Modern And Medieval Languages @ Jesus, Cambridge in 2017

Interview format

At-interview test; 2x interviews

Interview content

Interview 1: unseen passage, personal statement; Interview 2: conversation in target language, discussion of pre-reading

Best preparation

Practised talking to people about the subjects

Final thoughts

Don't worry about preparing too much because you cannot predict the questions

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: At-interview test
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: 1 hour
Length of interviews: 15-30 minutes
Online interview: No

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

I arrived at my first interview having had a terrible journey (I had been unwell on the train) but the interviewers had been informed and were very kind. They told me I could leave at any time if I felt ill and that there was nothing to worry about. Both interviews went very quickly.

My first interview was for German, which I had never studied before, and I was asked to look at a passage in German and talk about what I had noticed about the words and any patterns. We then spoke about my personal statement. I felt like the interviewers wanted me to talk about something I felt confident on - they didn't dwell on parts I didn't elaborate too much on but engaged fully when I seemed confident and enthused about other questions.

My second interview was for Spanish. We spoke in both Spanish and English, discussing a Spanish text which I had been given prior to the interview. I was asked to read some parts aloud, which I found relaxing, and was then asked questions on it.

How did you prepare?

I was very lucky in terms of preparation because I had an amazingly dedicated Spanish teacher who gave up time after school to practice with me. I would argue that the most important thing is to practice talking to lots of people about why you're interested in the course and about specific aspects of the language and its culture that you're interested in.

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

I would recommend just studying a bit extra for the A-level subjects relevant to what you're applying for. Also, focus on just one or two extra-curricular activities for your personal statement which you can expand upon if asked in the interview. Try to see any preparation you manage to do as a bonus - don't worry about preparing too much because you are unlikely to be able to predict the questions you may be asked. Also try not to worry about making mistakes - I think the interviewers are looking to delve into what you're good at, rather than isolate what you're not so good at.