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

Interview format

2 interviews, around 30 minutes each.

Interview content

Interview 1: involved diagrams and derivation. Interview 2: personal statement focused.

Best preparation

Practice questions, a mock interview.

Final thoughts

Stay as calm as possible

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, each around thirty minutes. One was on physics and chemistry, the other on physics and maths. Each interview had two interviewers.

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

In the physics and chemistry interview, there was a question involving a diagram of forces. I was then asked about my favourite topics in physics, and then to derive a formula and explain the physical effects of this. Then we worked through a multi step chemistry question.

In the physics and maths interview, I was asked questions about both of the books in my personal statement. Then there were several maths questions, and finally a long question about circuits.

How did you prepare?

I worked through some practice interview questions - I just googled Cambridge natural sciences interview questions and got my parents to ask me some. I had mock interviews with teachers I didn't know well.

I used Isaac Physics [a website], and Chemistry Olympiad questions to prepare for tackling questions on new topics.

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

The best thing you can do is just stay as calm as possible. It's much easier to answer well when you're relaxed but focused, whereas if you let nerves take over, even simple questions seem more difficult.