Oxbridge Interview Prep for Medicine

How do I best prepare for oxbridge interviews (med)? Are online interview tutoring services worth it (e.g Aspiring Medics, 6med, Oxbridge Mind)?

Reply 1

TSR Hippocrates

Hey there, thanks for posting a question in the Medicine forum. :biggrin:

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Megathreads
(Please read the first post, before then posting any further questions you have within that thread.)
The "Which Medical School Should I Apply To?" Uberthread
The Ultimate 'Am I Good Enough For Medicine?' Angst Thread
Medicine A-Level subjects queries
Work Experience and Voluntary Work

2023 Applicants:
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2023 Entry
Graduate Entry Medicine 2023 Entry
Medicine 2023 entry for resit / retake / gap year applicants
A100 Medicine for International Students 2023 Entry
Medicine Interview discussion 2023 Entry
2023 entry A100 / A101 Medicine fastest and slowest offer senders
Index of Individual Medical School Applicants' threads 2023 Entry

2024 Applicants :
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2024 Entry
Graduate Entry Medicine 2024 Entry
GAMSAT 2024 / 2025 entry discussions megathread
UCAT 2024 Entry Discussions Megathread

Other application years:
Graduate Entry Medicine 2025 Entry
Official Undergraduate Medicine 2025 Entry

Useful Articles:
GCSE Requirements for Medicine
Everything you need to know about the BMAT
Work Experience as a Graduate or Mature student
Medicine Personal Statement Advice
Medicine Personal Statement Advice (Graduate Entry)
Interview Frequently Asked Questions
MMI Medicine Interview Tips
What to do after an unsuccessful first application

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Reply 2

circusqueen

Oxbridge ?

Oxford or Cambridge?

(edited 4 months ago)

Reply 3

glucocorticoid

Hey 🙂 4th year med student at Oxford here! Best advice I'd give you is
a) Make sure you know your content super well (they don't expect you to know about stuff you haven't covered in schools yet but if for example you say in your interview/ personal statement that you enjoyed learning about how vaccines work, make sure you remember how they work! They're not just looking for someone who gets all the answers right, but if you're sharp on the content then you leave a good impression.

b) This is really key- try and get confident in talking through your thoughts and ideas relating to the parts of biology you study. So if they ask you about a biological process (e.g. clotting cascade which you may cover if you do Edexcel A level bio!) then make sure you're comfortable in talking through it. Also practice talking through experimental results (like graphs, or maps showing incidences of diseases etc) and coming up with theories to explain those results. Essentially, you want to make sure you can clearly communicate your thought process, which doesn't mean you can't back-track and change your mind about something you're saying, but it gives the tutors a really good idea about how you approach problems.

c) Hard one, but try smile, be relaxed and friendly. You could spend six years with these interviewers- convince them that you're someone they want to spend six years with.

I never used online tutoring services and apparently (found this out from my director of studies over wine) was among the top 5 at both colleges I interviewed in. That said, I do tutor myself, and have worked with students who found it very helpful. Nothing wrong with it, but equally may be worth saving the money and trying to see if maybe your bio/chem teachers could do a mock interview with you.