Tierrai Tull has settled into Oxford life now – but when she first arrived, she admitted: “I did land on my head!”
Ms Tull, 2024’s Rhodes Scholar, who is now halfway through her two-year MPhil in comparative government at the prestigious university, said it was quite a jump from her four years studying political science at the University of Toronto.
“The adjustment to Oxford was initially quite jarring,” the 24-year-old said.
“I remember talking to people who’d studied in North America or come from the Caribbean particularly, and adjusting to the UK, if you haven’t studied there before, is like, ‘Oh my goodness, what is this place?’ I was quite disoriented.”
True to her nature however, she threw herself into opportunities of interest and is now loving the university.
“I got involved in Magdalen, and I got involved at Rhodes House. I’m one of the co-conveners for BARS, which is the Black Association of Rhodes Scholars at Oxford. And I travelled in the UK.
“I really do love Oxford now. I think it’s a really unique place. It’s intense, which I like. Even at breakfast, people are debating and I’m like, ‘It’s 7am and I love it that we’re all charged up.’”
Comparative politics was not her first choice. She was initially interested in gender studies, but the latter didn’t work out and in hindsight, Ms Tull said: “It was the right choice.”
What exactly is comparative government? “Good question,” she laughed. She thinks of it as an extension of the highly regarded, PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics) undergraduate degree, which many of her course mates studied.
“It’s a methodology of political science,” she explained. “Comparative government is very quantitative focused. It’s like political science meets economics in one.”
Embracing a passion
For her first year she had to take 16 subjects including political economy, rule of law, development, democratisation, authoritarianism, climate, accountability politics, voting, gender and sexuality. Her second year will be more specialised. This is also when she will do her thesis for which she can embrace her passion for gender studies.
“I’m doing my thesis on gender elections and campaigns. The title of my thesis is called Running like a Woman,” she shared.
“I’m interested in two relationships. The effect of gender on electoral outcomes and the effect of gender on campaign strategies and media receptions.”
Being a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford comes with status.
“I think it’s a huge privilege and it carries a lot of power,” she said. She also has access to Rhodes House, which feels more like a college to her than her actual college, Magdalen.
“Rhodes House has changed tremendously over the years to be a hub and a meeting point and a connection point for scholars and non-scholars alike, and I think they’ve really succeeded in that mission.”
She particularly enjoys the “delicious” and “subsidised” café, bi-weekly yoga, library and “beautiful gardens”.
“Rhodes House has been incredibly important for me because of the scholars, this incredible network of beautiful, brilliant people but also because they make an effort. They said, ‘this is your home’ and they really meant that.”
Once her MPhil is complete, an array of opportunities await. Depending on the outcome of her thesis, she may pursue a DPhil, Oxford’s equivalent of a PhD.
“I will let the research guide me on that front and then I’ll also let the state of the world, or the state of my priorities also guide that decision,” she said.
She also feels drawn to home. Ms Tull is co- founder of Bermuda Youth Connect and wants to scale the organisation’s impact on the community. She also has her family, may want to start a family of her own in the not too distant future, and is aware that “there are a lot of problems” in Bermuda.
“I think it would be such a waste if I benefited from all these scholarships back home and these opportunities like Rhodes, but didn’t come back and give back in some way for a period of time.
“I think I’m drawn to service in Bermuda. I think I’ve been an ambassador for a while in my studies and I’m ready to be a grassroots servant in some way.”
