Reading is absolutely critical to your success at interview stage when applying for PPE at Oxford.
By expanding your mind beyond the confines of your A level syllabus, you'll expose yourself to all sorts of new and interesting topics and ways of thinking - all important when you're called upon to think critically and creatively under pressure in an interview situation.
You need to make sure you read things against each of the subjects - politics, philosophy and economics, and it is also wise to stay up to date with current affairs - interviewers have been known to drop in questions to make sure you're on the ball. As such, The Economist and newspaper editorials as well as BBC Newsnight are essential viewing / reading.
Keeping a notebook of the interesting things you read about is also a good idea, and the night before the interview when you're looking for ways to prepare for the next day, you'll thank yourself that you put together a record of all your hard work.
The reading list which is shown on the right hand side of this page is based on the first year PPE syllabus, so you can be sure you're reading things that are relevant and which will give you a broad and solid base for your interview.
Saturday
Choosing a College
Choosing a college is one of those issues that divides. Some people will tell you that wherever you end up you'll enjoy it, whilst others are fixated on a single destination. And, because there are all sorts of college level statistics for entry success rates, it can get quite confusing.
The reality is that all colleges are different, and you need to think about the experience you want at university.
Choosing a college that is central compared to one that is further out will have an impact on your living costs and your social life. It is also important to look at the financial support each college offers if this is likely to be important to you.
Additionally, college size will impact on the number of societies and events you can take part in, and there are all sorts of differences which are harder to quantify - some colleges are more fun than others, some are good at sport, some have a strong public school feel, some have nicer food and some have reputations for certain subjects.
The best advice I can give is to talk to students you know at Oxford for their views - they'll give you the side that isn't in the prospectuses!
The other issue is admissions. The reality is that if you are good enough to study PPE, you'll be given a place somewhere - as lots of candidates are asked to interview at other colleges. The one thing that is important to consider however is that certain colleges are more competitive than others, so if you apply to Balliol for instance, you might end up getting offered a place at another college, so you may wish to apply to somewhere that is less competitive, because it means that if you do get an offer, it is more likely to be at your preferred college.
The reality is that all colleges are different, and you need to think about the experience you want at university.
Choosing a college that is central compared to one that is further out will have an impact on your living costs and your social life. It is also important to look at the financial support each college offers if this is likely to be important to you.
Additionally, college size will impact on the number of societies and events you can take part in, and there are all sorts of differences which are harder to quantify - some colleges are more fun than others, some are good at sport, some have a strong public school feel, some have nicer food and some have reputations for certain subjects.
The best advice I can give is to talk to students you know at Oxford for their views - they'll give you the side that isn't in the prospectuses!
The other issue is admissions. The reality is that if you are good enough to study PPE, you'll be given a place somewhere - as lots of candidates are asked to interview at other colleges. The one thing that is important to consider however is that certain colleges are more competitive than others, so if you apply to Balliol for instance, you might end up getting offered a place at another college, so you may wish to apply to somewhere that is less competitive, because it means that if you do get an offer, it is more likely to be at your preferred college.
It's how you think that's important, not what you know...
Because students coming for interview have such a diverse range of backgrounds, it is pretty difficult for tutors to judge them based on what they know. You might think you have enough knowledge to pass PPE Prelims, but the tutor won't necessarily care - they'll want to see that you think in the right way so that when new and big challenges come along, you'll be able to work through them without their help.
What this means is that although it is important to read a lot and to keep up to date with current affairs, what you should be doing is not necessarily be learning everything by rote, but rather carefully looking at how people construct arguments, analyzing why certain things happen, and working through the implications of events and solutions / responses.
For this reason, make sure you pay careful attention to newspaper editorials (a good source of argument) and also that you fully understand the principles of an argument when you read it - be prepared to go back and read it two or three time if needs be.
As ever, quality, not quantity is the key.
What this means is that although it is important to read a lot and to keep up to date with current affairs, what you should be doing is not necessarily be learning everything by rote, but rather carefully looking at how people construct arguments, analyzing why certain things happen, and working through the implications of events and solutions / responses.
For this reason, make sure you pay careful attention to newspaper editorials (a good source of argument) and also that you fully understand the principles of an argument when you read it - be prepared to go back and read it two or three time if needs be.
As ever, quality, not quantity is the key.
Thinking Skills Assessment
To help decide whether to invite you to interview for PPE at Oxford, you will be asked to sit the TSA.
There are two key components to this test:
Key to success is the ability to calmly and rationally assess a question - break it into its component parts, analyse the assumptions being made and challenge them. You must also work quickly - make sure you don't run out of time.
There are two key components to this test:
- Part 1 is about logical thinking, breaking down problems, interpreting data and spotting themes and flaws in arguments. You are asked to complete a large number of questions with only a limited amount of time for each one.
- Part 2 is about structuring your own thoughts in an essay. You are asked to write a essay and you have the choice of several different titles.
Key to success is the ability to calmly and rationally assess a question - break it into its component parts, analyse the assumptions being made and challenge them. You must also work quickly - make sure you don't run out of time.
To practice, you can access the specimen and past papers here at the TSA website.
Personal Statements
When applying through UCAS for PPE at Oxford, you'll need to make sure that you're personal statement is word perfect. Though not all tutors give it equal weight in the whole interview process, you never know whether your interviewing tutor might, so best to get it right.
The essential things to remember are:
The essential things to remember are:
- You must display a good grasp of written English - perfect spelling and grammar are critical
- Don't lie about what you have read - if you get asked about it, they will realise
- Do have an opinion, but don't say things you can't defend - it'll make you look thoughtless
- Read 'around the subject' and talk about. Why not read about Venezuelan politics or Chinese inflation? It'll show the tutors you're genuinely interested
- Structure the whole thing logically and make sure it flows - this is a proxy for what your essays will look like, so make it good
- Extra curricular activities are admirable, but ultimately, the tutors' main concern is that you will be a top student - try to link non academic achievements to how they have helped you develop personally - demonstrate that it will make you a more dedicated and hardworking student
- Express an understanding of how the disciplines impact and interrelate to each other: ultimately, PPE is about how society works, so try not to view the three disciplines as completely separate.
Know what you are applying for!
It's very easy to get caught up in the interview preparation process without taking the time to look at what is actually involved in the syllabus. Good candidates at interview will have a knowledge of the Oxford PPE curriculum so make the effort to delve in to what you'll be studying - that way if the tutors ask you, you'll be able to talk confidently about what you're applying for.
There is the obvious benefit as well that you might realise the course isn't for you....!
There is the obvious benefit as well that you might realise the course isn't for you....!
Useful Links
If you're going to be applying for PPE, there are a few places that you should check out - as they offer a whole bunch of interesting and useful stuff.
- Oxford University PPE site - information on open days in Oxford, the admissions and interview process, details about the course syllabus and curriculum.
- Oxbridge Applications - if you feel like you need some extra expert tuition, the OA is perfect - they run day seminars, interview preparation weekends and private consultations to help give you the best chance of succeeding with your application.
- The Student Room - a student run forum with lots of gossip, help and advice on the whole interview process. The PPE wiki has some useful information. Also gives you a chance to talk to other candidates who are in the same position as you.
- The official PPE Facebook page - if you want to stay on top of relevant news then like this.
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