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Oxford University’s bid to rival Ivy League

Oxford University on Wednesday was set to launch the biggest-ever fundraising drive by a European academic institution, aiming to raise £1.25 billion to pay for a major expansion and compete with the American Ivy League.

Details of the campaign reveal that more than 20 influential patrons, including a former Canadian Prime Minister, a prominent Republican Senator and a chief economist from the Indian government, have been recruited to front the campaign. The Conservative party is heavily represented with party leader David Cameron, former Tory Cabinet Minister Lord Waldegrave and Lord Patten pledging support. Patrons will give money, raise money or lend their names to a fundraising drive.

The campaign is being billed as a major turning point for the 800-year old institution in an attempt to rebuild the university on the scale of the American giants Yale and Harvard. The money will fund a new campus, library, accommodation and an overhaul of the university’s ancient colleges as well as 200 new fellowships to the tune of £2.5 million apiece. A major recruitment drive to attract leading academics from around the world will follow.

The move reflects growing concerns among leading British universities that they will have to find more money to compete with American rivals which charge much higher fees and enjoy multibillion dollar endowments boosted by their alumni. Vice-Chancellors are also mindful of the rapidly developing higher education sectors in India and China. It echoes similar moves made by Cambridge University to raise money to allow greater financial freedom from the government.

Oxford has already raised £575million of its £1.25 billion with donations from leading philanthropists including the billionaire Wafic Said, named in court as an intermediary in the controversial BAE arms deals. Mr. Said has given a further £25 million to the campaign to pay for an expansion of the Said Business School, based at the university.

The money will be spent on substantial new bursaries for students from disadvantaged backgrounds in an attempt to make the university “needs-blind” — an admission that some students could be put off going to the university because of the costs involved.

“This will be the largest campaign ever to be initiated in Europe and aims to put Oxford on a level playing field with universities in America,” Bolton and Quinn, the company brought in by the university to devise the campaign, is claiming in invitations to journalists, selected because they are alumni of the university. The company has promoted the London 2012 Olympics, the Tate and the British Council.

Oxford alumni including Michael Palin, Richard Dawkins and Sir Roger Bannister were to launch the campaign.

The move follows public spats between the university and Gordon Brown after he stepped into the row over the university’s decision to reject straight A grade state school pupil Laura Spence, who went on to study medicine at Harvard.

The inclusion of high profile Conservative names in the campaign was welcomed by David Willetts, the Tory shadow higher education minister, who was invited to the launch at The British Academy in London.

Mr. Willetts said:

“I hope this campaign is Oxford looking at the people who believe in spreading academic excellence and using it to improve opportunities.”

John Hood, the university’s Vice-Chancellor, is standing down next year. An announcement on his replacement is expected over the next two weeks. — © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2008

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