My interview was in early December. I stayed over the night before and this was actually a very pleasant activity. While I had no tasks on the first night I did meet a bunch of nice applicants and we went back to their room to keep our mind off things. In the morning I went to the waiting room in which we waited for our names to be called out for interview. My name was actually called out late due to a mix up and we had to run across the college to get to the room on time. But once there the woman let me catch my breath. It was possible to go to the waiting room again while waiting for the second interview and chat to people/get some free coffee however I had two hours between my first and second interview, so instead I went to my room to calm down.

My second interview involved a short reading task (half an hour) and then I was taken and asked questions about what I'd read. Finally, I walked to a different college (Downing) to receive a third interview about ethics and a surprise reading. Finally, I had an exam in the evening at my faculty. The exam entailed us watching a short lecture and taking notes, and then completing four essay style questions on what we'd been told about.

In my first interview I was a little thrown off. Due to a mix up I'd had to run across the college to get there and was almost late. While the lady was very understanding of this, it made me even more nervous for what was about to happen. I expected questions on what I'd written in my personal statement, but this was not the focus of the interview. I felt very nervous and like I was answering wrong throughout the interview. Afterwards I had to go to my room to calm down and have a bit of a cry.

However my second interview went really well. The reading was on something I had already looked at in depth and I felt comfortable discussing it. The two men who interviewed me were kind, warm and spent most of the time laughing. It felt more like a discussion than anything else. I remember being so happy and wishing it wouldn't end. I'd never met someone so passionate about my subject in the way I am before. It was a wonderful experience.

My third interview felt designed to throw me off. I had a surprise reading which was taped to the door on an obscure piece of literature. The second half of the interview was devoted to ethics. I was asked sabout something I have never studied or watched in my life so as you can imagine I was a little taken back, but I managed to come up with ideas taken from my psychology course.

Finally I had my exam. I felt tired by this point and was very nervous, but this was the first time in the day I got to meet other theology students and that boosted my confidence a little. We were shown a lecture on theology which I'd never looked at before but found very interesting. I found the exam questions easy and open to wide interpretation and there was plenty of time to answer them.

I feel like nothing could really prepare you for the interview process - it's very much a case of how passionate you are and how well you know your subject. I would just recommend reading around the subject about things you're interested in - if you're excited about it, it'll show.

They might ask you if you have questions at the end of the interview - I'd have liked to be prepared so I could properly think of one.