Test taken: English Literature Admissions Test (ELAT)
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: 45 mins
Length of interviews: 30 mins
Online interview: Yes

The first interview was preceded by 15 minutes of reading time, where I was given an unseen extract to analyse. For the first half of the interview, we discussed my thoughts on this, such as whether I could compare this to any other literature that I had read, etc. The second half focused around one of my submitted essays and a section of my personal statement. I was, like everyone, very nervous beforehand, but my interviewers were welcoming. It is helpful also that the interview did not explicitly feel like an interview – it was conversational. Not as intimidating as it sounds, and I did relax in to it!

The second interview had no reading time beforehand, and this meant that we were able to discuss – in greater  depth – elements of my personal statement and submitted essay. This was a genuinely enjoyable experience, as I had made sure to write about things that I found interesting on my personal statement.

Because it was conversational, I was partially allowed to direct the interview in which way I found suited me. For example, I could talk about a certain author, and then the interview would follow down that avenue. The interviewers were lovely, and there were no 'vague' and wacky questions like some of the example Oxbridge questions found on the internet. 'What Shakespeare character are you and why?' was not on our agenda, unfortunately.

Break the personal statement down in to sections/topics and revise the content. Interviewers will often ask about something you wrote here. Most importantly, practice talking about these subjects, whether to yourself or other people, so that 'speaking your thoughts aloud' becomes second nature – this is really what the interview is about.

Revise what you covered in your submitted work. This is good as it also doubles up as A Level revision.

Practice responding to unseen texts in a limited amount of time – forming opinions on them, looking at elements such as language features and form. It's a good idea to use extracts that cover a wide range of genres. This is similar to the analysis skills tested in the ELAT, except that in the interview you will be vocalising your response.

Come up with counter arguments to your opinions formed from the previous steps. Your interviewer may try to play 'devil's advocate', and so it is a good idea to keep an open mind when you are preparing for interview – look for other ways of analysing literature. The interview is an opportunity to demonstrate that you can critically evaluate different points of view, not just show off the facts you know.

Mostly past papers. I also read more poetry, especially from authors and eras that I was unfamiliar with – which made the prospect of the unknown less intimidating.

If you need to have a question repeated or clarified at interview, don't be afraid to ask. It's better to do that and give a better answer than to ramble on, not really understanding the question.

Practice speaking about your subject. You could speak to others or even to yourself, just make sure that your door is locked if you are doing the latter. This will really help you understand your own thought process.

And finally... don't be intimidated by the Oxbridge reputation!