The City of Oxford is a blend of businesses and colleges (the latter representing many architectural periods) with a population of 160,000. Along with high tech industries and several publishing houses, Oxford is home to a large variety of shops, including large department stores and small shops, and many excellent bookstores. The city provides ample opportunity for sightseeing, visiting museums, and attending theater and musical performances.

The University of Oxford, established in the 12th century, is composed of 39 independent, self-contained, self-governing colleges and six Permanent Private Halls, founded at different times in the past 800 years. Of the 39 colleges, 30 admit students for undergraduate degrees. Each of these colleges and halls selects its own students, houses them for at least the first year, provides their meals, meeting rooms (called common rooms), libraries, sports and social facilities, and assumes responsibility, primarily through the tutorial system, for their academic studies. The university, on the other hand, provides the laboratories, the central lecture halls, the libraries and museums, prescribes courses and syllabi, and is in charge of university examinations and awarding degrees.

There are over 200 clubs and societies to explore at Oxford. During Noughth Week, at the "Freshers' Fair" (Oxford's equivalent of the Student Activities Fair during Princeton's Freshman Orientation), there will be an opportunity to learn about a wide array of clubs, sports, music and drama societies, and other student-run activities.

At Hertford, there is a Junior Common Room, to which all undergraduates belong. It provides a place to relax with magazines and newspapers and functions much like the Undergraduate Student Government in representing students' opinions and organizing a range of social events. Hertford is a musically active college with a serious college orchestra and choir.