Modern And Medieval Languages @ Downing, Cambridge in 2019

Interview format

Arts-Humanities Admissions Assessment; 2x interviews

Interview content

Interview 1: unseen texts; Interview 2: discussion of unseen passage, personal statement.

Best preparation

Reviewed personal statement

Test preparation

:ooked at past papers.

Final thoughts

Don't be intimidated by the interviewer; try to relax!

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: Arts-Humanities Admissions Assessment (AHAA)
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: An hour and a half
Length of interviews: 20-30 mins
Online interview: No

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

I was given texts in both of my interviews and was asked questions about the texts as well as my personal statement. We eventually went off onto a tangent about something else.

How did you prepare for your interviews?

I made sure I knew my personal statement well and that any books/films/art I mentioned in it I was familiar with. I did a really relaxed fake interview with my dad on the morning of my interview to calm my nerves.

If you took a test, how did you prepare?

I didn’t really prepare. I looked at one past paper to see how the questions were set out — but other than that I didn’t do anything.

What advice would you give to future applicants?

Don’t be nervous and remember that your interviewers are normal people! The more relaxed you are the more confident you’ll seem! Speak your mind and don’t be afraid to ask questions about what something means/ ask them to re-word a question if you don’t understand it. Have fun and make it light hearted