 pm.
Application materials should be emailed to: LBJPatmanCenter@austin.utexas.edu
Subject Line: Summer in Oxford Application
Message Body:
- Name, Major/Minor, Expected Graduation Date
- UTEID
- Consent for access to academic good standing
- Name and Email Address of your Academic Advisor
- Are you an international student? Y/N
Attach:
- Narrative
- Resume
Questions?
Email LBJPatmanCenter@austin.utexas.edu with questions.
Awardees will be notified by January 15, 2026 and can begin applying to the University of Missouri at that time.