1. Oxford and Cambridge Interviews

2. Two very useful PDFs on the university websites

3. Short-listing for interview: Oxford: Arts

4. Sciences
Intake 12
Over 80% overall
interviewed
at Cambridge

5. What are they looking for?
Self motivation and commitment to subject
That you have done more than your syllabus
demands
That you can think critically and independently
Ability to think conceptually and can engage with ideas
Similar to supervisions in approach

6. Subject specific interview
Challenging discussion
Issues covered in recent academic work
Issues in application/personal statement
Apply existing knowledge to new situations
What you think rather than what you know
If you don’t understand say so
Usually no right or wrong answer

7. How can I prepare? Think about obvious questions Read widely
Take a critical view of ideas and arguments
Re-read personal statement and written work submitted
Bring copies to the interview
Remind yourself the selection criteria for the course
Arrange a practice interview
Dress: ‘...whatever you feel comfortable in. Most tutors do not dress formally.’

8. At the interview May be two or more interviewers at a time
May be given something to read before interview especially in arts subjects
Like a ‘mini tutorial’
Test ability to apply logic and reasoning to new ideas or problems
‘The tutor will be seeking to stretch you in order to assess your potential.’
Judging academic potential, self motivation and commitment ‘not your manners, etiquette, appearance or background’
‘....not seeking to make you feel ignorant or catch you out.’

9. Maths, Med and Vet Science, Languages,
Comp Science, History,
Maths, Med and Vet Science, Languages,
Natural Sciences mock
interviews here
Biology and English
mock interviews here

11. Computer Science interview has explanation from tutor at beginning

12. History interview best for illustrating key points to all applicants

13. Short video clips on Oxford website
Who will interview you?
Purpose of interview
What to expect
What tutors are looking for
Are there right and wrong answers?
Are extra-curricular activities taken into account?
Your questions

14. Law and Biochemistry
mock interview clips

15. Oxford Sample Interview questions with pointers

18. Good source of 60 admissions interview questions with answers:
‘How would you measure the weight of your own head?’
‘What happens if I drop an ant?’
'What percentage of the world's water is contained in a cow?‘
Why are fierce animals so rare?

19. Spend minimum of 20 hours preparing
Anticipate obvious questions What ifs?
What did I get from the books I have read, from work experience, conferences or field work. What insights?
Prepare clear examples to illustrate your answers about yourself and what you have read, done and think

20. ‘How do I know what I think until I see what I say?’
Make it a conversation
Pause before you answer and don’t speak too quickly
Think out loud. Show how you think about a problem
Show the different angles/alternatives to a question
Don’t be afraid to ask for pointers if you get really stuck
Rehearse interview skills and serious intellectual ‘talk’ with other students in your subject:
‘How do I know what I think until I see what I say?’

21. Advice for schools and colleges
Try to use interviewers who are not known to the students
Do an exchange with another school. You interview their students, they interview yours
Over coached students are seen through
Not necessarily a good idea for students to pay for advice and training
Interviewers increasingly use prompts that cannot be prepared for eg a tea bag in a recent Cambridge anthropology interview

22. Get students used to questions which challenge their views
What evidence is there for that?
I disagree with that because.....?
You are not taking account of .....?
Doesn’t that contradict what you said earlier ?
Wouldn’t x’s ideas/theories argue against that?
Would you be able to apply that kind of thinking to ?
Can you explain how you came to that conclusion?
On the other hand, couldn’t you say that......?
The problem with what you are saying is.....?
There are limitations to that argument aren’t there......?

23. Subject teacher support is crucial
Make it clear what is being looked for
Emphasise thinking skills. Give interviewee something to analyse or think about or get them to think forward based on what they already know in the relevant subject
Supply lists of interview questions and video clips
Give them interview debriefing sheets for their subject from past students

24. Give two or three subject specific questions as pointers
Provide answers/analysis from ‘Answering Oxbridge Questions’ activity and sample questions on Oxford website
Encourage them to focus on these questions with lots of follow up questions and discussion

25. English: examples to give to subject teachers
Would you rather be a novel or a poem?
Why do you think an English student might be interested in the fact that Coronation Street has been running for 50 years?
Why might it be useful for an English student to read the Twilight series?

26. Analysis
There's several reasons I might ask this one. It's useful in an interview to find some texts the candidate has read recently and the Twilight books are easily accessible and popular. Also, candidates tend to concentrate on texts they have been taught in school or college and I want to get them to talk about whatever they have read independently, so I can see how they think rather than what they have been taught. A good English student engages in literary analysis of every book they read. The question has led to some interesting discussions about narrative voice, genre, and audience in the past. Lucinda Rumsey, Mansfield College