Oxbridge Interview Tips
The Oxbridge Interview can be very daunting both to prepare for and endure through. I’ve been supervising at Cambridge University for over 3 years now and have been involved in the interviewing process as well. In this post, I share some of the insights and tips. I run through the interview structure and what to expect based on which college you’ve applied for. I also give you some insights into what interviewers are looking for, as well as discussing some do’s and don’ts.
College System
Cambridge like Oxford is a collegiate University. Which means that the University itself is made up of numerous colleges. To put this simply, the University organises all the main teaching, big lectures and lab work. Whilst the colleges sorts out your accommodation, pastoral care and small group teaching etc. Because of this collegiate system, as an applicant to the Uni, you’ll actually be applying to a specific college. Therefore, different colleges have slightly different ways of running their interview. But generally, expect to have 2 or 3 interviews. Majority of the interview will revolve around scientific questions rather than the “soft” questions like “why medicine?”, “why Cambridge etc.?” However, with colleges that give 3 interviews like Robinson, they may ask you these questions also so do prepare for them.
Interview Structure
So, as an example, let’s say the college you’ve applied to is Downing. If they choose to interview you, you will have 2 interviews on the same day usually one after another with a small gap in between. You’ll arrive outside the interview room 5-10 mins before the start time and have a seat outside. Then you’ll get called in to go inside. Inside there’ll be two interviewers both specialising in different fields. They’ll say their usual introductions and try to settle you in with some brief chit chat. Then one of the interviewers will ask you a question, usually quite simple and based on something you should already know then they’ll develop the topic and ask you harder and harder questions. (we’ll come to this a bit later). Then once interview 1 is done, then interview 2 begins by asking his set of questions. They will usually ask scientific questions rather than soft questions or questions about your personal statement. But other colleges with 3 interviews may ask you about these, I know friends who were quizzed on their personal statement and about articles they had claimed to have read so definitely don’t neglect this. But yeah, mainly expect scientific questions. At the very end, you might get a curveball “outside the box’ question like “there’s a cup of water with an ice cube in it, what happens to the water level when the ice melts?” Then the round off the interview and you leave for the next one.
What are we looking for?
There are two over-arching questions we’re asking ourselves when we interview a student. Do I want to teach you and will you thrive here? This essentially breaks-down into these key qualities:
· Ability to problem-solve.
· Ability to develop an idea.
· Enthusiasm for the subject.
· Willingness to learn.
Dos
· Think out loud. In many situations, it’s advised to take a moment to think before opening your mouth. This is one case where I’d advise the opposite. Do all your thinking out loud to show off your problem-solving skills and allow the interviewer to understand your thinking.
· Start from basics for every question. Focus on what you know as a starting point.
· Ask questions throughout. Show’s willingness to learn and also enthusiasm.
· Write things down and use diagrams to better explain your thinking.
Don’ts
· Don’t give up by saying I don’t know. Always have a go at each element of the question. Expect to be out of your comfort zone for the majority of the interview.
· Don’t be arrogant. Be humble throughout and take the “L” gracefully.
· Don’t panic. Don’t be thrown off by difficult or unexpected questions. Start with the basics to open up a dialogue and develop the idea from that.
