This is Tom’s experience of a St Edmund Hall Oxford Biochemistry Interview – if you’re applying for Science at Oxford, then this will be a great indicator to what you need to think about when it comes to your Science interview.
One of my St Edmund Hall Oxford Biochemistry interviews was two interviewers in a very casual conversation about Biochemistry and what I had read. The second interview was one on one and was a more formal series of questions.
One interview focused on my personal statement and the books I had read, with some questioning on basic A-level science.
The second was initially focused on recall of A-level science and then asked me to answer more complex questions based on that knowledge.
The process wasn’t as scary as I thought it might be. The interviewers were pretty friendly on the whole and I wasn’t asked anything groundbreaking.
They aren’t looking for the finished product, they want someone with a passion for the subject and who they think they will be able to teach.
I had a few mock interviews at my school, but looking back on it they weren’t actually that helpful. It would have been great to have known more about the process to worry a little less.
Unusually, both my interviews were on the same day so I didn’t really get to spend much time with other students. It was amazing to spend time in the colleges though. Luckily, I then got to do it for another 4 years!
My advice would be to really know your A-level topics really well and be ready to answer questions leading on from them. Make sure you have read up on relevant topics (tutors love CRISPR right now) and look up the tutors at the colleges you are interviewing at, they might be likely to ask questions on things they know best.
