Student project led by Ashwin Menon

2015/2016 round

For more information, please contact innovations@it.ox.ac.uk

ABSTRACT

Exploring different colleges in Oxford is the cornerstone of the Oxford experience. Sitting by the lake at Worcester college, walking around the deer park at Magdalen, admiring the library at Lincoln or dining in the hallowed halls of Christ Church?

Every fresher dreams of living the full Oxford experience: creating a lifetime of memories, long lasting friendships and experiencing stimulating conversations at every turn. Yet, many students find themselves confined to their college circle or course study group. Is the full Oxford experience eluding the grasp of Oxford students?

We would like to offer a simple intuitive application that connects people across colleges over formal dinners and offers them a chance to discover a central part of each college’s unique experience and traditions. The internal messaging service will enable users to start a conversation in a safe space, connect with individuals of similar interests and agree on a date. Auxiliary features such as food ratings, hall ratings and of course experience ratings can also be explored.

The application aims to make the Oxford college experience a communal one, overcoming social silos and filling students with memories that will last a lifetime! Although we are starting with formal dinners, this concept is scalable to include library exchanges, college bops and college balls.