Astrophoria Foundation Year welcomes 2025/26 cohort to Oxford

Group photo taken in an outdoor garden setting with stone walls and greenery in the background. The image shows new Astrophoria Foundation Year students for the 2025/26 cohort standing on wooden steps alongside Dr Alison MacDonald, under a clear blue sky.

Some of the new Foundation Year students with Dr Alison MacDonald, Interim Director, Oxford Lifelong Learning

Oxford University is proud to welcome the latest cohort of students joining the Astrophoria Foundation Year.

This year, 22 students from across the UK have joined us in Oxford, from all over the UK including Wales, Newcastle, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, the West Midlands, the South coast and London. Their arrival marks another exciting step in the University’s commitment to inclusion and opportunity. A key part of Oxford’s Access and Participation Plan 2025–26 to 2028–29, the programme aims to ensure that potential, not background, shapes opportunity.

The Astrophoria Foundation Year (AFY) offers a fully funded year of study, providing students with tailored academic and pastoral support to help them thrive. Offering a dedicated pathway to undergraduate study at Oxford, AFY students are preparing to progress to degrees across a range of subjects.

Students this year have become a member of one of our participating Oxford colleges, each of which plays a vital role in creating a welcoming and supportive environment. This year, our students have joined: Harris Manchester College, Jesus College, Keble College, Lady Margaret Hall, Regent’s Park College, St Anne’s College, St Edmund Hall, Somerville College, Trinity College and Wadham College,

As the programme enters its third year, the University community is excited to support and learn from this inspiring group of students as they begin their Oxford journey.