Natural Sciences (Physical) @ Christ's, Cambridge in 2017

Interview format

Natural Sciences Admissions Assessment; 2x interviews.

Interview content

Maths without a calculator, graph drawing, personal statement questions.

Best preparation

Used Isaac Physics and Olympiad questions.

Test preparation

Chemistry and biology Olympiad questions, past papers.

Final thoughts

Relax, have a think about how to answer generic questions.

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: Natural Sciences Admissions Assessment (NSAA)
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: a couple hours
Length of interviews: 25 minutes
Online interview: No

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

I was asked why I wanted to do the subject and about something I put in my personal statement but it was mostly solving maths, physics and chemistry problems. I would reccomend practicing doing maths without a calculator as much as possible, especially drawing graphs.

How did you prepare for your interviews?

Did as many Olympiad past paper questions and Isaac Physics questions as I had time to do.

If you took a test, how did you prepare?

I used past papers and physics and chemistry Olympiad questions.

What advice would you give to future applicants?

Be relaxed but have a think about answers to expected questions like why you want to study your course.