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Oxford is a world-leading centre of learning, teaching and research and the oldest university in the English-speaking world. Oxford is a collegiate university, consisting of the central University and colleges. The central University is composed of academic departments and research centres, administrative departments, libraries and museums. The 38 colleges are self-governing and financially independent institutions, which are related to the central University in a federal system. There are also six permanent private halls, which were founded by different Christian denominations and which still retain their Christian character. The different roles of the colleges and the University have evolved over time.

Ariel view of Oxford

In the THE subject rankings 2016-2017, Oxford is, for the sixth year running, ranked first in the world for Clinical, Pre-Clinical and Health subjects. It ranks second for Archaeology, Medicine, Anthropology, Law, and Politics and International Studies. Oxford is ranked sixth in the world in the QS World Rankings (2016) and seventh in the world in the Academic Ranking of World Universities compiled by Shanghai Jiaotong University (2016). Oxford is ranked second in the UK by The Sunday Times (2017), The Guardian (2017) and The Complete University Guide (2017).

Medical Sciences Division

The Medical Sciences Division is an internationally recognised centre of excellence for biomedical and clinical research and teaching and is the largest of the four academic divisions within the University. 

Over 5000 academics, researchers, NHS clinicians and GPs, and administrative staff, 1500 graduate and 1600 undergraduate students, together contribute to our extensive and exemplary research, teaching and clinical portfolios.

We aim to be the best university biomedical institution in Europe and amongst the best five biomedical institutions in the world, and have been ranked number one for the last ten years in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for clinical, pre-clinical and health sciences - the only non-North American institution to be top-ranked by THE in any subject discipline.

Nuffield Department of Medicine

The Nuffield Department of Medicine is a cutting-edge research and teaching institution at the University of Oxford, working across several clinical disciplines. Our global reach and significant breadth in terms of capabilities and capacity make us unique among departments of medicine across the world.

The Nuffield Department of Medicine's vision is Universal Health. Our mission is to save lives and improve the quality of life by advancing the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of disease. We deliver this by forging global partnerships and accelerating the discovery of new medicines.

  • 3,500 research and support staff
  • 200+ Principal Investigators
  • £220m annual income