How to Apply

Entry Requirements

Entry is by audition only; there are no academic requirements for any of our courses.

We are unable to accept international students on our courses unless they have UK residency with indefinite leave to remain/settled status.

Applicants from the EU/EEA/Switzerland who do not have settled status in the UK are eligible to apply for the Six Month Foundation Course.

Minimum age for acting courses:

Foundation Course – 18 years
Three Year Course – 18 years
One Year Course – 21 years

There is no upper age limit for any of our courses. It is essential however, that you meet the minimum age requirement by the time the course starts in September. e.g. if you would like to apply for the One Year Course and you will not turn 21 until June 2022, for example, you are able to apply.

Audition Fee

£15 – First Round audition by self-tape is paid on application.                                                              We introduced a lower fee for the First Round self-tape audition to give more people the opportunity to audition for the School.

£30 – Recall audition fee is paid when confirming your place at your First Recall Audition.                  All Recalls are held in person at the School and include a workshop alongside your individual audition with the panel. You will not be asked to pay any additional audition fees if you progress to the Second (final) Recall stage.

An Audition Fee Waiver is available to some applicants. It aims to increase access by offering a free audition to eligible applicants who aspire to train at drama school. Please note, in order to get this fee waiver, applicants must apply for it before they submit their application. We are unable to reimburse audition fees once we have processed your application.

Please note that the audition fee is non-refundable, and applications received without the audition fee will not be processed. The Recall audition fee must be paid by the deadline in the email because this confirms your attendance at the First Recall Audition. If you are unable to attend then please let us know so that we can allocate the space to another applicant. Please email: auditions@oxforddrama.ac.uk if you have any queries.

The Application Procedure

Applications are drawing to a close in May. We now only have a set number of first and second recall auditions left and therefore, the competition for these audition places is now very high. Please apply in advance of the final deadline on the 31 May 2022 to ensure you can be seen.

The First Round audition is via self-tape and the First Recall and Second/final Recall audition is held in person at the School and include a workshop alongside your individual audition with the panel.

Please follow the instructions below regarding submitting your First Round audition with your application. Click here for some further downloadable application guidance.

Submitting Your First Round Application Tape

Before completing your application form, you will need to film and submit your introduction and answer to the question below along with two speeches of no more than 2 minutes each, no more than 6-7 minutes long in total. You are required to upload one link with the three parts (you can film in one take or use a programme to edit them into one) onto your application. The speeches are of your choosing, but if you would like to take one of our suggestions for your classical speech, please click here to view the list. For those unsure or unconfident about your classical piece we would encourage you to take one of our suggestions.

1. Film a close up of your face introducing yourself (state your name, age, the course(s) you are        applying for, why you wish to train at the Oxford school of Drama and the details of your              speeches) and then answer the following question: Choose a moment from a play or film which    really impacted you emotionally and tell us about it. How did you feel? (2 minutes).

          Change position by moving back from camera to a waist up shot and deliver the two pieces.                    Your eyeline should be to the side of the camera.

      2. A classical speech from the 16th or 17th century. This can be Shakespeare or any other writer                from that period; for example, John Ford, Ben Jonson, Mary Pix, Christopher Marlowe, Aphra                    Benn (2 minutes long).

      3. A contrasting (a different subject, theme or emotion) speech from a 20th or 21st century play                  (2 minutes long).

      4. Upload your audition video to Vimeo/YouTube making sure the link works for someone who isn’t             logged in, that settings are set to either public or set to private only if people with the link can                 still access it. Copy and paste the link into the indicated field on the application form. Please                   also include the names of your speeches in the indicated fields. Please make sure there is no                   expiry date for viewing the link because we may want to access your audition at recall and                       waiting list stages. The link should be in this format: https://vimeo.com/000000000

Please allow up to 4 weeks for us to get back to you regarding the outcome of your First Round audition. We will contact you by e-mail, so please make sure that you also check your Spam folder for any communication from the School.

Please be ready to confirm your First Recall audition by making the Recall payment by the date requested in your First Recall invitation.

If your First Recall audition is not successful, we will email you a letter to inform you. You will be able to call the School to obtain feedback on your audition from the Admissions Administrator on the days stated.