Test taken: Arts-Humanities Admissions Assessment (AHAA)
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: About an hour 
Length of interviews: Around half an hour each - with 10min of prep before one of them
Online interview: No

My first interview was for Arabic, and took place in the AMES faculty. For both my interviews, some really lovely student helpers showed me where to go so I didn't have to worry about getting lost or anything like that! I didn't have to speak in Arabic in my interview either. I had to answer one or two general language questions about grammar and syntax and we chatted a bit about my personal statement and what I might like to do on my year abroad. There were definitely times when I felt pretty out of my depth and like I was lacking the background knowledge to answer questions or that I was simply making stuff up on the spot but that's kind of the point of the interview I guess: thinking on your feet and being pushed out of your comfort zone.

My second interview was for Spanish and I was given a short Spanish text to read pretty much straight before my interview. I think I then had to read the text aloud in the interview but I can't remember! I definitely felt a bit daft at one point when I forgot that Spain invaded Latin America but the interviewers know that everyone gets flustered, especially when doing an interview in a foreign language. I was given a hint and was soon able to recover and get back on my feet. I really had to concentrate during my interview - especially the bit in Spanish - but at the end of the day, even if I hadn't been offered a place, I would still have had the chance to read an interesting text. And don't worry - it wasn't the whole of the interview that was in the foreign language I was going to be studying and it probably felt like we were talking in Spanish for a lot longer than we were.

In both interviews, they pretty much exclusively asked me about things relating to the course. Cambridge don't really care if you were the captain of the hockey team and they don't care about your background. There's something quite freeing about that, knowing that you're being judged purely on merit, though it can create pressure so the important thing to remember is that going to Oxbridge is great, but it isn't everything. If you've even got an interview you've done an amazing job.

And don't write yourself off after the interview if you think it's gone badly. It might have done and you might not get a place and that's okay. But the worst thing you can do is slack off on your studies or be consumed by self-doubt because you don't think the interview went well - especially if you are then offered a place and you discover that your grades are no longer in line with what they need to be!

I watched a couple of videos from vloggers and the University of Cambridge youtube channel but that was mostly just procrastination and can be summed up as: try to relax, try to enjoy it and the interviewers are more interested in your thought process than your answers.

I was really fortunate to be able to do two practice interviews in school to get used to being asked challenging questions about my subject and my personal statement.

I'd really recommend going over your personal statement and trying to guess what sorts of questions they might ask you about things on it. Particularly, if you said you've read a book, make sure you've read it and have something to say about it!

I also knew that there would be a component of my Spanish interview in the target language so I made sure I was as confident as I could be on my speaking skills - they know you won't be perfect though and it really doesn't matter if you miss the occasional subjunctive!

There were a couple of practice papers on the admissions website and a spec which I had a look at. I tried to do a few practice questions. There wasn't anything you could do content-wise to prepare though; you just had to go in with an open mind and try to enjoy it and maybe learn something interesting!

Oxbridge isn't the be all and end all. Yes, it's great to go to such a prodigious institution but there are things that matter more: your mental health, your work-life balance and your learning. Don't pour so much time into preparing for an interview that you neglect you current studies. Whoever you are reading this, I don't know you personally but I know that you are an exceptionally talented and valuable individual and if Oxbridge doesn't recognise that then maybe Oxbridge isn't the best environment to be in. You have potential to go far wherever you end up so I would say go to your interview with the mindset that you are being given the opportunity to talk to some of the world's top academics in a field that interests you and that is a great opportunity. Where you go to university does not define your life and not being offered a place at Oxbridge does not diminish your intelligence.