Interview season is here, and you’re probably wondering which of the universities you applied to require Interviews?
To help you, we have gone through all the Russel Group Universities and outlined which subjects require Interviews, when they take place, the Interview style and any useful extra information such as what the Admissions Tutors look for.
As a general guide, professional training degrees (Dentistry, Medicine, Primary Education etc.) nearly always require Interviews, whereas humanities and social science degrees (Geography, History and English) are less likely to ask you to Interview. Also, some universities will always Interview, such as Oxford and Cambridge, but other universities, such as LSE, never Interview applicants.
Let’s get started with the Russel Group Universities and begin with Birmingham.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- MBChB Medicine and Surgery
- Graduate MBChB Medicine and Surgery
- When do Interviews take place? December to February
- Interview style: MMI
Extra Information
- Applications receive an overall score, which is the sum of weighted scores for each of three components: academic, UCAT and contextual.
- The weighting is: 45% academic, 35% UCAT and 20% contextual. Personal Statements are not scored but Birmingham require you to offer evidence of your commitment to Medicine.
- Selection for Interview is determined by ranking applicants according to the total application score. Birmingham state that they Interview over 1,100 standard applicants.
- You can find their calculator tool here which says how likely you are to be offered an Interview.
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- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Dental Hygiene and Therapy
- Dentistry and Gateway to Dentistry
- Gateway to Veterinary Science
- Medicine and Gateway to Medicine
- Veterinary Science: Accelerated Graduate Entry
- When do Interviews take place? December to March
- Interview style: MMI but Panel Interviews during COVID
Extra Information
- For some degrees, such as Dental Hygiene and Therapy, you may be asked to complete a practical task. An example of this is to wrap a box/object in paper.
- For Medical degrees, Bristol suggest you read the GMC Guidance For Medical Students.
- Other courses may Interview as well, including Chemistry, Law and Physics.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- The majority, if not, all courses require Interviews.
- When do Interviews take place? December to January
- Interview style: Traditional
Extra Information
- The majority of applicants are invited to attend an Interview. In previous years, this has been around 75% of Home applicants overall.
- Cambridge Interviews are used to test your motivation to study at Cambridge, your problem-solving abilities, assimilation of new ideas and information and intellectual flexibility and analytical reasoning.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Cardiff Interviews for multiple different subjects so it is worth checking the specific course page that applies to you. Courses that require Interviews include (but are not limited to):
- Medicine
- Dentistry
- Nursing
- Pharmacy
- Music
- Languages
- Politics
- When do Interviews take place? January onwards
- Interview style: Panel and MMI
Extra Information
- Cardiff use Interviews to assess if applicants can think on their feet, have thought about some of the issues that are important to the profession, can critically appraise information and can communicate ideas effectively.
- The selection process to be invited to Interview for some courses includes a cut-off score from GCSEs and A-level grades.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Durham only has compulsory Interviews for one course – the BA (Hons) Primary Education.
- Sometimes Adimmisions Tutors would like to gain more information on a candidate that they felt was lacking important information on their UCAS application. These applicants are invited for an Interview/informal chat.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Medicine
- Nursing
- Oral health sciences
- Teacher education
- Veterinary Medicine
- When do Interviews take place? Not specified
- Interview style: Medicine and Vet Med Interviews are MMIs
Extra Information
- Edinburgh MMIs consist of three 10 minute rotations that cover communication skills, critical and ethical reasoning and career exploration (based on your Personal Statement).
- Although called Interviews, the Interviews are part of a half day assessment day.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- No offer for the following courses will be made unless an applicant has attended an Interview:
- BMBS Medicine
- BSc Medical Imaging
- Nursing
- MSci Applied Psychology (Clinical)
- Initial Teacher Training (PGCE)
- When do Interviews take place? December - March
- Interview style: MMI
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Medicine
- Community Development
- Dentistry
- History of Art & Art-world Practice
- Music
- Nursing
- Teaching
- Veterinary Medicine & Surgery
- When do Interviews take place? December onwards
- Interview style: Panel
Extra Information
- Medicine Interviews last around 30 minutes in total, divided into two sections - a panel A and a panel B. Panel A explores what being a doctor means and related topics around this. The panel B section focuses more on the applicant as a future doctor and will include discussion of an ethical scenario.
- Glasgow recommend to all applicants that they revisit their Personal Statement (interviewers have no knowledge about you other than your name) and think of examples of your achievements and skills.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Most departments at Imperial use an Interview as part of the selection process, including Medicine and Engineering. It is best to check the applicable course page for clarification.
- When do Interviews take place? January onwards
- Interview style: MMI or Traditional
Extra Information
- Imperial state that the main purpose of the Interview is for them to see whether you are suitable for the course, as much as for you to decide if Imperial is the place for you.
- If you are shortlisted, your Interview may form part of a recruitment day, which could also involve other activities to test your potential such as a group task, discussion or a written test.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Mostly for courses like Medicine and Dentistry.
- When do Interviews take place? November - May (large window)
- Interview style: MMI (Panel during COVID)
Extra Information
- King's mention that their interviewers are assessing communication skills, exploring general social and ethical issues, normally health related, and assessing the interviewee’s general suitability for the programme and as a health professional, as well as how the interviewee will contribute to the university as a whole.
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- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Leeds states that some of their courses do require an Interview, this includes Medicine, Midwifery and Social Work.
- When do Interviews take place? November - April
- Interview style: MMI or Panel
Extra Information
- The top ranked applicants are invited for an Interview. Usually Leeds Interviews around 750 students for the Medicine and Surgery degree.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Liverpool Interviews for their healthcare and medical subjects such as Medicine, Dentistry, Physiotherapy, Nursing and Occupational Therapy.
- When do Interviews take place? December - March
- Interview style: Semi-structured
Extra Information
- Liverpool assesses NHS values in many of their Interviews.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- LSE does not Interview applicants for any of their programmes and it is not possible for applicants to request an Interview.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Manchester Interviews for their healthcare and medical subjects such as Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing.
- When do Interviews take place? November - March
- Interview style: Panel and MMI
Extra Information
- Manchester suggests that the Interview is not a test of academic knowledge. It is more to determine if you meet the values and behaviours expected of a medical student. To help you understand, Manchester recommend reading through the GMC Good Medical Practice.
- You will likely be tested on your ability to communicate, your reasons of wanting to be a doctor, previous experience, medical knowledge and current hot topics and lastly, ethics.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Medicine
- Dentistry
- Music
- When do Interviews take place? Not Specified
- Interview style: Panel, Interview Day and MMI
Extra Information
- For Medicine, applicants are assessed through MMIs which tests their integrity (honesty and probity), communication, empathy and self-awareness, motivation and commitment to become a doctor, compatibility with MBBS programme, teamwork (including leadership), personal organisation and persistence and resilience.
- For Dentistry Interviews, applicants are assessed, graded and then ranked after testing on their preparation and motivation for dental school, effective learning skills, team working, personal qualities/resilience, interpersonal and communication skills, empathy, integrity and professionalism.
- For Music Interview Days, applicants perform an audition piece and explain why they chose it, its historical and cultural contexts and talk about their interests and how they relate to music. During the audition piece, applicants need to show confidence and precision.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Nottingham Interviews for their healthcare and medical subjects such as Medicine, Physiotherapy, Midwifery and Vet Med.
- When do Interviews take place? December - March
- Interview style: MMI and Panel
Extra Information
- For Midwifery, applicants are expected to demonstrate potential for academic progression, commitment to a career in midwifery and an understanding of the role of the midwife.
- Physiotherapy candidates complete two 15-minute Interviews with two separate members of staff and a short group task.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- The majority, if not, all courses require Interviews.
- When do Interviews take place? December to January
- Interview style: Traditional
Extra Information
- The Interview is designed to assess your academic potential. Tutors are looking for your self-motivation and enthusiasm for your subject.
- Oxford typically receives over 22,000 applications for around 3,300 places every year and shortlists approximately 10,000 candidates.
- Oxford has released a full interview timetable for 2022. This includes dates for all subjects as well as any additional requirements. It can be accessed on the official Oxford website.
Queen's University Belfast
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Interviews are required for high-demand professional programmes, e.g. Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing and Social Work.
- When do Interviews take place? January onwards
- Interview style: MMI or Traditional
Extra Information
- Interviews are designed to test the following: resilience, maturity and responsibility, interpersonal and communication skills, confidence, self-awareness, empathy, ethical and moral values.
- Queen's uses a scoring system for their Interviews. Candidates are then ranked and offers are made to applicants who rank the highest after Interview.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Interviews are required for some medical-related degrees such as Medicine, Dentistry and Oral Health.
- When do Interviews take place? January onwards
- Interview style: Panel
Extra Information
- Queen Mary assesses motivation and approach to medicine as a career, initiative, resilience and maturity, teamwork, organisation and problem solving abilities, potential contribution to university life and communication in a wide range of situations.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Departments that Interview include Medicine, Dentistry, Orthoptics, Human Communication Science (for entry to Speech Science) and Social Work. Other departments may also Interview applicants.
- When do Interviews take place? December onwards
- Interview style: MMI (panel during COVID)
Extra Information
- The Medical School Interviews approximately 1100-1300 candidates for Medicine.
- Sheffield assesses and scores applicants on their communication skills, depth and breadth of interests (achievements in specific fields), evidence of commitment for caring, knowledge of and interest in study in Sheffield, medical work experience/Extended Project Qualification, motivation for medicine, information processing skills, understanding the nature of medicine, values and attitudes and outside interests.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- Medicine
- When do Interviews take place? January - March
- Interview style: Selection Day
Extra Information
- Applicants must be able to show they are self-motivated and resilient, have reflected on and learnt from life experiences (this may include work experience, paid employment and personal experiences both in and outside health and social care settings), can communicate effectively, are able to interact successfully with others, can demonstrate an understanding of the values of the NHS Constitution.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- UCL Interview for a wide range of degrees including Medicine, English, Fine Art etc. so it is worth going to the course that applies to you and checking.
- When do Interviews take place? January - March
- Interview style: Panel
Extra Information
- For Medicine, candidates are given a ‘priority’ score and interviewed in score order until places run out; this is typically 25% of applicants invited.
- Interviewers score candidates based on their academic curiosity and interest in healthcare, motivation and understanding of a career in medicine, problem-solving, professionalism, teamwork, resilience and communication.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- There may be circumstances where Warwick will Interview students but most undergraduate courses, if not all, do not require Interviews.
- Which subjects require Interviews?
- York Interview for a wide range of degrees including Medicine, Engineering, Music, Law, Social Work and Mathematics etc. so it is worth going to the course that applies to you and checking.
- When do Interviews take place? December onwards
- Interview style: MMI or Panel
Extra Information
- Law applicants may not have an Interview during COVID and will instead be asked to fill in a self-assessment.
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