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at-interview exams for maths at cambridge

Hi everyone,

I'd like to apply to Christ's college, but I'm pretty scared about the at-interview questions. All of the interviews are also online this year, and I find it pretty hard to concentrate in front of a screen - I'm worried I'll mess up the questions as a result if this and then panick in the rest of the interview (if i get an interview... lol).
Anyway I thought of applying to queens to circumvent this, but im not sure it would be worth it? It's supposed to be equally as difficult to get into all colleges, and I really like christs. I'm just scared about the at-interview test.

If anyone has any advice on what to do or how to prepare, that would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you so much.
If you think it will affect your performance, it's not a bad idea to apply somewhere without the at-interview assessment.

Note, however, that it's not equally easy to get into any college. You're equally likely to get in with any first-choice college, but if you apply to a more competitive college you're more likely to be accepted via the pool.
Reply 2
Original post by Theloniouss
If you think it will affect your performance, it's not a bad idea to apply somewhere without the at-interview assessment.

Note, however, that it's not equally easy to get into any college. You're equally likely to get in with any first-choice college, but if you apply to a more competitive college you're more likely to be accepted via the pool.

Thank you so much! I'll have a think about it. Tbh an online interview doesn't work to my advantages anyway, so maybe an at-interview assessment wouldn't be too bad (I guess it could get me thinking before the interview starts).
Original post by Theloniouss
If you think it will affect your performance, it's not a bad idea to apply somewhere without the at-interview assessment.

Note, however, that it's not equally easy to get into any college. You're equally likely to get in with any first-choice college, but if you apply to a more competitive college you're more likely to be accepted via the pool.

Hi, I'm thinking of applying to Trinity college for maths, but I've been told that it's much harder to get into. By applying to Trinity, would this mean I have a lower chance of getting into the college, but a higher overall chance of getting into the university?

thanks.
Original post by vijval999
Hi, I'm thinking of applying to Trinity college for maths, but I've been told that it's much harder to get into. By applying to Trinity, would this mean I have a lower chance of getting into the college, but a higher overall chance of getting into the university?

thanks.

Why would you have a higher overall chance of getting into the university?
Original post by Theloniouss
Why would you have a higher overall chance of getting into the university?

just wondering, because you said that applying to more competitive colleges means you're more likely to be accepted via the pool. I have heard that Cambridge try to make sure that every college has an equal chance of being accepted to the university, but I'm not sure if this is always the case?
Original post by vijval999
just wondering, because you said that applying to more competitive colleges means you're more likely to be accepted via the pool. I have heard that Cambridge try to make sure that every college has an equal chance of being accepted to the university, but I'm not sure if this is always the case?

Yes. Your overall chances of success remain the same at any college, which necessarily means that if your chances of success without pooling decrease, your chances of success after pooling must increase by the same amount in the opposite direction (and vice versa).
Original post by Theloniouss
Yes. Your overall chances of success remain the same at any college, which necessarily means that if your chances of success without pooling decrease, your chances of success after pooling must increase by the same amount in the opposite direction (and vice versa).

Don’t you have to be interviewed before you can be placed in the pool?
If so, if you apply to a popular college with plenty of strong applicants ( eg Maths at Trinity), one may not be offered an interview due to the number of strong applicants. However the same applicant applying elsewhere may be interviewed and given a chance to shine and either be excepted or pooled.
Original post by Typhoons
Don’t you have to be interviewed before you can be placed in the pool?
If so, if you apply to a popular college with plenty of strong applicants ( eg Maths at Trinity), one may not be offered an interview due to the number of strong applicants. However the same applicant applying elsewhere may be interviewed and given a chance to shine and either be excepted or pooled.

what do I need to do to get an interview from Trinity? Is it just based on grades?
Original post by Typhoons
Don’t you have to be interviewed before you can be placed in the pool?
If so, if you apply to a popular college with plenty of strong applicants ( eg Maths at Trinity), one may not be offered an interview due to the number of strong applicants. However the same applicant applying elsewhere may be interviewed and given a chance to shine and either be excepted or pooled.


Some people think that. Colleges are supposed to interview anyone who has a chance, though, and the effect would be very small anyway.

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