Foundation Year Team

• Foundation Year Director: Jo Begbie
• Programme Manager: Caitriona Woolhouse
• Welfare Lead: Cat Purtell
• Comms & Outreach Officer: Jenny Newman
• Administrative Assistant: Maria Garcia
• Course Administrator: Izzy Naylor 

Academic Course Leads

• CEMS: Rachel Quarrell
• Humanities: Aurelia Annat
• Law: David Campbell and Anna Williams
• PPE: Natalie Quinn
• Preparation for Undergraduate Studies: Cat Purtell

The Astrophoria Foundation Year is part of the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford. In addition to the Department of Continuing Education's policy, code and guidance documents, the Astrophoria Foundation Year produces key guidance documents for students on the programme. 

• Astrophoria Foundation Year Welfare Guidance (to be updated for 2026/27)
• Astrophoria Foundation Year - AI Statement (.pdf)
• Promoting positive outcomes for Care Experienced and Estranged students
• Astrophoria Foundation Year Academic Prizes (.pdf)
• Astrophoria Foundation Year Academic Engagement Processes (.pdf)
• Fitness to Study Guidance (.pdf)

Click the button below to view all the Department of Continuing Education policy, codes and guidance documents on the Oxford Lifelong Learning website. 

The Foundation Year offers a comprehensive financial support package to each student on the programme. You can read more detailed guidance about the support available for your Foundation Year and how to access it on the Financial support information page.

Each Astrophoria Foundation Year course has its own Course Handbook. The Course Handbook is where you can find all the official information about your course. It’s unlikely that changes will be made to the handbook once your Foundation Year has started. 

• Astrophoria Foundation Year course handbooks are available on Canvas. Click the button below to view them. 
• You can find links to the undergraduate course handbooks on the University website.

'Examination conventions' are the formal record of the specific assessment standards for your course. They set out how examined work will be marked and how the resulting marks will be used to arrive at a final result and classification of an award.

Exam conventions are on Canvas

The Astrophoria Foundation Year has a dedicated Welfare Lead for students. Cat Purtell provides confidential 1:1 support and advice for all students on the Foundation Year Programme for matters relating to student wellbeing. 

You can find more detailed guidance about the support available and how to access it on the Welfare page.