\u00a0For those of you who have been offered interviews at Oxford and Cambridge, first off: congratulations. It\u2019s no mean feat, and no matter what happens you should be proud of yourself for making it thus far.<\/p>\n
\u00a0Whilst many of you will now be hurriedly researching your chosen subject, for some of you (who may be less well acquainted with Oxbridge), it might be just as helpful to clarify some misconceptions surrounding the whole process. The Daily Mail doesn\u2019t make it easy, but we\u2019ve managed to narrow it down to 5:<\/p>\n
1) They\u2019re trying to trip you up<\/strong><\/p>\n \n A quick Google of \u2018Oxbridge interviews\u2019 and you\u2019ll soon find a string of horror stories: students terrorized by eccentric, slightly sadistic old dons; students drilled with bizarre questions like \u2018Would you rather be an apple or a banana?;\u2019 students scrutinized Dragons Den style, in some dimly lit, oak-panelled study in a forgotten corner of Magdalen.<\/p>\n \u00a0This is not the case. Oxbridge interview questions are designed to make you think. Your arguments will be questioned. But they are not looking to catch you out – they just want to see you think creatively and independently, and not just recite pre-planned answers. And I promise they won\u2019t be hiding behind the curtain just to see how you respond.<\/p>\n 2)\u00a0 Being pooled is a bad thing<\/strong><\/p>\n If you\u2019re invited for another interview at another college, please don\u2019t read into it too much: it doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019ve been rejected from your first college; and it doesn\u2019t mean the first interview went badly.<\/p>\n \u00a0The rationale behind pooling is a mystery to us all – there might be a secret logic to it, or it might be as random as where your surname comes in the alphabet, or how many glasses of sherry a tutor has consumed that evening. Yet candidates often stress about it, so try and remain as open-minded as possible. For, in the ever immortal words of Kanye and Jay-Z\u2019: \u2018nobody knows what it means, but it\u2019s provocative, it gets the people going.\u2019<\/p>\n \u00a03) Everyone will be posh \n \u00a0<\/strong>It is easy to assume that everyone you meet at interviews will be tweed-bedecked aristocrats called Rupert and Tarquin who only swig port straight from the bottle – and there may indeed be one or two. Yet Oxford and Cambridge are actually places of great variety (despite the media\u2019s obsession with its perceived elitism), and you will meet people from a range of classes, countries, and counties (in other words, not everyone will be from Surrey and south-west London.) Embrace it.<\/p>\n 4)\u00a0 You\u2019re not allowed to disagree with your\u00a0interviewer<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n The words and works of your tutor are not Holy Scripture, and therefore you do not have to religiously follow everything that they say. Remember, they may deliberately play devil\u2019s advocate, and if they say something openly provocative don\u2019t be afraid to question it; and equally if you say something openly provocative don\u2019t be afraid to stand up for yourself.<\/p>\n Having said that, there is a fine balance between confidence and arrogance, and seeming determined and just being downright stubborn. Be flexible in your approach, consider what your tutor says carefully, and most importantly, whatever happens, keep smiling: it\u2019ll make you seem instantly more agreeable.<\/p>\n 5) You have to wear a suit<\/strong><\/p>\n \n There will be many times in an Oxbridge career where you have to wear a suit, bow-tie, gown, and even a carefully colour co-ordinated carnation (I kid you not) – but your Oxbridge interview doesn\u2019t necessarily have to be one. The term \u2018smart casual\u2019 can be frustratingly ambiguous, but it ultimately means wear something that you are comfortable in but don\u2019t look too scruffy. At the end of the day it is your mind being assessed, not your fashion sense, so don\u2019t panic if your tailored three-piece isn\u2019t back from the dry cleaners yet. (Photo credit: Stokpic, Pixabay<\/a>)<\/p>\n \u00a0Finally, take the advice of someone who knows more about Oxbridge interviews than anyone: Cambridge don Mary Beard, who famously said, \u2018my priority is to get the kids to talk themselves into a place, rather than out of one.\u2019<\/p>\n Written by Kristina Murkett<\/p>\n
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