Law Interview at Oxford?

OP

Any thoughts on what to expect? @Stiffy Byng @mishieru07

Reply 2

xyz1234567

6

There are lots of official sample law interviews online produced by the Law Faculty and by College outreach teams. If you google “sample law interview Oxford” then multiple video interviews come up as the first set of hits. So there is no need to wonder - just watch those.

Reply 3

A candidate might be shown a case or a statute and asked about it. A candidate might be given a description of a problem facing society and asked to devise a rule to deal with that problem. There is no set pattern. The interview is designed to test a candidate's ability to do well in tutorials.

Reply 4

OP

Original post by Stiffy Byng

A candidate might be shown a case or a statute and asked about it. A candidate might be given a description of a problem facing society and asked to devise a rule to deal with that problem. There is no set pattern. The interview is designed to test a candidate's ability to do well in tutorials.

So would you advise reading old editions of Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Tort Law and Contract Law? Because their are often available for cheap on eBay, Amazon marketplace and other online websites too. Or is no knowledge of Law required? 😧

Reply 5

OP

Original post by xyz1234567

There are lots of official sample law interviews online produced by the Law Faculty and by College outreach teams. If you google “sample law interview Oxford” then multiple video interviews come up as the first set of hits. So there is no need to wonder - just watch those.

Are you at Oxford studying Law? 🙂

Reply 6

Original post by thegeek888

So would you advise reading old editions of Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Tort Law and Contract Law? Because their are often available for cheap on eBay, Amazon marketplace and other online websites too. Or is no knowledge of Law required? 😧

Never use an out of date law book. The law is a living instrument.

Candidates are expected to have a basic familiarity with the English legal system, but not to know the law in detail.

Alexander Pope wisely said that a little learning is a dangerous thing. Unguided study can mislead.

Reply 7

OP

Original post by Stiffy Byng

Never use an out of date law book. The law is a living instrument.
Candidates are expected to have a basic familiarity with the English legal system, but not to know the law in detail.
Alexander Pope wisely said that a little learning is a dangerous thing. Unguided study can mislead.

I've got the latest editions of:

Nicholas McBride - Letters to a Law Student-Pearson (2022)

and

What About Law? Studying Law at University

They cover almost all the law topics in sufficient detail. 🙂 Did your daughter read them?

Reply 8

She has not mentioned reading those books.

Reply 9

OP

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by Stiffy Byng

She has not mentioned reading those books.

Here is Oxford University Law Reading List for Applicants:

Introductory_reading_for_Law.pdf (ox.ac.uk)

Balliol College has a reading list and both the books I mentioned in an earlier post are on the list!!! 🙂

Law Reading List | Balliol College (ox.ac.uk)

I also have a copy of "THE RULE OF LAW" but I think it is too common to mention in a UCAS Personal Statement perhaps? 😧

Reply 10

artful_lounger

21

You shouldn't be doing this wider reading with the sole intent of impressing an admissions tutor. You should be doing it due to your genuine interest in the subject area beyond the A-level curriculum. What the admissions tutors want to see is not that you read XYZ book, but how you analysed and reflected upon what you read and how your interests led you to that (and where you are going from there).

It's pretty well known that Oxbridge interviews are not trying to "test" you on what you already know, but to see you apply what you know to an unfamiliar situation. They've stated before that often if an applicant obviously is familiar with the specific details of a particular question they may move on to a new one. The idea being to see how you cope with unfamiliar questions and then how you cope with follow ups to that and adapt your argument in light of new information.

Since law has no subject requirements they aren't going to be expecting any specific background knowledge.

Reply 11

I agree. The application process is not about ticking boxes.

Bingham's book is worth reading because it is worth reading, not in order to seek Brownie points.

Reply 12

mishieru07

12

Original post by thegeek888

So would you advise reading old editions of Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Tort Law and Contract Law? Because their are often available for cheap on eBay, Amazon marketplace and other online websites too. Or is no knowledge of Law required? 😧

Absolutely not. For one, the tutors can literally choose any topic for interviews (I had personal property for one of mine, which is a 3rd year option), so there's no point in trying to predict what will come up. For another, you aren't expected to actually have legal knowledge - the interviews are deliberately structured to test how you think, not how much legal knowledge you have.

I've talked about my interview experience previously - check my post history.

Reply 13

OP