14 Oct 08

Training of interviewers has been taking place at Oxford University for many years.

Ever wondered what happens in an Oxford interview? Without having to apply you can now have a look at videos of mock interviews online.

The videos are from part of the training that new tutors have to complete and an overview of the course is online too. 

‘We are keen for people to see the reality of an admissions interview at Oxford,’ said Mike Nicholson, Director of Undergraduate Admissions.

‘There are no mythical qualities to the interviews and interviewers are trained to work in a professional way. The University and colleges spend a lot of time and money on selecting undergraduates, looking for those with the highest academic ability and potential. I hope this online information will help make the interview process more transparent.’

Interviews at Oxford are structured interviews, looking for evidence of specific selection criteria, determined and published by each subject. Tutors who conduct interviews are trained to ensure the interviews are carried out in a structured and professional way, and training of interviewers has been taking place for many years.

Dr Mark Wormald, a Biochemistry lecturer, is one of the tutors who agreed to be filmed for the training. He said: ‘Before they start doing interviews interviewers are often petrified that they won’t do the candidate justice. We desperately want the candidates to do well otherwise we don’t get any extra information about the candidate’s abilities. There are no ‘black marks’ – we are looking for additional information in the interview and appreciate it is a stressful situation for the candidates.’

Contrary to some myths there are no trick questions in an interview. Questions are designed to make candidates think, taking them beyond the limit of their taught knowledge and seeing how they can apply their minds to new problems.

Ben McFarlane, a law tutor, also took part in a mock interview for a video on the training course. He has taken part in mock interviews at events with schools and colleges and says people are often surprised by how rigorous and specific the interviews are.

‘There are quite a few misconceptions about interviews, with some people thinking it will be a chat about books and hobbies. It is a very long way away from that – we are interested in a candidate’s ability to think about an intellectual puzzle and in who best meets our criteria. Most candidates don’t think the interview has gone well because we take them as far as they can go with a question and when they hit their limit it can seem difficult.’

He adds: ‘We don’t ask trick questions because that’s not in our interest. We’re looking for the people who best meet our criteria and we’re not going to find that by throwing a rugby ball at them.’

Interviews for undergraduate places are just one part of a very rigorous selection process, where academic ability and potential is assessed through a range of measures: at least two interviews; aptitude tests (in many subjects); written work (in some subjects); predicted grades; attained grades; and references.