Engineering @ Emmanuel, Cambridge in 2016

Interview format

Two technical interviews.

Interview content

Wide variety of topics discussed; had to talk about the design of specific engineering objects; interview was more a discussion then a ‘test’.

Best preparation

Mock interview with teachers. i-want-to-study-engineering.org – good questions but try practising ‘talking’ through answers. Logic games good for the TSA.

Final thoughts

Don’t be so nervous if you mess up during interviews.

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

I arrived the day before and stayed the night at college. My first task in the morning was the TSA (Thinking Skills Assesment) and I then had 2 interviews. Each interview had 2 interviewers and each interviewer asked one question (4 questions in total).

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

The TSA was alright. My biggest challenge was reading fast as a non-native speaker. The format was logic questions and a bit like puzzles.

My interview questions were technical and both interviews followed the same format. Each interview was a different topic: electronics; aerodynamics; and finally they showed me some engineering objects and asked me why they were designed like that. All the questions were pretty open ended. It was a discussion rather than a ‘knowledge test’.

How did you prepare?

Mock interview with my teacher. The most useful part was getting used to talking though ideas. i-want-to-study-engineering.com is useful because they are good questions but it doesn’t give you an experience of talking through your ideas. For the TSA (Thinking Skills Assesment) the logic think was similar to online detective games I play. That was helpful. I also used online mocks for the TSA.

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

Don’t be so nervous if you mess up during the interview.