• Graham Price, 46, was excited when he got accepted into Oxford University.
• When he heard about the fun his friends were having at other universities, he grew envious.
• He decided to drop out of Oxford so he could go to a university where he could have a better life.

I picked an unusual degree: classics. Only about 20 of the 166 British universities, including Oxford and Cambridge, offer it.

While I attended a private school that encouraged college applications to Oxford and Cambridge, there was no parental pressure to attend university. Nobody in my family had ever done so.

So, when my teachers asked, which prestigious university I was more interested in, I was shocked. Both schools were never on my road map.

I applied to Oxford, and my offer came through.

I loved Oxford at first

I'd fallen in love with beautiful Oxford after visiting several times. I pictured myself cycling past the ancient spires or feeling at home among the books of the famous Bodleian Library.

At first, that dream came true. Oxford is a place of ceremony. On matriculation day, I was dressed in academic gowns with mortarboards.

I looked around and thought, "I can't believe this is actually happening. I'm here!"

There was the other side I never imagined: the unrelenting workload

Pre-Oxford, I loved studying and translating ancient plays, poetry, and other literature. But Oxford was next level.

It all started with holiday reading the summer before my freshman year. None of my friends at other universities had holiday reading, but I had to read three times the equivalent of all the Latin and Ancient Greek I'd studied for my entire two-year A-level. My friends were out enjoying summer while I was stuck indoors reading Homer's "Iliad."

This intensified once I started my degree at Oxford. I'd compare my experience to my friends at other universities, who'd email me saying what fun they were having going out, partying, and socializing — in addition to their studies.

I was mostly stuck in my room, studying frantically in a desperate attempt to keep up with the relentless workload.

I started feeling jealous of them and exhausted by the speed at which I was expected to read and translate Latin and Ancient Greek texts. I had very little work-life balance. It robbed me of the joy I once felt studying these subjects.

I asked myself: Do I want to be mostly holed up in this small bedroom for the next four years?

I decided to transfer out of Oxford during my first year

My answer came when I began dating a guy from another university. He'd tell me how he and some fellow students had gone to the beach, had beers, and built a fire.

That's when I realized I'd picked the wrong university. I wanted to look back on this as one of the best times of my life before the world of work beckoned, so I decided to leave during my first year.

I was quite nervous about my decision. Everyone was saying, "Are you crazy? You can't leave Oxford!"

My tutor was aghast. She tried to persuade me to stay at Oxford by changing my subjects. I told her I wanted to study the same subject at a different university.

I was resolute. I started a classics degree from scratch at Swansea University the following year.

Transferring was the best decision I could've made

Life became so much more enjoyable. Swansea's course was far more manageable than Oxford's one. I hit the ground running and was able to take on extra-curricular activities, which enabled me to thrive and grow as a person.

I started learning Welsh and added it to my degree. I joined a gym. I became a Student Union Lesbian, Bi, and Gay officer and have carried a love for diversity, equality, and inclusion work throughout my career. Best of all, I got to have fun — disorganized, spontaneous fun. All stuff I didn't have time or headspace to take on at Oxford.

It boosted my confidence to make such a momentous decision that turned out so well.

No job interviewer really cares which university you attended; they care what relevant work experience you have. But when managers have remarked on it in interviews, they often say it must've taken tremendous courage to leave Oxford like that. So, it has actually worked out as a career advantage, too.

The offers and details on this page may have updated or changed since the time of publication. See our article on Business Insider for current information.

• I graduated from Oxford with my master's degree, hoping I could land a full-time job.
• I applied to hundreds of roles and all of them rejected me.
• To save on rent, I'm now a pet sitter who stays at strangers' houses.

To say I was elated when I graduated from Oxford with a master's degree is an understatement.

Nestled in the graduation halls, beneath centuries-old frescos, donned head-to-toe in dramatic black robes, we grads listened joyfully as emphatic speakers told us about the big, successful lives that awaited us.

Now, after nearly 17 months of unemployment, it all rings hollow.

I began my job search three months before finishing my degree; like many other foreign students from the US, I hoped to find a job in London right after graduation so that I could get a work visa.

I made it to the final round of interviews for several positions, only to be turned down at the last stage. When I asked for feedback, the answer was nearly always the same: "You were great, but there was just someone better." While the job rejections stung, I was still convinced the right role was going to magically work out; it would just take some time.

I had to fall back on the gig economy to make ends meet.

I needed a way to make ends meet in London

I became increasingly stressed about finding work. I had basically depleted all of my savings just getting through grad school, and I had very little to spare in this waiting period. I applied to more and more postings, hoping that my master's degree and three years of professional work experience would qualify me for an entry-level job. For the most part, I heard nothing.

The UK has experienced a cost-of-living crisis over the past few years, which has increased the prices for everything, especially rent. I knew that if I wanted to survive in London, I would have to think outside the box.

I had heard about people using house sitting as a way to find housing for free but didn't really know where to start. I'm a huge animal lover and have taken care of animals for most of my life. It sounded like a perfect exchange: I could avoid paying rent while also spending time with cute animals.

Thankfully, I had a few more months left on my student visa, so I decided to take the chance.

I became a nomad in London while house- and pet-sitting

I downloaded pet-sitting apps and joined Facebook groups. I downsized my life and lived out of a backpack. Every few days, I'd pack up everything I had and traverse London public transit to my next home. I moved all over the city, from Camden to Croydon to Notting Hill to Newington — and just about anywhere between. If a sit fell through last minute or I had a few days between homes, I'd crash on friends' couches.

Housesitting pushed the limits of my adaptability: You never really know what you will get. As much as you vet the sits beforehand, nothing really prepares you for what waits behind the front door. On some of my sits, the animals and I became immediate best friends. We'd cuddle on the couch, watch Netflix, and go for late-morning frolics in the park. One of the dogs even joined me on a Hinge date (He didn't vibe with the guy and peed on his backpack. There was no second date).

On the other hand, some of my sits have been some of the most hectic experiences of my life. Chaos became my routine. In between walks and feeding schedules, I'd ferociously hack away at job applications even while a needy Spaniel constantly shoved his squeaky toy in my lap.

Even though my days were hectic, I cherished the routine. The dogs got me out of the house and enjoying London's greenspaces. It helped stave off some of the feelings of depression and hopelessness that so often plague job seekers, even if only for a short while.

While my housing was taken care of, I still had other bills to pay so I freelanced on the side.

Unemployment is starting to affect my mental health

Once my student visa ended in the UK, I continued pet-sitting around Europe, especially Greece. I'm still doing it back home in the US.

I'd be lying to say these long, drawn-out job-hunting days haven't fuelled my nihilism. Some days, it's hard to get out of bed, knowing that I'm doomed to repeat the same day over again, like some LinkedIn-dwelling creature, cursed to endlessly scroll job boards and write cover letters that no one will ever read.

I look around at all my former classmates — these wonderfully brilliant, successful people with fancy jobs and bright futures — and wonder if I somehow fell through the cracks. I fear that, somehow, I am an outlier.

Despite the chaos, transience, and uncertainty, I am thankful for my pet-sitting gigs. Taking care of animals has given me a purpose. I became these animals' caretaker; their routines became central to mine. Even when things felt stuck and hopeless, I could always count on my animal companion to put a smile on my face.

• I considered colleges in three countries: the US, the UK, and Canada — where I'm from.
• To compare each school, I weighed students' experiences and their return on investments.
• Although I dreamed of Oxford for years, I ultimately decided to attend a small school in Canada.

Growing up in Toronto with dreams of attending Oxford, I never imagined I'd attend a small college in a town with just 5,500 people and an hour away from the nearest city.

I explored hundreds of different schools across the UK, the US, and Canada, but throughout high school, I had my sights set on Oxford.

Still, I wanted to broaden my search to ensure I was making the best decision, so the choice of which school to attend and in what country became my primary focus.

With various options and countries to consider, I narrowed my search to three major English-speaking destinations: the US, the UK, and my home country, Canada.

I then needed to identify what I wanted in a university and determine how to compare information effectively across countries. I outlined two main factors I was looking for in a university: good value and a learning environment that suited my needs.

Getting in touch with current students abroad proved difficult

Gathering evidence about student life at colleges around the world was tedious. After examining a variety of schools, it was difficult to find current students' opinions about their experiences on campus.

For example, many students in Canada and the US use social media to share information about their university experiences. You can also find helpful insights if you're willing to ask questions in local university groups.

However, this was less common in the UK. Instead, students at Oxford and the London School of Economics use platforms like The Student Room, which is more like an online forum where I could post questions. I was able to engage with current students from universities I was interested in.

This helped me narrow my search to schools that prioritized more interaction with professors, which became my main criterion across different countries. In Canada and the US, this often meant small liberal arts colleges. In the UK, it included institutions like Oxford and Cambridge, which, despite being large schools, usually offered opportunities for one-on-one or small-group learning with professors.

Finding the school that made the most sense financially was important

People often assume that a school's reputation directly correlates with its investment value, but my research revealed that's only half the picture. I quickly learned that less-reputable colleges could be a better financial option — now and in the future.

For example, while small liberal arts colleges can be costly, they have an excellent return on investment for economics majors, which I was most interested in.

Similarly, while schools like Oxford are reported to have some of the highest post-graduation salaries in the UK, I learned that being an international student would cost me a lot of money. Paying international fees could make my investment in Oxford economically unviable.

Even though Oxford had been my dream school in high school, this financial reality dissuaded me from applying.

I finally chose a small college in Canada

I decided to stay in Canada and enroll at Mount Allison University.

While Mount Allison is far less globally recognized due to its size — especially compared to Oxford — it represented the right choice for me.

By being in a smaller environment, I have had easy access to great professors, and the school funds academic research for undergraduate students in a way that most larger schools do not. All of this came at the right price.

While it was not the conventional choice — and surprised even me — I'm thrilled I made it.

• Larry Ellison plans to invest up to $165 million into research at the University of Oxford.
• The investment aims to transform research into products, focusing on key global challenges.
• The Ellison Institute of Technology is opening a campus in Oxford in 2027.

Larry Ellison is betting big on research and development in the UK by investing at least $127 million through his technology institute to help turn scientific discoveries at the University of Oxford into products.

The Ellison Institute of Technology, set up by the Oracle cofounder in 2015, plans to invest £130 million ($165 million) overall to fund joint research projects at the university in areas ranging from health to clean energy.

Ellison said in a press release that the joint venture's mission is to "have a global impact by fundamentally reimagining the way science and technology translate into end-to-end solutions for humanity's most challenging problems."

"This long-term, strategic partnership with the University of Oxford is at the heart of delivering on that goal," he added. "By collaborating on transformational, world-class research programs harnessing new technology and compute capability we will together deliver positive impact on society at scale."

The Oracle cofounder, now the world's fourth richest person, founded The Ellison Institute of Technology as a research and development center for healthcare.

The center announced plans to build a campus in Oxford in 2023, which is set to open in 2027. The $1.27 billion development will include labs, supercomputing facilities, and cancer research clinics.

The EIT will inject millions into joint research projects with the University of Oxford to dedicate to what Professor Irene Tracey, the university's vice-chancellor, described in a press release as "humanity's most pressing challenges."

The joint center's research will focus on EIT's four "Humane Endeavours": health and medical science, sustainable agriculture, clean energy, and government innovation in the age of AI.

Professor Sir John Bell, the president of EIT Oxford, said in a statement that the alliance "comes at an exciting time in the technological revolution."

"By combining world-class research with long-term capital investment and state-of-the-art facilities, we will tackle some of society's biggest challenges," he said. "Whether it's advancing new approaches for healthcare or solving the issues of food security, we will make progress using the brightest and most creative human minds available."

Bell told the FT the investment would also help secure the intellectual property rights of innovations that come out of the center and its researchers — something the science minister, Lord Patrick Vallance, told the outlet the UK had been falling behind on.

The deal also includes £30 million ($38 million) to provide scholarships to more than 100 undergraduate and postgraduate students, with the first intake starting in October 2025.

Ellison owns 40% of the business software company Oracle, and his net worth has more than doubled over the past two years to $181 billion.

He is in the process of purchasing Paramount for his son, David.