Insights

Insights from the classroom, university and consulting world

First-hand perspectives on academic performance, selective university admissions, the Harvard Business School Case Method and consulting interviews, grounded in Deep Biswas’s experience as a Cambridge graduate, Harvard MBA, former UK Government economist, tutor and adviser.

An Oxford college quadrangle with autumn planting

University Admissions

What Is an Online Oxford Interview Really Like? From My Experience at Oxford to Interviewing on Zoom

Oxford interviews once involved travelling to the university, staying in college and spending several days alongside other applicants. Drawing on my experience interviewing for PPE at Oxford and later for Harvard Business School online, I reflect on what has changed, what has been lost, and why the ability to think aloud remains central to interview preparation.

22 October 2026 · 10 min read

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The Bodleian Library quadrangle in Oxford

University Admissions

How to Prepare for TARA: Why Oxford and UCL’s New Admissions Test Is More Familiar Than It Looks

TARA is new, but the reasoning skills it assesses are not. A practical guide to Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, timing, older TSA and BMAT material, and the Writing Task.

21 September 2026 · 9 min read

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Deep Biswas in academic dress at Harvard Business School commencement

Cambridge & Harvard

How the Harvard Business School Case Method Actually Works

A first-hand account of the HBS classroom: seating, preparation, cold calls, timing a contribution and what the method does and does not teach.

6 August 2026 · 10 min read

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Deep Biswas standing beside the Harvard Business School sign on campus.

Cambridge & Harvard

How Harvard Business School Grades Class Participation and Brings Cases to Life

Relative grading, what a 2 really means, how participation is documented, and what happens when the case protagonist visits the classroom.

6 August 2026 · 7 min read

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Punting on the River Cam beside the Cambridge college backs

Cambridge & Harvard

What Is It Really Like to Study at Cambridge?

What is studying at Cambridge University actually like? Drawing on my MPhil at Jesus College, I explain the college system, academic life, libraries, dinners, cycling, student support, careers and some of the details applicants often overlook.

6 August 2026 · 9 min read

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Harvard Business School welcome session for the incoming MBA class in Klarman Hall.

Consulting Interviews

HBS Cases vs Consulting Case Interviews: What Is the Difference?

One is a method of learning, the other compresses months of consulting work into minutes. What actually differs in purpose, structure, assumptions and the final recommendation.

6 August 2026 · 9 min read

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University Admissions

What Oxbridge Interviewers Are Really Testing

Subject curiosity, visible reasoning, unfamiliar material and teachability: what Oxford and Cambridge interviews are designed to observe, and why preparation should build intellectual muscle memory rather than scripts.

6 August 2026 · 8 min read

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Deep Biswas explaining a concept to students during a small-group teaching session.

Economics & Business

How to Structure a 25-Mark A-Level Economics Answer

Command words, planning, analytical chains, conditional evaluation and a justified conclusion — with a worked illustration.

6 August 2026 · 5 min read

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A university residence building on a North American campus with a magnolia tree in blossom.

University Admissions

What It Is Really Like to Study Abroad as an International Master's Student

A domestic postgraduate at Cambridge, an international one at Harvard. What actually changes when you move abroad: banking and ID, currency, housing, employment access, geography and integration.

9 August 2026 · 9 min read

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University Admissions

UK vs US Master's Applications: What Actually Changes?

UK and US Master's applications look similar and reward different things. Subject anchored statements, narrative essays, leadership evidence, networking, funding and what sticker price really means.

9 August 2026 · 8 min read

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