Test taken: Classics Admissions Test (CAT), English Literature Admissions Test (ELAT)
Number of interviews: 6
Time between interviews: 1 hour - 2 days
Length of interviews: 30-40 minutes
Online interview: Yes

My first interview was my worst one. I was given a historical report about a territory in Ancient Rome and asked to comment on its accuracy, efficacy and usefulness as a source. I was then given some visual sources and asked to comment on what I could draw about them from the images and then asked to compare them - all skills very out of my comfort zone. I was certain I had blown my chance of getting in after this interview.

My second classics interview was evaluating written sources but I wasn’t given any time before the interview to see these sources. The second half of this interview was then focussed on my personal statement. I felt much more positive after this interview.

My English interview involved the evaluation of a source I was given 15 mins before the interview started and then questioning about my personal statement.

My classical language interviews were shorter and involved a discussion of my understanding of Latin and my study of Spanish A-level. The interviewers then gave me some grammatical questions that were confusing but not impossible to understand.

My interview at St. Hughs involved 3 sources, one being a statute and two written sources, an evaluation of these and then a comparison of these. After this there was further discussion around my personal statement - this interview was the one I felt most comfortable with.

I re-read all the texts I put in my personal statement and made notes on them all, especially exploring and justifying any of the statements I had made.

I reread my essays and annotated them expanding on any of the ideas I had presented. I watched videos online about English/Classics interviews. I prepared questions I might have wanted to ask my interviewers at the end of my interviews. I practised quick analysis of texts.

I engaged in mock interviews at my school and with my tutor from zero gravity.

Practice papers. I also managed to get a free tutor through the mentoring site Zero Gravity who helped me as we would go through practice papers together and she would go over any practice essays I did.

I found the interview process so much easier once I believed I had no chance to get an offer - it really did help me just to care a little bit less as it made me so much less anxious and calmer and subsequently I enjoyed the experience more.

If you can, see it as an opportunity to talk to someone who is an expert in a field you feel passionate about. The interviews are the very best opportunity to show this passion and this will come through most effectively if you enjoy the discussions.

Make sure to have a detailed knowledge of anything you bring up in your personal statement - this is basically a document outlining what you would like the interviewers to ask you and its importance can’t be overlooked. Do the same for any portfolios/essays - I didn’t get asked about these but if I had I knew what I was going to say. All this preparation makes the experience so much less stressful.

Take at least half an hour before the interview/pre-reading time to relax, I would listen to music and dance around the room a bit, this truly helps calm you down and get you in the best mindset.

Ensure you are hydrated as you don’t want to get a dry mouth when you are talking. Think out loud, voice the way you approach questions and don’t be afraid to ask for further information or assistance if you aren’t certain.