Test taken: None
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: 5-10 minutes 
Length of interviews: About 40-60 minutes
Online interview: Yes

My first interview started by discussing why I wanted to study geography - including a question about whether I preferred physical or human (I said I like both!) and how my A Levels might be useful for this degree. Then we discussed a journal article which had been sent to me a few weeks earlier (definitely make sure you've read the entire thing). Firstly I explained my understanding of what the article was about, then we discussed some specifics about things like what research methods the authors used and their conclusions. I was then asked about my opinion on the article and whether I agreed with the authors - this is a good question to think about beforehand! And we talked about some of the wider issues the article related to.

In my second interview we discussed what interested me about geography again. This interview focused more on my personal statement - especially my EPQ. I was asked about the way I wrote it, how I think it was a useful experience, what interested me about the topic and what my conclusion was (as well as other things about the topic itself). I enjoyed this as it gave me a chance to talk about something which I was really passionate about. I was then shown a small section of an article, given about 10 minutes to read it and was asked about it. The questions were first about how well I had understood the section, asking specifics as well as more general themes. We then discussed the wider context once again- and this is the time where a general knowledge of world events became useful as we discussed which regions had been experiencing drought recently, ect. (This section sounds much scarier than it is! They don't expect you to perfectly understand it all instantly, it's ok if you need to ask questions and think things through).

The main preparation I did was trying to keep up to date on the news in the months before. I then looked into things I found interesting - mostly with things like opinion pieces, documentaries, a book or two (about geopolitics and environmental activists if I remember correctly), even YouTube videos. One of the best ways to prepare for a geography interview is to try and build up some background knowledge about the world around you. There's not an expectation you'll know everything, but having some extra knowledge can be really impressive. If you haven't had much experience reading academic writing (with things such as an EPQ) then it might be useful to attempt a few of these first. You can look up guides on understanding academic articles and then find examples on a topic you're interested in on Google scholar. Don't worry if you don't understand it all! It's just about trying to get used to that style of writing. Another thing I'll say is that I didn't prepare a lot for my interview. I think there's sometimes an expectation that you'll spend months of constant work getting ready, but don't worry if that sounds overwhelming. It's really not needed! The interviewers mainly want to see your passion for the subject and how you think. Hopefully this will come across without preparation.

Don't rush into an answer! When I get nervous I tend to try and answer questions very quickly, which means I don't get as much time to think. If you do this too, try to pause for a few seconds after every question. Think the question through and how you want to answer it. Think out loud. The interviewers want to see how you think, and they can't do that if you're thinking in silence. Instead, try to talk them through what you're thinking - it's ok if you change your mind as you're talking, or realise you're not making sense. Pause for a second, and correct yourself. Don't be afraid to sound stupid. Don't avoid saying something because you're afraid it's wrong or asking a question because you want to pretend you know the answer. The interview is not about pretending to be a genius who knows everything, everyone needs help understanding certain things, it's ok to ask for clarification on a question or to say something wrong. The main thing is not to fixate on it, just move on and try to put it out of your mind.