Oxford names new graduate college after £80 million Reuben Foundation gift

The University of Oxford announced on June 11, 2020, that the Reuben Foundation had donated £80 million to its newest graduate college, which was renamed Reuben College in recognition of the gift. The university described the donation as one of the largest in its history.

According to the university, the gift provides a substantial endowment for the college and creates new Oxford-Reuben graduate scholarships. It also expands the Reuben Scholarship Programme, set up in 2012 to support undergraduates from disadvantaged backgrounds. Times Higher Education reported that £71 million was directed to the college, including £15 million for graduate scholarships, and £9 million to scholarships for undergraduates from low-income households. The first students were due to arrive in autumn 2021, with an initial intake of 100 graduate students expected to rise to 200 by 2022.

The college was established in 2019 as Oxford's 39th college and its first new one in 30 years, and was previously known as Parks College. It is located on the Radcliffe Science Library site in the university's science area. Its academic life is organized around interdisciplinary research themes, initially artificial intelligence and machine learning, environmental change, and cellular life.