Read our Michaelmas Week 1 print edition, where these editorials appear, here, or pick up a physical copy in your JCR, pidge room, or lodge!
Emily Hudson
Week 1 has arrived far more quickly than I am quite comfortable with. Having been in Oxford for the past month, I’d got used to the September city, which is about as peaceful as Oxford can get.
In light of this, I’d like to extend special thanks to the team who worked on our Freshers’ Guide, who sacrificed their precious summer days to writing pieces that we hope freshers find useful. Putting it together was also a nice practice run for a term of prints, pints and pressing discussions.
Working the Freshers’ Fair was my first time going to one, being one of the last women standing from the generation of students who matriculated amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. The energy in the room was fantastic, and I dearly hope that those who signed up to our newsletter (out every week) are enjoying the updates they’ve received so far. It was especially exciting to get to talk to postgraduate freshers, a demographic we’re excited to include more in the newspaper this term.
It’s quite exciting that following our newsletter launch last term, we’re now launching our podcast, which will (with any luck) provide a more human angle to the words on the page, and much more than that to boot. Thank you sincerely to Tara for being the mastermind organising the team, and hopefully the first episode will be out as you read this!
Charlie Bowden
It’s quite a surreal experience to be writing my first editorial in the mayhem of the OxStu lay in process. Having spent the summer recruiting our team and setting everything up, Emily and I are really excited to finally get stuck in with the publication of the paper.
I’m also especially excited that The Oxford Student Podcast is debuting this week alongside this print edition, since it’s a project I’ve been interested in since last term. My eternal thanks must go to Tara for being so on the ball with it.
Getting things sorted for Freshers’ Fair last week was also a particularly hectic experience, but it was so rewarding to meet tons of Oxford students interested in getting involved with the paper. We hope that you’ll stick around to see what else we have planned for this term!
I’m lucky in that I’m running the paper in one of the easier terms for my (admittedly already easy) degree, but it can still take a lot out of you. I’m only kept sane by the incredible team Emily and I have behind us, especially the incredibly watchful eyes of Milo and Rose. This paper is much more than the people who sit in the SU for hours on end to put it together every two weeks, so I’d like to thank anyone and everyone who contributed to the paper this week, especially our new podcast team. Looking forward to seeing more from you soon!
Tara Earley
I’ve had three months to come up with something strikingly inspirational for my first editorial; yet all I’ve got so far is, “Adobe InDesign still vexes me.”
Thank you to Rose and Ayomi for all their work on the paper last term. Additional credit must go to Martin, for the wisdom and laughs so far, and to Milo for encouraging me to apply for Associate. Welcome also to our new editors, who are already surpassing most of the senior editorial team in talent.
It’s going to be a great term for the OxStu – look out for our new podcast, headed by yours truly, coming to a streaming platform near you…
Martin Alfonsin Larsen
When I started at Oxford, I couldn’t shake this feeling of continuous amazement at all that the University had to offer, and the fact that I got to indulge in it.
Coming back this year, even with essay deadlines piling up, I’m reminded of how incredible that feeling was. More importantly, I’m reminded of how much of that had to do with working at the OxStu. Whether it was my first lay-in, or getting to report on killer robots in Hilary, it was electrifying to be in this world for the first time.
If one fresher gets that feeling from reading or working on the paper this term, it will have been worth it.
