English @ Sidney Sussex, Cambridge in 2017

Interview format

2x interviews (40 mins)

Interview content

1st interview: personal statement; 2nd interview: unseen poetry

Best preparation

Speaking to people with experience; mock interviews; working on texts in statement

Final thoughts

Don't worry if you think it went badly!

Remember this advice isn't official. There is no guarantee it will reflect your experience because university applications can change between years. Check the official Cambridge and Oxford websites for more accurate information on this year's application format and the required tests.

Also, someone else's experience may not reflect your own. Most interviews are more like conversations than tests and like, any conversation, they are quite interactive.

Interview Format

2 interviews, one written test; one personal statement interview, one unseen poetry. I stayed overnight and waited in the JCRin the morning after breakfast. Both interviews were around 40 minutes.

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

Discussed areas of personal statement, initial interview was enjoyable and engaging, second with unseen poetry was harder due to constantly questioning my argument.

How did you prepare?

Speaking to people with prior interview experience, mock interviews, familiarity with books mentioned

Looking back, what advice would you give to your past self?

Don't worry if you think it went badly or if there was no 'killer' final question