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8/2/2019 Interviews Guide 2011
1/12
C L A S S E S A U C O U R S E S A
M U S I C R T U T O R I A L S P B
E A P I I P P G U I D E D H U I E
X S H M A T H E M E T D C S M R F
A S Y E P I V L A R U I L C L E H
M S S E T N I I T X T N I X L S N
S E I S I T S B B S O T F E E R H
G R C Q T E I R O O R E F N T E K
S E S U U R T A D X S R E C T V U
T H Y E D V S R L F A V C E E I Y
E I L S E I H I E O G I A S R S O
S S L T N E Y E I R S E M P S I P
T A A I Q W G R A D E W E O U O E
S C B O L E A R N Q N S R R R N N
S R U N D E R G R A D U A T E S D
H D S S C O L L E G E S A G Y L A
O U X S Z E F M K L E C T U R E Y
V U C A L E N D A R H U D C O Z S
Q A R S T U D Y O N G M R A C O H
X T O U R S L U N I V E R S I T Y
A S S E S S M E N T F O F T R L E
OXFORDIN
TERVIEWS
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Oxford interviews
This booklet aims to explain Oxford interviews
and the part they play in the selection procedure
for undergraduate courses. Please rememberthat the interview is just one aspect of your
application, as tutors will also consider your:
n examination results,
n predicted grades,
n personal statement,
n academic reference, and
n admissions aptitude tests or written work,
if they are required for your subject.
This booklet also gives advice on how you can
prepare for your interview, so that you will be
able to do your best.
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Purpose of the interview
The interview is designed
to assess your academic
abilities and, mostimportantly, your academic
potential. It provides tutors
with a valuable opportunity
to assess your potential
beyond your written
record. The interview allows them to evaluate your
understanding of and aptitude for your subject,
and to give you the opportunity to explain why
you are committed to studying it. Tutors make
their decisions based on your academic abilities
and potential, not your manners or etiquette,
appearance or background.
Applicants with disabilitiesOxford University welcomes applications from disabled students, makes reasonable adjustments to facilitate
their access to courses, and provides support and assistance throughout the interview process.
Details of any disabilities should be included in the UCAS application form. Students with disabilities
should also inform their Oxford college of any particular requirements well in advance of their interview, so
that any appropriate arrangements can be made.
Please refer towww.admissions.ox.ac.uk/guides for further information on sources of support available.
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For details of how to apply to Oxford, please see
www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/apply. The deadline
for applications is 15 October. Please note thatseveral subjects require you to take an admissions
aptitude test as part of your application and/or to
submit written work. To make sure that you can
prepare in good time and register for any tests that
may be required, please do check the details for
your subject at www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/tests.
ShortlistingMany excellent candidates apply each year, and
most of them have a good personal statement,
a glowing reference and are predicted top grades.
With so many applications for each place at
Oxford, it isnt possible to interview everyone.
Tutors review each UCAS* application, along
with any written test or written work required
for the subject, and then decide on a shortlist of
candidates who will be invited to interview.
For some courses, over 90% of candidates
are shortlisted. In other subjects, particularly thosethat are most heavily oversubscribed, a smaller
proportion of candidates will be shortlisted in
some cases, less than 50%. Sadly, this does
Applying to Oxford InternationalstudentsFor details of interview
arrangements for
international students,
please check
www.admissions.
ox.ac.uk/int, and see
page 4 for further
details.
elli homasHistoryI had been on two open days before I came for the interviews,
and my school had organised some mock interviews as well. In
my first Oxford interview I was asked about things I mentioned in
my personal statement, so I was very glad I had read everything
Id said I had! It also helped that I was comfortable talking about
the books and events that I had mentioned.
In my other interview, the tutor was looking at my written
work, and commented, So, you wrote this essay on Fascist Italy,
and you mention the Church Then the rest of the interview
was spent following a tangent: I was encouraged to make
intelligent guesses, and to think of examples from areas that
I did know about to illustrate what I was saying.Of my two interviews the first one was really nice and
I thought the second was absolutely terrible. I came out
thinking theres absolutely no way Id got in! However, I was
delighted when I was offered a place.
mean that some candidates will be disappointed as
their applications will not be considered beyond the
shortlisting stage. However, shortlisting means that
those candidates who have been identified as having
the strongest ability and potential may have more than
one interview, increasingly at more than one college.
For more detailed information on the percentage
of applicants shortlisted for each course please
refer to our Undergraduate Admissions Statistics
leaflet. This can be downloaded from
www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/statistics.
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* UCAS is the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, whichprocesses all applications to UK institutions of Higher Education.www.ucas.com
GregSmolonski
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Before your interview
Towards the end of November or in early Decemberyou will receive an email or a letter indicating whether
or not you have been invited for interview. If you have
been invited, the letter will include practical details of
your interview and further information.
Please note that you will probably be interviewed
at the college to which you applied, or the college
to which you were allocated, if you made an open
application. However, in some cases your application
may be referred to another college. This can happen if
a college is significantly oversubscribed for your subject
that year, and will be made clear in the letter inviting
you to interview.
In some subjects all candidates will automatically be
interviewed at a second college. For other subjects, you
may be offered the opportunity to have an interview
at a second or even a third college. This does not
necessarily mean that you will not be offered a place
Have I been shortlisted?
dina JubrailLa
A couple of hours before my interview I was given part of a House
of Lords judgment on a homicide trial to read and analyse. The
interview was focused on the text in hand, which then provided a
springboard for wider discussion.
The questions were initially fairly subjective. I was asked to give
my own definition of manslaughter (based on what Id just read
in the judgment) and examples of different situations in whichthe offence may be committed. We then moved on to the policy
behind the charge in question: the justification of holding liable for
manslaughter someone who had prepared a syringe of drugs for
the victim, but had not administered it. I was encouraged to use
analogies from everyday life to explain my reasoning, and I really
felt the tutors were keen not only to assess how I thought but also
to ensure I enjoyed the experience.
The interview was very well structured, which enabled me to
organise my thoughts and evaluate to the best of my ability. The
teaching style at Oxford is about exploring and testing ideas and
theories: the best advice I can give is to think every thought out
loud, which will show your analytical process, and allow you to
benefit from a debate with leading academics.
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NasirHamid
at the first college or that this college is no longer
considering your application. This system is in place
so that you are given the best possible chance of
gaining a place.
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What should I consider before my interview?
We recommend that you:
n think about the obvious questions that are often
asked at the beginning of an interview to help
you settle down, and think how you might answer
them. Think specifically about why you want
to study at Oxford and why you have chosen
this particular subject. Please be aware that the
tutors may decide not to ask you these questions.
However, it is still a good idea to bear in mind
your motivation for studying your course.
n read widely around your chosen subject, including
newspaper articles, websites, journals, magazines
and other publications that relate to your subject.
n find examples of your subject in the wider world,such as taking an interest in the scientific or
economic theories that underline news stories.
n take a critical view of ideas and arguments that
you encounter at school or college, or in the
media think about all sides of any debate.
n be prepared to show some background knowledge
of the subject, if you are applying for a course
not normally studied at school or college, such as
Medicine, Law, Biochemistry or Oriental Studies.
However, you will not be expected to have a
detailed understanding of specific or technical
topics. For example, you may be asked what
role your subject plays in society and how you
came to be interested in it. For these subjects,
the topics for discussion are likely to allow you
to demonstrate the skills needed by an Oxford
undergraduate: the ability to use information
to construct your own opinions, the willingness
and ability to analyse and, in the sciences and
mathematics, an aptitude for solving problems.
n be sure to revise material you have studied for
your AS-levels (or equivalent qualification),
particularly for science subjects.
n re-read any written work that you have
submitted, and think about how you might
expand on what you wrote.
n re-read your personal statement and ensure thatyou are confident about its content and familiar
with texts and theories you mention.
n organise a practice interview for yourself. This
could be with a teacher or someone else who
is familiar with your subject, but preferably not
someone you know very well. This will help
you to get some more experience of talking
about yourself and your work in an unfamiliar
environment.
n remind yourself of the selection criteria for your
chosen subject. These criteria can be found at
www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/courses/criteria.
shtml.
Ptr HicksGography
For my first interview I had to analyse an article on Easter Island,
and give my opinions on some of the main arguments within it. I was
then asked about the two pieces of work I had submitted before
the interview, and finished with discussing an aerial photograph of
a volcano.
In my second interview, I was grilled about my AS-level
coursework, which led into a wider discussion about economics
I had to think on my feet; using my own knowledge as opposed
to things I had learned in school.
Although I found the interviews daunting, I really enjoyed them;
they definitely helped me to improve my confidence and my ability
to express myself. Try to be as enthusiastic as possible, and neverbe afraid to take your time to think over the answer to a question.
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International studentsOxford University aims to
accept the brightest and best
students from around the
world. There are a number of
ways you can be interviewed.
If you are currently studying
in the UK, the rest of the EU,
Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland, then
you will be expected to attend interviews in Oxford
in December if your application is shortlisted.
If you are studying in another country, and your
application is shortlisted*, you will still be invited to
attend interviews in Oxford in December. However,
if you are unable to come to Oxford for interview,
the college which is considering your application may
choose to interview you by telephone, video-link, or
over the internet.
The timetable for interviews at Oxford is available
atwww.admissions.ox.ac.uk/interviews . Please be
aware that you may receive only a weeks notice
that you have been shortlisted and you may need
to obtain a visa in this time. You may wish to book a
flight to the UK in advance to coincide with the days
you would be interviewed if shortlisted. However,
there is obviously the chance that you might not be
shortlisted. If you find that, unfortunately, you are
not shortlisted but have already booked a flight,
you might like to use this time to visit other higher
education institutions in the UK that you may have
also applied to via UCAS. If you choose to wait to
hear if you have been shortlisted, then you will need
to factor in the cost of travel to Oxford at short
notice and your ability to gain a visa if you need one.
www.admissions.ox.ac.uk/int
Finding your wayFor details of how to get to Oxford and how to find
your college, please see www.ox.ac.uk/
aboutoxford/maps.Interviews in Oxford take place in December,
after the end of term, when many of our current
students will have returned home for Christmas.
However, each college makes sure that there
are plenty of undergraduates around to provide
information and to help candidates find their way
around. These undergraduates will have recently
experienced the interview process themselves and
are very well placed to help and advise you.
What to wearand what to bringPlease wear whatever clothes you feel comfortable
in and remember that it can be cold in December,
so bring something warm. Most tutors will not dress
formally, and it is not necessary for you to do so.
Remember that your interview will be an assessment
of your academic potential and you will not be judged
on what you wear.
We recommend that you bring copies of anywritten work you have submitted, and a copy of
your personal statement, as tutors may refer to
these during your interview.
Its a good idea to bring a book with you or
some school or college work to do, as you will only
spend a relatively small amount of your time in
Oxford actually in interviews or taking tests. There
will also be plenty of opportunity to spend time
with other interview candidates as well as current
undergraduates.
The college inviting you to interview will let you
know what to bring. Your accommodation and meals
will be provided free-of-charge by the college. It is
advisable that you bring a mobile telephone, along
with its charger, so that the college can contact you,
if they need to.
* Please note that all shortlisted applicants for Micin must attend interviews in Oxford.
It is highly desirable for all applicants shortlisted for fin Art to attend their interview in Oxford since the interview alsocomprises a practical element. However, in extreme circumstances, if a shortlisted applicant who is not studying in the UK,the rest of the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland is unable to come to Oxford then it may be possible to
arrange an interview via video-link or over the internet.
GregSmolonski
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At your interview
Who will interview you
Interviews will be conducted by experts in an
aspect of the degree course for which you are
applying. You may be interviewed by two or more
tutors at a time. If you are applying for a joint course,
with two or more subjects, you should expect to be
interviewed by tutors representing each of
the subjects.
What to expect in the interview,or interviews
Tutors want you to be yourself in the interview, and to
allow you to demonstrate your skills and abilities. They
will probably ask you a few simple questions to begin
with to help you feel at ease.
They will then move on to questions about your
subject, and questions that will help them to assess
your suitability to study at Oxford. It is quite likely,especially in arts or social science subjects, that you
will be asked to answer questions about a short
piece of text. You may be given the chance to read
the passage before the interview, and will be advised if
there is anything particular on which you need to focus.
You may be asked factual questions, especiallyin science subjects. The basis for this discussion
will probably include the subjects you are currently
studying at school or college; for courses that
require written work, this may also be used. However,
you may also be offered opportunities to show
whether you have read around the subject and to
demonstrate your interest beyond your school or
college syllabus.
In many ways, your interview will be like a
mini tutorial. If you dont know the answer to a
question, you may wish to explain that you
havent covered that topic yet, but do try to work
out the answer if you can. Allow the tutors to guide
you, if necessary, and ask if you dont understand
a question. Many questions are designed to test
your ability to apply logic and reason to an idea you
may never have encountered before. The questions
may seem difficult, but dont worry: this does not
necessarily mean that the interview is goingbadly. The tutor will be seeking to stretch you in
order to assess your potential. Remember that
tutors are not necessarily so concerned with what
you know, but how you think.
Jack Haynsearth cincs (Gology)
For Earth Sciences, all the interviews are held in the
department instead of the college. I had one interview
with the college I applied to and another interview with
a second assigned college. I really enjoyed meeting the
student helpers and the other candidates the student
helpers really made me feel welcome and I knew theyd
be happy to help if I had any problems.
My interviews were remarkably similar to the tutorials
Im having now, and just as enjoyable. The tutors used
a piece of evidence to start a discussion between us
and asked me to comment on various things. At one
stage they began to question what I thought on onepoint, and I explained it thoroughly so they could see
how I came to that conclusion. The tutors are far more
interested in how you think rather than in what you
know, so they can see if the tutorial system is going
to benefit you.
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What tutors arelooking for?A good deal of the teaching in an Oxford college
takes place in small classes or tutorials, and your
interviewers who may be your future tutors are
assessing your ability to study, think and learn. Thisdepends both on how carefully you listen to questions
and how sensibly you answer them. Clarity, and
concise and relevant arguments are all-important.
Tutors are looking for your self-motivation and
enthusiasm for your subject. They are looking for
evidence that you are thinking independently, that
you are willing to engage with new ideas, beyond the
scope of your school or college syllabus, and
that you are committed to your subject.
Are there right or wrong answers?Interviewers are not going to ask you trick questions,
but many of the topics you will cover do not have
simple right or wrong answers. The questions
are designed to encourage you to think for yourself
and develop an argument. Be yourself and ask for
help if you need it.
Interviewers are not trying to make you feel
nervous or catch you out. They are looking for
evidence of how well you can explain what you do
know, and whether you can think your way through
a new problem or argue your position. If you dont
understand something, do just ask.
Jnni daisMathmatics
I spent four days in Oxford and had four
interviews in total. The second college
that interviewed me invited me back for
another interview, and subsequently made
me an offer.
The problems I was given got
progressively harder, but the tutors steered
me through them. The content of the
questions was from A-level, but I found
myself applying my knowledge in different
ways. I was also able to find out first-hand
how tutorials work, because workingthrough problems and justifying your ideas
is exactly what you do on the course.
I also met a really nice group of people
in my fellow applicants and we went
into Oxford together to explore, which
was a great chance to get a feel for what
it would be like living in the city! I very
much enjoyed my interview experience,
and when I received my offer I knew that
Oxford was for me.
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Are extra-curricular activities taken
into account?Please remember that tutors make their decisions
based on your academic abilities and potential:
extra-curricular activities do not form part of the
selection criteria in any subject. However, they
may ask a question or two about extra-curricular
activities which you have mentioned in your
personal statement, particularly at the start of
the interview, as you are settling in. They may
ask you why you enjoy a particular activity andwhat you have learnt from it. They may also be
interested in how you have balanced your time
between studies and other activities.
Your questionsAt the end of the interview you may be given
the chance to ask your own questions. This is
not the place for in-depth discussion of the
course syllabus or other details, as you should have
explored the course information before you applied.
However, it is the time to ask about any points
about your own academic work, or perhaps
about one of the questions you were asked in the
G
regSmolonski
interview. Please dont feel as though you must
pose a question: it is fine if you dont have anything
specific to ask.
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Anras KallinosBiochmistry (Molcular an Cllular)
I had two interviews; the first was at the college that had originally
invited me for interview and the second was at a different college,
both taking place on the same day.
I was asked why I had chosen Biochemistry and not Medicine,
because in my personal statement I said I wanted to work on the
medicinal aspect of biochemistry, but all other questions were
subject-orientated: I was asked to identify a few compounds and
functional groups from a handout and we discussed their chemistry
and purpose in metabolic processes.
I felt very comfortable during the interviews; they were more
of a discussion than question-and-answer. The interviewers were
friendly and I felt they wanted me to be comfortable while talking.There arent necessarily any right or wrong answers: you are
essentially answering questions based on what you currentlyknow.
Some help and hints are given if you get something wrong and you
are always asked to explain your thinking behind your answer.
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Colleges will inform
candidates of their
decision by the middle
of January although
most will let them know
before Christmas. The
letter you will receive
will explain one of three
things:
n You have been made an offer of a place to study
your subject at a particular college. If you have
already completed your examinations, this offer
will probably be unconditional. If you have not
yet finished your final examinations, the offer
will be conditional upon your achieving certain
grades, usually AAA (or A*A*A or A*AA for some
courses from 2012 entry) at A-level, or equivalent
qualifications. The offer may specify that you
need to achieve certain grades in particular
subjects. It may also include a requirement for
evidence of proficiency in the English language,
if English is not your first language or if you have
not been educated in the medium of English
language during your two most recent years of
study.
n You have been made an open offer, which means
that you have an offer from Oxford and are
guaranteed a place if you meet the conditions.
However, the college you will go to has not yet
been specified, and will not be decided until
after your final examination results have been
published.
n Your application has, unfortunately, not been
successful.
While one in five applicants to Oxford gain a place,
encouragingly, almost all applicants who do not
get an offer will go on to study at other excellent
universities if they have made their UCAS choices
wisely. Many students then opt to apply to
Oxford for further study after completing their
first degree elsewhere. We often see candidates
who were unsuccessful in their undergraduate
applications making successful applications for
graduate study here.
The result
Hannah PhillipsChmistry
I had two interviews one based on inorganic chemistry,
physical chemistry and maths, and the other on organic
chemistry. They were both at the same college and all of the
interviewers were from the Chemistry department.
I did not expect the first interview to comprise of mainly
maths, but now I realise that maths is a large part of the course
in the first year. It was only in my second interview that I
was asked non subject specific questions; one was about my
personal statement, so make sure to take a copy with you!
During my second interview I also worked through a sheet of
questions, with help from the interviewer.
The interviews were very similar to my tutorials now, sothey give you an idea of how you will be taught. I was more
relaxed in my second interview which is probably why I
enjoyed it much more, leaving with a smile on my face! By
then I was glad of the experience whatever the outcome.
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Admissions Information CentreThe , on Little Clarendon Street,
usually open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to
Friday, is a good first port of call for potential
applicants and their parents and carers. At the
you can pick up copies of the
prospectus, individual subject brochures and all
other leaflets relating to undergraduate study at
Oxford. There are also staff on hand to provide
advice and to answer any questions. If you are
not able to visit us in person, you can call, email
or write to us instead. Contact details can be
found on the back cover of this booklet.
.amissions.o.ac.uk/amissionsi
PodcastsFind out for yourself what Oxford University is
all about by listening to our podcasts. Be a fly on
the wall when Mike Nicholson, Oxfords Director
of Undergraduate Admissions, chats withstudents and staff from around the University
about how best to prepare for the Oxfordinterview, as well as about courses, colleges,
student finance, and what to include in
your application. Download and listen to
whole episodes, or select taster clips from
each episode.
.amissions.o.ac.uk/pocasts
iTunes UOur podcasts are also available on the
Universitys site on iTunes U, along withlectures, interviews and short films about
life at Oxford. They can be listened to online
or downloaded to a mobile device.
http://ituns.o.ac.uk
Sample interviewsYou can find example questions from interviews,
including video clips of academic discussions
with our tutors, on our website..amissions.o.ac.uk/intris
Finding out more
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EmilyAlexander
Feedback
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Produced by the University of Oxford Public Affairs Directorate
Photographs: Rob Judges (except where indicated) 0311
Undergraduate Admissions Office
University Offices
Wellington SquareOxford OX1 2JD
Tel: 01865 288000
Email: [email protected]
Web: .amissions.o.ac.uk
Contact details