3x 30 min interviews, over 3 days
Both interviews: questions from list, including discussing images
Past papers, Cambridge equivalent test
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Mock interviews with teachers; read over books in personal statement; annotated 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.
Test taken:
Number of interviews: 3
Skype interview: No
Interviews spread over 3 days
Length of interviews: about 30 minutes each
I had one interview for physical geography and another for human geography.
In the physical geography interview they read questions off a list, some of these involved looking at an image. There was one person asking the questions and another taking notes.
The human geography interview was more conversational but still with a list which they covered, and it involved discussing an image. They also asked questions not on their list based on where the conversation went and to allow me to explore my ideas further.
I only got asked once about my personal statement in relation to some work experience that I had done. But that didn't seem to be a focus for them.
I got called for a third interview with the human geography tutors, which was similar to the first one.
In both interviews they tried to relax you and would ask how the journey was to Oxford. They were all very friendly and worked to put you at ease through the process.
I did practice papers and timed essays based on questions that had been asked in previous years. I also looked at the Cambridge test equivalent for more past papers.
To prepare for the interview I asked teachers from my school for
When I was in Oxford, waiting for the interview, I annotated my personal statement to explore ideas further (I watched a YouTube video by Ibz Mo which goes into this.)
Apart from the mock interviews the other preparation was more helpful for me to mentally feel prepared and in the right mindset, rather than having a significant impact on what I said in the interviews. The interviewers are looking for someone that loves the subject, is able to explore ideas, is teachable, and really wants to learn.