Philosophy, Politics And Economics @ St Catherine's, Oxford in 2018

Interview format

2x 30 min interviews, 1 day apart

Interview content

Economics: personal statement, problem; Philosophy and Politics: general discussion

Best preparation

Practice papers, school interview workshop

Advice in hindsight

-

Final thoughts

Had practice interviews; read news; reviewed topics on personal statement.

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: TSA

Number of interviews: 2

Skype interview: No

Time between each interview: 1 day

Length of interviews: about 30 minutes each

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

There was no theme. I had an economics interview starting with a general question slightly related to my personal statement, then had to work through a problem they outlined.

My philosophy and politics interviews were combined into one, and both largely revolved around the interviewer asking me a question and delving deeper into it based on my answers.

How did you prepare?

I did practice papers (both under exam conditions and not) and attended a workshop class run by my school.

What advice do you have for future applicants?

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

I had practice interviews at my school with teachers who were familiar with the Oxbridge interview system/went to Oxford and read PPE themselves. Aside from that, I read the news and ensured I had a firm grasp on all the topics I mentioned in my personal statement in case I was questioned.