Education Oxford interview

Well the time has come and the realisation of what's happening tomorrow has finally quicked in resulting in a spate of nerves.

I'm having 2 interviews on Monday to read Engineering Science at Oxford (Keble College).

Any last minute advice on this at all?!?

Might anyone else be doing this on monday?

Specifically what's some good questions to ask the interviewers?

getting a bit now

 

Read up a bit about the course and syllabus and ask some specific questions about certain things. Shows that you're really keen about the course and used some initiative, worked for me at at least 3 of my interviews.

Good luck

 

I know its easier to say than do but relax, its the most important thing. Forget any horror stories you may have been told about the interviewers they will almost certainly be very nice to you, and they're not there to catch you out.

With regard to other people there for interview, some will be bags of nerves and others will appear completely cool, either way dont let it get to you, everybody is nervous but they show it in different ways, the bitchyness you may get is also a symptom of nerves.

When you get asked a question you dont know the answer to id suggest you tell them you dont know the answer and then take your best shot at working it out from things you do know, theyll probably keep asking you more advanced questions until theres something you dont know and its how you respond to that they theyre interested in.

What Ive said above is what I was told before my engineering interview at Cambridge and my experience in the interview. I didnt get in but with any luck youll do better than me.

best of luck.

Moriquendi

 

Don't worry about it and try to ignore the hype - walk in calm, I second Moriquendi. I know it's a hard thing thing to do, but trust me, it helps. Don't worry if you can't do a question, they aren't trying to trip you up with hard questions. Instead, they are looking at how you apply what you do know to something you don't know. Hence know your basic maths and physics principles well, and stick to those. Good luck buddy

 

Some friends went for Oxford interviews recently, they thought it was OK. As long as you know your stuff then I think you'll be A-OK.

 

Yup- know your stuff and show that you have a real, genuine passion for the subject. If you're good enough, it will show .

<A88>

 

Why is it that if you go to any other university then you'd be studying engineering, but if you go to Oxford or Cambridge then you have to 'read' engineering?

 

What the shizzle you chattin'? Crazy foo'.

<A88>

 

When you goto university you aren't technically studying anything, you are always reading a degree, irrelevant of the subject and university. I suppose oxbridge just lends itself to having more traditional terms being used when spoken about.

 

worth remembering that you could well get a funny interview, eg: be asked to take a seat when there's not a chair available.

been there... done that...failed

 

QFT. Just because most people and universities get it wrong, doesn't make it right. Oxbridge are Oxbridge (I think that works xD) because they have the highest standards. High standards require getting things like that correct.

 

heh?

 

tutors have a supurb way to pass the time during dull interviews, just general messing with the minds of candidates

 

I'll be interviewing you. Be warned.

 

Is this serious? Which one are you?

 

Chances not looking up eh...

 

friend of mine had an interveiw at cambridge for physics... the interveiwers weren't very nice and the questions boardered on the irelevent. Also accomodation was very mixxed ranging from terible to amazing. I wasn't very impresed with them for enginnering from there open day so didn't apply... I think they are overated unless you just want lots of money after uni.

 

Some good advice the best to read up before you go in and obviously try and remain calm. Goodluck

 

I wanna know how it went!

 

Well. There were 2 interviews, 1st was okish. more discussing things like why I want to be there, so that was OK. however the technical questions I didn't do amazingly in. 2nd one was entirely technical question based, and that went alright - wasn't easy, needed a little bit of help, but got there in the end.

It's very hard to say which was better as they are so different. It's also hard to say if they went well, as they did explain beforehand it was going to be difficult and I wasn't expected to perform miracles.

Thing is, got home, opened MSN and managed to get some trojan horse virus THEN driving back from the chinese, a deer jumped out onto the road in front of me going at 50mph. thunk. i didn't even have time to slow down! I think I clipped it's back leg.
NOT a good day for me!