04.03.21
Find out here if you need to complete an Admissions Assessment before or on the day of your interview (and whether you need to register for it in advance), if you need to submit written work to support your application, and if you will be be asked to read a text or article before going into your interview.
Do I need to complete (and register for) a 'pre-interview' Admissions Assessment?
There are pre-interview assessments in most science, and a few arts and humanities subjects. You need to register for these in advance - the deadline is usually the same as the UCAS application deadline, and your school will register you (but make sure!). These assessments take place at an exam centre (usually your school) in late October or early November. They are the same across all Cambridge colleges, and full details can be found under each subject entry in this webpage.
subjects with pre-interview assessments:
| Chemical Engineering | Computer Science | Economics |
| Engineering | English | Land Economy |
| Medicine (BMAT) | Natural Sciences | Veterinary Medicine |
Please note that for Medicine, we use the BMAT as our assessment, and you must register for this separately - see this link.
For Maths and Maths with Physics, and Psychological and Behavioural Sciences, there is no assessment or any other pre- or at-interview requirement.
Will I need to complete an 'at-interview' Admissions Assessment?
There are at-interview assessments in some arts and humanities subjects. You do not need to register for these, and will be sent full details about them if you are called for interview. They are almost all sat on the same day as the interview, although in a few cases they may take place on an adjacent day.
| subject | format |
|---|---|
| Archaeology | Essay/text response element (60 minutes) |
| Classics (3 years) | Translation exercise (60 minutes) |
| Classics (4 years) | Language aptitude interview (20 minutes) |
| History | Essay/text response element (60 minutes) |
| History and Modern Languages | Discursive response in Foreign Language (40 minutes) and response in English (20 minutes) |
| History and Politics | History: Essay/text response element (60 minutes) |
| Law | Cambridge Law Test (essay version - 60 minutes) |
| Modern and Medival Languages | Discursive response in Foreign Language (40 minutes) and response in English (20 minutes) |
| Philosophy | Multiple choice logic problems (20 minutes) and essay (40 minutes) |
| Theology and Religious Studies | to be confirmed |
Will I need to read something before the interview?
In some subjects you will be given some pre-interview reading to discuss in the interview. If called for interview, you will be given full details of where and when to collect it - we will make sure you have enough time to study it!
subjects with pre-interview reading:
| Chemical Engineering (via Engineering) | Engineering | English |
| Geography | History | History and Modern Languages (language component) |
| History and Politics (politics component) | Human, Social and Political Science | Law |
| Modern and Medieval Languages | Music | Theology and Religious Studies |
Do I need to submit written school work?
To support applications in some subjects, we require you to send us some of your written work. These enable us to assess the quality of your academic writing in the subject you wish to study, and they may be discussed at your interview. If your subject is not listed below, you do not need to send us any written work.
The essays you submit should be copies of accredited essays (not coursework), with your teachers' comments if possible. The essays should not normally be longer than 2500 words.
If your school subject combination means that you cannot send us exactly what is listed below (e.g. a modern linguist with no additional 'essay subject'), do not worry - just contact the Admissions Office and we will work out an alternative.
The deadline for submission of this material in 2020 is the 5th November. Details of how to submit your essays will be sent to all applicants. You do not need to type your essays.
requirements for submission of written work:
|
Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic |
Two pieces of written work. |
|
Asian & Middle-Eastern Studies |
One essay in English on a substantive topic. If you are applying to study a European language as part of the AMES course, please also send an essay in that language. |
|
Classics |
Two pieces of written work from essay-based subjects that you are already studying (eg. History, English, Languages, Classical Civilisation). |
|
English |
One essay from your English course. |
|
History |
One essay from your History course. |
|
History and Modern Languages |
One essay from your History course and one essay in the foreign language for which you are applying. If you are applying for a language ab initio, please send an essay in English in an essay-based subject. |
|
History and Politics |
One essay from your History course. |
|
Modern and Medieval Languages |
All applicants should send in three pieces of written work. If you are applying to continue two A-level (or equivalent) languages, please send one piece of work in each of these languages. The third piece should be an essay in English from another essay-based subject. If you are applying to continue one A-level language, and to start another language from scratch, please send one piece of work in the language you are studying and intend to continue; the other two pieces of work should be from an essay-based subject. |
|
Music |
Two to three pieces of school work, which can be from the fields of music history, analysis and composition (harmony and/or counterpoint exercises). |
|
Philosophy |
Two pieces of written work. |
If after reading this website you still have questions about applying to St Catharine's for an undergraduate degree, please email us at undergraduate.admissions@caths.cam.ac.uk
