Murray Edwards College ESAT scores for Cambridge Engineering (H100)

In the 2025 admissions cycle, applicants who received an Engineering (H100) offer from Murray Edwards College, Cambridge averaged 7.08 on ESAT Mathematics 1, the highest offer average among the 25 undergraduate colleges and the top of that pool's range on the module. The same group averaged 6.95 on Mathematics 2 (2nd) and 6.64 on Physics (6th), so all three offer averages sit above the pool median, by 0.72, 0.73 and 0.17 respectively. The thing to remember about Murray Edwards is in the other column: everyone who applied to the college that year averaged just 5.06, 4.5 and 4.94 in Mathematics 1, Physics and Mathematics 2, 4.83 overall, against 6.89 overall for offer-holders, a gap of more than 2 in every module (2.02, 2.14 and 2.01 in that order). These are cycle averages for two groups of people, not entry requirements. Cambridge publishes no ESAT score threshold of any kind.

Murray Edwards ESAT scores at a glance (2025 cycle)

What offer-holders scored: Mathematics 1 averaged 7.08, Mathematics 2 6.95 and Physics 6.64; 6.89 across the three modules
What the whole applicant field scored: Mathematics 1 averaged 5.06, Physics 4.5 and Mathematics 2 4.94; 4.83 across the three modules
Applicant-to-offer gap: 2.02 in Mathematics 1, 2.14 in Physics and 2.01 in Mathematics 2, more than 2 in every module
Rank within the undergraduate college pool: Out of 25 colleges: 1st in Mathematics 1, 2nd in Mathematics 2, 6th in Physics
Distance from the pool median: 0.72 above in Mathematics 1 (median 6.36), 0.73 above in Mathematics 2 (median 6.22), 0.17 above in Physics (median 6.47)
Spread across the three modules: 0.44, highest in Mathematics 1 and lowest in Physics, with all three in the upper part of the pool

These are averages and extremes for applicants and offer-holders at this college in the 2025 Engineering (H100) cycle, not entry requirements; Cambridge publishes no ESAT score threshold. The FOI response gives no applicant counts per college, so sample sizes are unknown and a handful of candidates can move an average. Ranks are computed within the undergraduate college pool only, and are not comparable with the mature colleges, which admit applicants aged 21 and over. ESAT results are reported on a 1.0 to 9.0 scale to one decimal place. Pool ranks, pool medians, the overall three-module averages and the various gaps are calculated by FrontierVUE from the same response; Cambridge publishes no such rankings.

What Murray Edwards' ESAT numbers actually are

The University's official Freedom of Information response FOI-2025-956 lists ESAT scores for Engineering (H100) applicants and offer-holders college by college for the 2025 cycle; below is the full set for Murray Edwards. ESAT results are reported on a 1.0 to 9.0 scale to one decimal place. What jumps out at Murray Edwards is the distance between the two columns: applicants averaged 5.06, 4.5 and 4.94, offer-holders 7.08, 6.64 and 6.95, more than 2 apart in every module. Both columns are grouped by the college applied to in that cycle, and the University notes that some applicants change college or course part-way through, which matters particularly for reading the table below.

	Applicant average	Applicant range	Offer-holder average	Offer-holder range
Mathematics 1	5.06	1 to 9	7.08	4.8 to 9
Physics	4.5	1 to 7.5	6.64	5.2 to 8.6
Mathematics 2	4.94	1.1 to 9	6.95	3.7 to 9

The averages and the lowest and highest scores come line by line from official response FOI-2025-956; the overall three-module averages of 4.83 and 6.89 are calculated by FrontierVUE from that same response. Each range is the lowest and highest score in the group, describing what happened in the 2025 cycle rather than a requirement on the next cohort.

6.89

Overall three-module average for Murray Edwards offer-holders, 2025 cycle

4.83

Overall three-module average across all applicants in the same cycle, a long way under the offer side

2.14

Physics applicant-to-offer gap, the largest of the three; the other two are 2.02 and 2.01

One cell in the table needs a note of its own. In Physics, the highest applicant score is 7.5 while the highest offer-holder score is 8.6, so the top of the offer column sits above the top of the applicant column. The two columns therefore cannot be read as a before-and-after view of the same people. The University notes that some applicants change college or course during the cycle, with figures grouped by the cycle applied in, and that is a plausible place for the two groupings to diverge. Read the table as two separate descriptions, and do not treat the offer column as a subset of the applicant column.

How to read these numbers

7.08 is an average, not a bar to clear

It is the average Mathematics 1 score of Murray Edwards Engineering offer-holders in the 2025 cycle, and actual scores in that group ran from 4.8 to 9. Cambridge publishes no ESAT score threshold, and no college has published a minimum of its own. It is the highest offer average in the pool, but it is still the centre of a spread, not its entrance.

No applicant counts, and a wide gap deserves extra caution

The response gives averages and extremes only, with no applicant count or offer count for any college. The gaps of more than 2 in every module are the most striking thing about Murray Edwards, but their cause, whether the make-up of the applicant field, the tightness of selection or simply the wobble of a small sample size, cannot be separated out from this data. In a year with few candidates, a handful of results can push a column's average a long way.

Ranks are computed inside the undergraduate pool only

Murray Edwards' 1st, 2nd and 6th places are all calculated within the 25 undergraduate colleges. Hughes Hall, St Edmund's, Wolfson and Lucy Cavendish admit only applicants aged 21 and over, so they draw on a different pool; ranks are computed separately and this page never lines the two pools up against each other.

The 1.0 to 9.0 scale, to one decimal place

ESAT results are reported on a 1.0 to 9.0 scale to one decimal place. Murray Edwards' Mathematics 1 average of 7.08 is the top of its pool, yet still some way beneath the 9.0 ceiling; a spread of 0.44 or a gap of 0.17 from the median is a small quantity on that scale and should not be felt as if it were percentage points.

One line to hold on to: this page answers what people who applied to Murray Edwards scored last cycle, not what you must score. Its shape is three modules in the upper part of the pool, the two mathematics modules furthest forward, from an applicant field that started low. Let that shape into how you split your time; do not translate it into a number you have to hit.

To place Murray Edwards among all 29 colleges side by side, there is a separate piece on this site, Cambridge ESAT scores by college, with the cross-college comparison and interactive charts; this page stays with Murray Edwards alone. FrontierVUE is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the University of Cambridge or any college; this page only organises and reads a public response.

Three things specific to Murray Edwards

1 / 25

Where the Mathematics 1 offer average ranks in the undergraduate pool; 7.08 is also the top of the pool's range on this module

2 / 25

Where Mathematics 2 ranks, 6.95 sitting just under the pool's top of 6.99

6 / 25

Where Physics ranks, the furthest back of the three, yet still 0.17 above the pool median

Spread across the three modules

0.44

Mathematics 1 highest at 7.08, Mathematics 2 at 6.95, Physics lowest at 6.64

Versus the pool median in Mathematics 1

0.72 above

Murray Edwards 7.08 against a pool median of 6.36; the pool runs from 5.6 to 7.08 on this module, and Murray Edwards is the top of it

Versus the pool median in Mathematics 2

0.73 above

Murray Edwards 6.95 against a pool median of 6.22, the largest of the three margins above the median

Versus the pool median in Physics

0.17 above

Murray Edwards 6.64 against a pool median of 6.47, the smallest of the three margins

Applicant-to-offer gap

2.02 / 2.14 / 2.01

Mathematics 1, Physics and Mathematics 2 in order, more than 2 in every module, largest in Physics

Floors of the offer ranges

4.8 / 5.2 / 3.7

Mathematics 1, Physics and Mathematics 2 in order; Physics has the highest floor and Mathematics 2 the lowest

Put together, Murray Edwards' shape has three features. First, the two mathematics modules are the forward edge of this college's offer group: Mathematics 1 at 7.08 ranks 1st and is the top of the pool's range, Mathematics 2 at 6.95 ranks 2nd. Second, Physics at 6.64 is the lowest of the three yet still ranks 6th, 0.17 above the pool median, and its offer floor of 5.2 is the highest of the three floors, meaning no very low physics score appeared among these offers. Third, the applicant field started low, 4.83 overall against 6.89 for offer-holders, with a gap of more than 2 in every module. Together they say that at Murray Edwards that year the offer group stood a long way above the field as a whole; why it did is not something the data can answer, because the FOI response gives no applicant counts.

Preparing with Murray Edwards' shape in mind

01Step 1

Put both mathematics modules on the main line

Murray Edwards' offer group averaged 7.08 on Mathematics 1, 1st in the pool, and 6.95 on Mathematics 2, 2nd, so the two mathematics modules together form the college's forward edge. Get both to a steady state first, with no weak spot in algebraic manipulation, function work or arithmetic accuracy.

02Step 2

Physics is not the secondary module

6.64 is the lowest of the three averages, yet it still ranks 6th, 0.17 above the pool median, and its offer floor of 5.2 is the highest of the three. Sitting behind the two mathematics modules in rank is not the same as needing less work.

03Step 3

Take your own baseline, module by module

Sit a timed paper from the past paper list at /papers/esat, record accuracy and timing per module, and find your own weakest module. A college's rank describes its position among colleges and is no substitute for your own baseline.

04Step 4

Reassemble the three under full timing

Run the modules back to back to rehearse switches and the time budget, then work through solutions and error analysis question by question. Murray Edwards' combined offer average of 6.89 comes from all three sitting high, not from one spike; the 0.44 spread orders priorities and is not a reason to drop a module.

Where practice weight goes for Murray Edwards' profile

Priorities inferred from the 2025 offer-group distribution, not an official requirement

Mathematics 1 (1st, 7.08)Top of the pool's range on this module, 0.72 above the 6.36 median, with a gap of 2.02

Mid-to-hard questions as the standing workload, not just routine ones
Work accuracy and speed together: clear slips first, then push the pace

Mathematics 2 (2nd, 6.95)0.73 above the 6.22 median, in a pool topping out at 6.99, with a gap of 2.01

Bring algebraic manipulation and function work level with Mathematics 1
Keep one mixed set a week so practice does not circle the comfortable types

Physics (6th, 6.64)Lowest of the three yet 0.17 above the 6.47 median, with the highest offer floor at 5.2

Keep mid-level mechanics and circuits at a regular volume
Under timing, keep the physics run from collapsing and leave no half-attempted items

Tap a branch to unfold

The ESAT past papers live at /papers/esat, and some papers are free to try; the free labels on the list page show which ones are currently open. The three module guides under /exams/esat/guides/ (mathematics-1, physics, mathematics-2) cover syllabus and method, and scoring explains where the scaled score comes from.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What ESAT score do you need for an offer at Murray Edwards?

There is no such score. Cambridge publishes no ESAT threshold, and Murray Edwards has never stated a minimum of its own. What can be said is what happened in the 2025 cycle: offer-holders at this college averaged 7.08 in Mathematics 1, 6.95 in Mathematics 2 and 6.64 in Physics, and the lowest scores within that same group were 4.8, 3.7 and 5.2 in the same order. An average describes where a group sat, not a condition of entry.

Is Murray Edwards the hardest college for Cambridge Engineering?

This data cannot say hardest. What it can say is that in the 2025 cycle Murray Edwards' offer group averaged 7.08 in Mathematics 1, the highest of the 25 undergraduate colleges, ranked 2nd in Mathematics 2 and 6th in Physics, with all three above the pool median. But a high offer average is not the same as a hard application: between the two sit applicant counts and the make-up of the field, neither of which the data gives. With no applicant count per college in the FOI response, gaps between colleges should not be over-read.

Applicants averaged 4.83 and offer-holders 6.89. What does a gap that wide mean?

Only that in the 2025 cycle at Murray Edwards, offer-holders sat a long way above the whole applicant field, with gaps of 2.02, 2.14 and 2.01 across the three modules. Why the distance is that long is something the data cannot answer: it gives no applicant counts, no distributions and nothing about who applied that year. Note too that in Physics the top offer-holder score of 8.6 exceeds the top applicant score of 7.5, so the two columns are not a strict subset of one another; the University notes that some applicants change college or course mid-cycle.

How should I split time across the three modules for Murray Edwards?

Murray Edwards' three offer averages span 0.44, with Mathematics 1 1st, Mathematics 2 2nd and Physics 6th, so the two mathematics modules sit clearly forward. A sensible split puts both on the main line and keeps Physics at a regular workload rather than cutting it, since it still sits above the pool median and its offer floor of 5.2 is the highest of the three. This is an ordering read off a distribution that already happened, not an official instruction, and you should still reassemble all three under full paper timing.

Sources

Official sources

FrontierVUE is an independent practice platform. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by UAT-UK, Pearson, OCR, the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, or any official admissions-test owner.

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