Natural Sciences (Biological) @ Peterhouse, Cambridge in 2019

Interview format

Natural Sciences Admissions Assessment (NSAA); 2x interviews.

Interview content

Both interviews: problem-solving questions based on first year modules

Best preparation

Re-visit further reading, revise current syllabus content

Final thoughts

Be confident and true to yourself in interview

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: Natural Sciences Admissions Assessment (NSAA)
Number of interviews: 2
Time between interviews: 3 hours
Length of interviews: 30 minutes
Online interview: No

What happened in your interview? How did you feel?

My interviews were each split in half with each section focusing on one 1A module (Biology of Cells, Evolution & Behaviour, Chemistry and Physiology; 1A refers to the first year of the Natural Sciences course). I was given a model/graph/reaction to talk about in each and was asked questions about what was in front of me. I had to explain where I got my answers from the whole way through which was actually very helpful as it made the interview seem more like a discussion than an examination

How did you prepare for your interviews?

I tried just to go over any topics I talked about in my personal statement and re-read any books. I don’t think this was a very good method though because I didn’t get asked about my personal statement much. I think the most useful thing to do to prepare would just be to go over the content of the syllabus you study in school. You don’t need to know everything in detail for your interviews as you’re being assessed on your ability to learn and process information rather than your memory.

However it’s always handy to know the main topics for your course, as it’ll be easier to link ideas together and help you follow what your interviewer is saying. I would also advise going over your biological maths skills, especially graphs!!

If you took a test, how did you prepare?

I did the practice test for both the NSAA and BMAT as well as trying to revise from gcse textbooks

What advice would you give to future applicants?

I’d say my best advice is to have confidence in yourself. You’re not expected to know everything, and that’s not what the admissions teams are looking for. Don’t try and mould yourself into what you think the perfect student is - it’s better that you just be yourself and show what you’re really passionate about, rather than what you think your university want you to be.