Enjoy every last second. . Exams will come, no sense stressing early — they’re basically the same amount of shit no matter how much you prepare in advance. Final term is a wild mess of stress and exam insanity, so take time in your nearly last term to enjoy the town, do things you’ve been putting off, make the most of it.

Side story; one of my friends started crying circa 2am at our final May ball in college 3rd year (not massively unusual) but when I asked her why she answered: “we’ll never live anywhere this beautiful again.” That was genuinely the first time I thought about that and it’s a million percent true - no matter how much money you spend, there’s v few place in the country (world) as lovely as Cam, and enjoy it while it’s home. It’s an incredible privilege. (Also enjoy your job being learning. It all seems so normal when you’ve been in school your whole life, but I promise it’s an honor and worth appreciating).

Oh yeah. One was great and one was utter shit -- and I got pooled, so that kind of makes sense. But honestly, it can be really hard to predict how well you did. There’s a lot of factors, not least of which is how good are you at reading other people? and how readable are your interviewers? which means that a good number of people are shocked come offer day. 

Honestly, every year hundreds of people who thought it went horrible get in -- lots and lots of my Cam friends had horrible interviews. So don’t count yourself out yet -- you never know if your perception of how it went is radically different from you interviewers’. Annnnd interviews are not the be all end all -- they’re just one factor in the decision. 

No no, you’re making perfect sense. The Cambridge admission process is long and involved and exhausting, mentally and physically. But I think the key here is what you’ve already said: your interview is in 10 days. That’s actually not that long. You’ve spent years of your life preparing for this, working hard to put yourself exactly in this position. Don’t let yourself down by falling at the last step.

Set aside a few hours every day — every day — and just do it: sit down, read a bit about your subject, get yourself up to date with current developments or delve more deeply into an area you’re particularly interested in. Explain to the wall or your dog or your mom the concepts you’re learning, why you love your subject, areas you see as weak in the things you’re reading, etc.

It’s only ten days. Think of all the years you’ve worked for this. Deep breath, head down, don’t let yourself down — leave it all on the field, put yourself in the best position to succeed. Don’t let the fear of failing clog you up. You’re going to be okay. You can do this. Do it for yourself, for all the hours you’ve already put in, so you have no regrets.

Oh gosh this is last minute, sorry! But generally

1. breathe – and take water if they offer it. It’s so much better to take 5 seconds to compose yourself than launch right in and end up on an unintentional path. 

2. remember no one is out here to get you – they want you to succeed. Don’t treat questions as horrible tests designed to trip you up, treat them as queries into how you think about something. 

3. take a side, any side – much better to argue a point well than end up in the middle. When in doubt, say something that makes an argument, anything. Your interviewer won’t reject you for disagreeing with them; they might reject you for not being able to formulate an opinion. 

4. keep it all in perspective. This is important, yeah, but it’s not the be-all end-all of your life. There’s always next year, there’s always other unis.