Guides · Updated 1 November 2026

The Oxford and Cambridge English interview

Oxford English applicants no longer sit the ELAT. Instead you send one marked essay by 10 November, and if shortlisted you usually have two online interviews in December with at least two English tutors, often discussing your written work, your reading and an unseen poem or prose extract.

Cambridge English is similar in spirit: two pieces of written work, usually no admissions assessment, and interviews that test how you read something new. Below are the formats side by side, the exact criteria Oxford's tutors use, a worked example and how to prepare.

Oxford and Cambridge English interviews compared

What Oxford English tutors assess

The Oxford English Faculty publishes the criteria used to assess performance at interview:

• Evidence of independent reading
• Capacity to exchange and build on ideas
• Clarity of thought and expression
• Analytical ability
• Flexibility of thought
• Evidence of independent thinking about literature
• Readiness and commitment to read widely with discrimination

The Faculty also says tutors are "hoping to hear how you think", and that it is perfectly acceptable to change your mind mid-argument, take back an earlier point and ask the tutors questions yourself.

Questions Oxford English tutors have published

Oxford's sample interview questions page includes these from English tutors (source: University of Oxford, sample interview questions):

• "Why do you think an English student might be interested in the fact that Coronation Street has been running for 50 years?" The tutor says it shows literary analysis can be applied to other media, and opens up storytelling technique.
• "Tell me about [this literary work you have mentioned in your UCAS personal statement]." The tutor says she'd move the talk from content to form: how the text is written, how it begins and ends, who narrates. So be honest on your personal statement.
• "In what ways do you think that writing for children is different to writing for adults?" Asked about an author's move from children's books to adult fiction; candidates can answer from their own experience as readers.

A worked example: the unseen poem

Many English interviews give you a short poem or prose passage a few minutes before, or during, the interview. A typical opening: "What did you notice when you read this?"

• What a strong answer does: starts with one precise observation (a word, a line break, a shift in tense) and says what effect it has, before reaching for a theme.
• Then it builds: "And that links to the last stanza, where..." Tutors listen for an argument that grows as you read.
• Weak answer: a summary of what the poem is "about", or naming techniques ("there's enjambment") without saying what they do.
• What usually comes next: the tutor offers a different reading and asks what you make of it. Weigh it honestly; agreeing in part is fine.

Questions about your reading and written work

How to prepare for an English interview

1. Reread your written work and personal statement. Be ready to discuss and extend anything in them. Only mention books you've actually read.
2. Read widely, and beyond the syllabus. Poetry, prose and drama from different periods. Cambridge advises reading more than your school texts and thinking critically about them.
3. Practise unseen texts out loud. Take a short poem, give yourself five minutes, then talk about it for ten. Start with one precise detail.
4. Practise changing your mind. Have a friend or teacher push back on your reading and respond without getting defensive.
5. Keep notes of what you read. A sentence on each text helps you recall specifics under pressure.

AdmitMock is an AI mock interview app for Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, UCL and US college alumni interviews: an AI interviewer asks the questions out loud, follows up, and shows you what to fix.

AdmitMock is not affiliated with the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge or any of their colleges. We use published formats and questions, not insider information.