oxford interview prep

I'm preparing for Oxford interviews in December. I want to study history. Are there any oxbridge history students who have advice for interviews? Like what to look out for, how to prepare and what i need to know before going in. Thanksss

I'm preparing for Oxford interviews in December. I want to study history. Are there any oxbridge history students who have advice for interviews? Like what to look out for, how to prepare and what i need to know before going in. Thanksss

@Stiffy Byng studied History at Wadham College, Oxford. So, PM her.

I'm preparing for Oxford interviews in December. I want to study history. Are there any oxbridge history students who have advice for interviews? Like what to look out for, how to prepare and what i need to know before going in. Thanksss

I'm preparing for Oxford interviews in December. I want to study history. Are there any oxbridge history students who have advice for interviews? Like what to look out for, how to prepare and what i need to know before going in. Thanksss

Hi! I'm a first year history student at Cambridge. I would say the best thing to do is really study your personal statement and your written work - highlight it, think of questions that you could be asked, read around it. I submitted 2 pieces of written work and thought about comparing them / reading historical debates about the people/time periods. I've just gone back and checked my notes from last year and for the written work I submitted, I made sure I knew the periods and my arguments really well and that I was ready to defend them (although they never asked me about my written work for my interview haha). For my PS I read around that too - I made sure I knew any counter arguments to my points / was familiar with books or plays I had mentioned, and thought about what the major themes of my PS were. This was useful as in my interview they tested me on if I knew any contemporary historians to one I had mentioned, so it is helpful to ensure you are genuinely well read and passionate about that which you have mentioned.
I would say the number one thing to do is at least 1-2 interviews - they are the way that you will know what you could be asked, make you think about your work, and let you be challenged. I did these as well as asking friends in the year above what they got asked, so I could think about different avenues of preparation.
I've checked my feedback from last year from some practice interviews, and here is some of the feedback that I got that could be helpful:
'You don't need to waffle - keep the question asked in mind. Remember to stop, engage with the specific question'
'You can ask follow up questions if you aren't sure - it's ok not to know everything. Acknowledge that you are unsure, and you can always try to link it to a related topic that you do know'
'Avoid the cliche of saying "I want to study history to understand the present"'
For sources:

Good luck if you have an interview. History is a brilliant subject!
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hiya, I'm a First-class History grad from Cambridge. If you would like someone to give you some mock questions or to review your personal statement with you please private message me- I'm trying to gain more mentoring experience!

This would be super useful, if there is any way I can send you my statement for History at Oxford please let me know!