Oxbridge Interview / The Cambridge interview / English
Cambridge English interview: two essays, a December conversation, and probing questions about reading
Three applicants per place, two essays ahead of you, and a course that says it wants 'the intellectual curiosity to ask probing questions'. The interview asks them back.
Updated September 2026Cambridge English had 3 applications per place in the 2025 cycle and accepted 192, the least competitive ratio among the arts courses here, which makes the interview matter more, not less. You submit two pieces of written work; there is no admissions assessment at most colleges (Gonville & Caius is the exception). Cambridge describes the course as grounded in literature written in English, including American and post-colonial writing, with the chance to explore other art forms in relation to literature, and says it is for people with 'a passion for literature and the intellectual curiosity to ask probing questions'. Interviews are run by the college assessing you: main period 7 to 18 December 2026, online or in person depending on the college, most applicants having one or two interviews totalling 35 minutes to an hour with two or three interviewers. Cambridge says it assesses your understanding of the subject, readiness for high-level study, critical and independent thinking, curiosity and enthusiasm. English interviews commonly include a passage to discuss, provided before or during the interview, and questions about your reading.
Merra is not affiliated with the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, any college or UCAS.
Merra: practise it out loud before it counts
Merra's Cambridge English practice is a spoken mock in the college-interview style: five questions, one follow-up each, about fifteen minutes, then spoken feedback and a written report. It cannot provide an unseen passage; close-reading questions work from a text you name at setup.
- 1Sign up free — no card, 2 free coaching sessions available until used.
- 2Practise out loud — answer unseen discussion questions with an AI tutor.
- 3Get readiness feedback — see how you reasoned and how you handled the push, with a recording and transcript.
No card details required. Your first 2 coaching sessions are free.
Practise an Cambridge-style English interview
An AI tutor asks an unseen discussion question out loud, pushes once with a follow-up, then moves on — the same shape as the real thing, minus the science problems on paper.
Practise an Cambridge-style English interview2 free coaching sessions · available until used · no card needed · no subscriptionHow this interview works
- 1Submit two pieces of written work. There is no admissions assessment at most colleges; Gonville & Caius sets one.
- 2Invitations mostly in November. Main interview period 7 to 18 December 2026; winter pool mid to late January. Online or in person by college.
- 3One or two interviews totalling 35 minutes to an hour, two or three interviewers. Cambridge says you may be given material to read before the interview and asked to discuss it.
- 4Expect questions about your submitted essays, your personal statement reading, and close reading of a text you have not seen.
- 5Cambridge assesses understanding of the subject, readiness for high-level study, critical and independent thinking, curiosity and enthusiasm.
- 6Outcomes 27 January 2027.
Interview questions
Cambridge does not publish interview questions for this course. The questions below are Merra practice questions written to the course as Cambridge describes it and to what Cambridge says interviews assess; they are not Cambridge's.
“Take the opening line of a book you love. What's it doing to you before the second sentence?”
“Why do we read novels about people who don't exist? What do we get that a history couldn't give us?”
“What was one of your essays about, and what would you cut from it now?”
“Tell me about something you've read from outside Britain. What did it assume about its reader that a British text wouldn't?”
“Does it matter that a poem rhymes? Find me a poem where the rhyme is doing something, not just decorating.”
“Is a film adaptation a reading of a book? Can it be a better one?”
“What's a book you were told was great and didn't like? Make the case against it fairly.”
“What's a question about literature you've never been able to answer?”
Pricing
FAQs
How competitive is Cambridge English?
In the 2025 cycle there were 3 applications per place and 192 students were accepted.
Is written work required for Cambridge English?
Yes, two pieces at all colleges.
Is there an admissions assessment for English?
Not at the majority of colleges. Gonville & Caius is listed as an exception.
Will I get an unseen text in the interview?
Cambridge says you may be provided with material to read before your interview and asked to discuss it; the college will tell you.
When is the Cambridge English interview?
Main period 7 to 18 December 2026, one or two interviews totalling 35 minutes to an hour, online or in person by college.
Official information
For the official course page and admissions details.
More Oxbridge interview guides
Merra is not affiliated with the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge, any college or UCAS. Merra’s feedback is advisory only — it is not a guarantee of any offer or admission outcome.
The Oxbridge interview is spoken. Practise it that way.
Your first mock takes about 15 minutes: an unseen question, a follow-up, and feedback on how you reasoned. Free, no card.
Practise an Cambridge-style English interview2 free coaching sessions · available until used · no card needed · no subscription