<figure class="media"><div data-oembed-url="https://youtu.be/HC7qIPBfX7k"><div style="position: relative; padding-bottom: 100%; height: 0; padding-bottom: 56.2493%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HC7qIPBfX7k" style="position: absolute; width: 100%; height: 100%; top: 0; left: 0;" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div></div></figure><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Key Points</strong><br>&nbsp;</p><ol><li>The interview stage forms an important part of the entire admissions process.</li><li>The interview is used to assess your passion for and ability in the subject.</li><li>Expect to get challenging questions during the interview.</li><li>The interviews are designed to mimic a typical Oxbridge tutorial session.</li></ol><p><strong>Why are the Interviews Important?&nbsp;</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It’s no secret that applicants to Oxford and Cambridge have to go through a battery of assessments before they finally end up at the interview stage. They are required to craft a persuasive personal statement and also meet the minimum entry requirements for their A Levels or IB scores. There may also be admissions tests that follow, and a few subjects even require written work in order to further assess each applicant. The interview is often the culmination of all these assessments. Your performance is key to helping you stand out from the crowd.<br>&nbsp;</p><p>Universities rely on the interview to assess the academic potential of applicants and the admissions statistics reflect this. Every year, Oxford receives around 500 applicants for biochemistry. Over 70% of applicants are invited to the interview and 20% receive an admission offer.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;</p><p>Subjects which require admissions tests may have a lower percentage of students who are shortlisted for interviews. For instance, Oxford Engineering invites around 60% of applicants for interviews and admits around 22%. Even for these subjects, it is clear that interview performance plays a significant role in the decision making process. Details on the admissions tests can be found at Chapter 3.1.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>An interview can also be a chance to catch up with the competition. Not every student has a set of straight As. That’s a fact. But it shouldn’t be a point of concern. The Oxbridge academic philosophy places a lot of emphasis on depth. It is okay to excel in a particular field without being as competent in another. This means that even students who do not have perfect GCSE (for example 2A*s, 1A, 3Bs and 2Cs) or IB results do receive admission offers, so long as they prove that they are passionate and very competent in their subject.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Interview Format and Atmosphere</strong><br>&nbsp;</p><p>There are more than 20 different colleges at both Oxford and Cambridge (this does not include the graduate colleges). You may be interviewed by up to 3 interviewers but usually there will be two.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Bear in mind that each college conducts their own interviews. This means that the interview setting varies across colleges. Some past applicants have reported that their interviews were serious whereas others felt they had a casual conversation with the interviewer. Having said that, every interview will seek to test you on the same set of skills. This will be dealt with later on in this chapter.<br>&nbsp;</p><p>Each interview lasts around 25 to 40 minutes and the interviewers will typically be your future tutors. On average, each applicant has 2 interviews but depending on the individual colleges, you might have a third interview or just one interview.<br>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>What If I Cannot Make It to Oxford or Cambridge for An Interview?</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Local and EU students will be required to appear in person for an interview. For international students who are unable to travel all the way to the UK, there are other options. Oxford offers Skype interviews while Cambridge encourages in person interviews through its overseas interview programme.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In relation to applications to Cambridge, the university has an interview team which visits certain countries (Shanghai, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Canada and India) in October. So you have the option of having your interview in one of these countries. Applicants from South Korea can choose to either be interviewed in Cambridge or Singapore. Please bear in mind that these alternative interview arrangements vary across subjects.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Interview Dates for Each Country</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>For details of the Cambridge interview dates, you can have a look at the following link:&nbsp;<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/international-students/international-applications/overseas-interviews">www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/international-students/international-applications/overseas-interviews</a>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Oxford no longer conducts physical interviews in other countries (they used to fly to places like Singapore). It is however, possible to attend supervised Skype interviews.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Is it better to attend an interview in the UK or in another country?</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In general, having an interview overseas (or via Skype) means that you will only have one interview opportunity. The interviews are usually 45 to 60 minutes long. This is something you should take into consideration. While Cambridge says that there will be no impact on applicants who choose to do their interviews overseas, applicants who interview in person do get an extra interview. In the event that the 1st interview does not go as planned, you still have another chance to prove yourself.<br>&nbsp;</p><figure class="image"><img src="https://oxbridge-blogs.s3.ap-northeast-2.amazonaws.com/AzMJkWwtU2w50Wj7QPTr.png"></figure><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>What Sort of Questions Come Up In the Interview?&nbsp;</strong><br>&nbsp;</p><p>This is an area that many students are concerned about (and rightly so). This section aims to give you a basic understanding of the type of interview questions which tend to come up and what they are meant to test. This will help you craft appropriate answers during the interview.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Firstly, general interview questions like ‘Why do you want to study at Oxford?’ or ‘Why do you want to study Chemistry?’ are quite rare. The answer to these questions should be evident from your personal statement. Therefore, the interviewers will instead cut to the chase with academic questions related to your subject.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Secondly, be prepared for difficult questions. For subjects that have been taught at the A-Level or IB level, the topics discussed during your interview will generally cover the same ground, but in much greater depth. Having said that, since the interview usually happens before you’ve completed the entire curriculum, there is a chance that you’ll be asked about topics that you’ve not had time to cover in school. For Cambridge, applicants will state the topics that they have covered in school in their additional SAQ/COPA form. Therefore, the questions asked will normally be about things that you’ve already learnt.<br>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>What are interviewers looking out for?</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>There are two key attributes that interviewers are looking for in an applicant:&nbsp; passion for the subject and academic excellence.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><i>Passion</i></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>There aren’t any questions that specifically test your passion for a subject. This comes through naturally during the interview in the way you answer questions and pose questions. For instance, a student who is passionate about Medicine would have tried to read beyond the school syllabus. He or she might also have spent time thinking about new and upcoming areas in the field like cognitive neuroscience and how these fields might revolutionise other areas in medicine. Other examples of passion include excitement after solving a complex puzzle or asking follow up questions about concepts that you recently learnt during the interview.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><i>Academic Excellence</i></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Your interviewer will be looking out for the following traits, which are often a sign of academic excellence and intelligence.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Quick Learner</strong> - The workload at Oxford and Cambridge is large while the academic terms are short. This means that students are expected to grasp new concepts quickly. The interview is meant to test this.&nbsp;</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p>As mentioned in the earlier section, it is possible that you’ll be asked about a topic which you are unfamiliar with. In situations like this, the interviewers might briefly teach you the concept to give you a chance to answer the question asked. This is part of how they assess your ability to pick up and apply a new concept within a short span of time.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Intuition and Reasoning Ability</strong> - Often the interviewer starts with some easy questions before increasing the difficulty over time. At some point, when you’re stuck, he or she will provide you with hints to see if you can make use of them to reach the next stage of the answer or reasoning.&nbsp;</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The questions asked can be very challenging but do not be overly concerned. Getting the correct answer is not the most important thing. Some applicants have told us that they ended up receiving an offer despite the fact that they could not fully answer any of the interview questions. What is most important is your reasoning process.<br>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Clarity of Thought/Coherence of Delivery</strong> - Successful applicants are able to take an interview question and break it down into smaller components. Their answer is methodical and each step is arrived at logically.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;</li></ul><p>In addition, they are able to explain their ideas clearly to the interviewer. Don’t just say whatever comes to your mind at the first instance. Knowing when to say more and when to say less is a skill. Open ended questions like “tell me more about X” test your ability to distill the most important points to talk about when you are short on time.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;</p><p>One final aspect of a fluent delivery is eye contact. Students who look down at the floor when answering questions do not sound persuasive. Do not be afraid to look someone who is more senior than you in the eye.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Standing One’s Ground</strong> - The interviewer may challenge your answer at times. It is very important not to wilt in front of the interviewer and just concede that they are right. If you believe it makes sense, then you should give reasons to defend your view.&nbsp;</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><ul><li><strong>Receptiveness to Opposing Views&nbsp;</strong>- Our earlier point emphasised the importance of standing one’s ground. Having said that, although sticking to your own opinion is important, if you think the opposing argument is too strong, it is perfectly reasonable to concede that your answer may need some modification. Successful applicants are able to see the weaknesses in their own arguments and the merits of opposing ones.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Summary</strong><br>&nbsp;</p><p>At the end of the day, remember that the interview mimics what a typical Oxbridge tutorial is like. Students are expected to do their readings beforehand and be prepared to discuss issues with their tutor. The tutorial is not meant for students to just sit there and passively absorb information. It is a conversation between tutor and student.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>So interviewers look out for candidates in the interview that they would enjoy teaching for the next 3 to 4 years. In relation to that, there are specific traits and types of behaviour which will put you at an advantage during the interview:<br>&nbsp;</p><ul><li>Think out loud. Let the interviewer understand your thought process. Try not to be too quiet.</li><li>Ask questions. Clarify your doubts if you have any.</li><li>Don’t be afraid to challenge the interviewer. Just make sure you have good reasons to back your statement up.</li><li>Your answer should be simple, but not overly simplified. Elaborate on your answer when necessary. Give examples. Students usually think they’ve spoken for a long time when in fact they haven’t. When you’re not sure how in depth your answer should be, it can be helpful to start with a general overview before asking: “Should I go on further?” If your answer is inadequate, your interviewer will prompt you to elaborate.</li><li>Be enthusiastic about the interview. Yes it is an assessment but it is also a chance to learn from people who are experts in a subject that you like.</li></ul><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In Chapter 4.1, we’ll go through different ways to prepare for the Oxbridge interview.</p>