History @ Sidney Sussex, Cambridge in 2017

Interview format

HAA; 2 x interview

Interview content

Interview 1: questions relating to the personal statement and in general about the course and life at Cambridge; Interview 2: questions surrounding a previously-submitted essay, and a short text given out to read before the interview started

Best preparation

Trust your argument

Advice in hindsight

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Final thoughts

Think conceptually, not just factually

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

Test taken: History Admissions Assessment (HAA)

Number of interviews: 2

Skype interview: no

Time between interviews: none - they were consecutive

Length of first interview: 25 to 30 minutes; Length of second interview: 25 to 30 minutes

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

The first interview was centred around my personal statement and I was given some questions as to how I'd handle the course itself (e.g. workload, talking to supervisors etc), as well as some more conceptual problems relating to topics I'd highlighted. The atmosphere was fairly relaxed and it ended up being quite a fun talk.

The second interview was partly based on the sample essay the college had asked for, with me essentially defending and expanding upon the points I had made in the essay. We also discussed a text given out just before the interview, which had nothing explicitly to do with history. They just wanted to know what I thought of it, if I had any problems with the argument put forward and so on. This interview went less well and I became increasingly anxious, though I think the interviewers realised this and tried their best to keep the atmosphere relaxed.

How did you prepare?

As the extract I read was selected randomly, there wasn't much to do in terms of preparation; it is important however to have a basic understanding of how concepts like race and gender play into historical argument, and to trust your analysis and conclusion. Argue forcefully!

What advice do you have for future applicants?

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

Luckily my sixth form college had a great principal who helped applicants with their personal statements and the interview process; a lot of my friends also mention how valuable a certain teacher or staff member was in helping them through the process, so it is always worth seeking someone out who you know you'll get on with. The best thing we did was a mock interview which definitely helped ease my nerves about that part of the process, and I think helped my performance during the actual interviews.

The advice I'd give is to always focus more on the concepts surrounding the history than just giving people a rundown of what may or may not have happened. For example, if you say you're interested in a certain event, why? What about that event, or how that event is written about, do you find appealing? Also, be prepared to have your ideas challenged or even changed!

Interviewers don't just want to be regaled with facts; they want someone who is engaging with the history and coming to their own conclusions, even if those conclusions might be flawed. An encyclopedic knowledge of something might be impressive but it doesn't tell them whether or not you can write an interesting, persuasive essay.