Three W&L Students Selected for New Oxford Study Abroad Program

By Drewry Sackett
April 21, 2017

“We were very fortunate to have three outstanding applicants, all of whom were accepted and are looking forward to spending next year at Oxford, in residence at Mansfield College.”

In early 2016, Washington and Lee University signed a memorandum of understanding with Oxford University’s Mansfield College that would allow W&L students to study at the university in the U.K. beginning in 2017-2018. Now, three students – Ben Fleenor, Mohini Tangri and Kenta Sayama – are preparing to pack their bags and spend their junior year there, studying a broad range of subjects across the humanities and social sciences, while taking in the sights and sounds of Oxford.

“We were very fortunate to have three outstanding applicants, all of whom were accepted and are looking forward to spending next year at Oxford, in residence at Mansfield College,” said Mark Rush, director of international education at Washington and Lee.

While the three students intend to study a wide variety of subjects, all expressed interest in Oxford’s new human rights institute. They are also looking forward to experiencing the tutorial style of teaching.

“While one important aspect of global education is exposing students to different cultures and different people, it is also about exposing them to different educational models,” said Rush. “The tutorial system at Oxford will broaden and deepen their exposure to different pedagogical structures, which will be a great addition to their educational experience.”

Hear the students talk about their upcoming year: