Applying to Exeter

Applying

Applications to the college should be made through UCAS. You can nominate Exeter College as your college choice by selecting campus code 4 on the form. The deadline for applications is 15 October. Full details of the application process can be found on the University Website. Some subjects require applicants to submit one or two pieces of written work, and many subjects require candidates to sit a short written test; further details are set out on the University website.

Where asked for, written work should be sent to the College to reach us by no later than 10 November. As we cannot return it, you may wish to submit a (legible) photocopy. The work should be clearly written or typed. It must be academic work. Creative writing, however admirable, does not give us the kind of information we need in assessing your potential to follow an academic course of study. If, because of your circumstances, you don't have examples of recent written work available, please write to the Admissions Officer as soon as possible, so that we can suggest alternatives.

Disabled Applicants

We welcome enquiries from disabled students. Though it would be misleading to suggest that Exeter's older buildings do not pose problems for students with mobility problems, we have successfully provided for students with disabilities in other areas (e.g. cystic fibrosis and partial sight). There are rooms on the main College site and in our hostels that have been specifically adapted for wheelchair and disabled access. We have various contingency plans which can be brought into effect and we regard problems as challenges to be overcome. Please contact the Academic Administrator directly and let us know what your needs are: in most cases we can and will meet them.

Interviews

You may have heard all sorts of horror stories about Oxford interviews. Most, if not all, of them are false. Interviews are not designed to intimidate or embarrass you, but rather to assess your potential to excel in the subject for which you have applied.

In many science subjects, and some others, it should be expected that you will be asked to work through problems on paper. In others you will certainly be engaged in challenging discussion about relevant topics. The interviewers will possibly ask you questions to which you may well not know the answers. This is not to trick you, but to see if you can take a few tentative steps towards reaching an answer. Regardless of subject, the interviewers will also want to know if you are quick to take up new ideas and are able to think for yourself. You should feel free to take your time in answering questions and to ask for assistance if you have not fully understood a question. We are primarily interested in how clearly and deeply you can think.

During the interview you will be able to show your enthusiasm for the subject in which you are interested. The interviewers will want to know whether you will be willing to put in all the effort that is required to excel in the subject. They will want to know what it is that excites you in particular about the field.

You can generally expect two interviews and there will normally be two or more interviewers. You may be called for interviews at several colleges. There is nothing unusual in this and it does not indicate whether you have or have not been successful.

More advice on interviews can be found on the University Website