Criticism has been leveled at the University of Oxford after it emerged that event tickets were being sold for a staggering £446.

The controversy arose when it was revealed that Pembroke College was charging £446 per person for its 400th birthday ball.

This exorbitant price tag sparked outrage among the current cohort of University of Oxford students, with many expressing disbelief that such steep prices were being charged.

Lily Cooper, a former student of Oxford Brookes University who now works as the marketing manager at The Brookes Ball, joined in the chorus of disapproval. Cooper, along with her colleagues, stages more affordable events for students across the city and has condemned the high cost of tickets for University of Oxford events.

"We are quite frankly shocked that anyone has bought them in the first place," she remarked. "From what we can see, they aren’t what they used to be, and students use them as a CV-building exercise rather than a way to give back to the student community which has served them."

Cooper also criticized the lack of a tiered ticketing structure and questioned the value for money, noting that the venue for such events often falls short of expectations.

This sentiment was echoed by Chloe Pomfret, an undergraduate student of Human Sciences at the University of Oxford, who argued that such high prices are exclusionary and inaccessible for working-class students.

Cooper concurred, stating that the steep prices reinforce the perception of Oxford University as elitist. Despite efforts to promote equal access through bursaries, the reality, she argued, is that many students are being priced out of attending these events.

The Brookes Ball, established in 2020, aims to provide an affordable alternative to the expensive balls organized by Oxford University. Cooper highlighted the stark contrast in pricing, with tickets for The Brookes Ball ranging from £80 to £120, making it accessible to a wider range of students. Photo by Janet McKnight from Oxford, UK, Wikimedia commons.