University of OxfordUCAS LN12

TARA for Oxford Economics and Management (LN12)

Economics and Management at the University of Oxford (UCAS code LN12) requires every applicant for 2027 entry to sit all three modules of the TARA, and Oxford accepts the October sitting only. The TARA, or Test of Academic Reasoning for Admissions, is run by UAT-UK and taken on screen at Pearson VUE test centres. It runs for 120 minutes in total: Critical Thinking (40 minutes, 22 multiple-choice questions), Problem Solving (40 minutes, 22 multiple-choice questions) and the Writing Task (40 minutes, one essay chosen from three prompts, 750 words maximum). The two multiple-choice modules are scored from 1.0 to 9.0 and reported to one decimal place; the Writing Task is not scored by UAT-UK, which sends your response on to the universities you applied to. Oxford's course page for Economics and Management carries a note that most Oxford TARA course pages do not: the Writing Task will not be used by Oxford in admissions selection for this course. The October sitting runs from 12 to 16 October 2026, with candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau taking the TARA on 14 October 2026, and results are released on 16 November 2026.
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TARA for LN12 at a Glance
Does Oxford Economics and Management (LN12) require the TARA?
Compulsory: every LN12 applicant for 2027 entry must sit it
Which modules LN12 sits
All three: Critical Thinking + Problem Solving + Writing Task, 120 minutes in total
Sitting accepted by Oxford
The October sitting only
October test dates
12-16 October 2026; candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau sit on 14 October
Booking and results
Booking opens 20 July 2026 and closes 6pm BST on 28 September 2026; results 16 November 2026

The Writing Task remains a compulsory module, but Oxford's course page for Economics and Management states that it will not be used by Oxford in admissions selection for this course. Oxford publishes no cut-off score for the TARA and no weighting for it within selection.

4 sections1,356 words7 min read
01

Which courses require the TARA, and what LN12 has to sit

Sixteen courses require the TARA for 2027 entry: ten at Oxford and six at UCL. All ten Oxford courses sit all three modules, and LN12 Economics and Management is one of them. Both lists are given by UCAS code below so you can check every course on your own list.

LN12

Economics and Management

The course on this page; its page states the Writing Task is not used by Oxford in selection for it

LV11

History and Economics

The other Oxford course carrying that same note about the Writing Task

LV21

History and Politics

We checked this page: it carries no note about the Writing Task being unused

L0V0

Philosophy, Politics and Economics

We checked this page: it carries no note about the Writing Task being unused

L0VF

Philosophy, Politics and Economics with Foundation Year

BCL0

Human Sciences

We checked this page: it carries no note about the Writing Task being unused

C830

Experimental Psychology

We checked this page: it carries no note about the Writing Task being unused

CV85

Psychology and Philosophy

CQ81

Psychology and Linguistics

VQ51

Philosophy and Linguistics

We checked this page: it carries no note about the Writing Task being unused

UCL's six are all in computing and engineering, with these codes.

G400 / G402

UCL Computer Science (BSc / MEng)

G430

UCL Computer Science and Mathematics MEng

H300 / H301

UCL Mechanical Engineering (BEng / MEng)

H700

UCL Robotics and Artificial Intelligence MEng

Every Oxford TARA course page carries the same instruction: all Oxford applicants must take all three modules (Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task). Only two of the ten add a further note that the Writing Task will not be used by Oxford in admissions selection for that course, and LN12 is one of them; the other is LV11 History and Economics.
Three claims made frequently elsewhere are simply wrong, so it is worth stating them plainly.
Myth 1: Oxford Computer Science also uses the TARA
Wrong. Oxford Computer Science requires the TMUA (Paper 1 and Paper 2), not the TARA. The word TARA does not appear on that course page at all.
Myth 2: Oxford single-honours History requires a written test
Wrong. Oxford single-honours History requires no written test: its course page states that you do not need to take a written test as part of an application for the course. Only the joint courses LV11 History and Economics and LV21 History and Politics use the TARA.
Myth 3: UCL's European and international social and political studies still use the TARA
Wrong. UCL's European and international social and political studies routes moved to UCL's own Thinking Skills Test for 2027 entry and no longer use the TARA. UCL adopted the TARA from 2026 entry, and Mechanical Engineering is newly included for the 2027 cycle.
One last point has to be stated plainly: Oxford publishes no cut-off score for the TARA and no weighting for it within selection. Since nothing has been published officially, treat any number quoted online as an LN12 threshold with suspicion.
02

What each module means for LN12

The TARA runs for 120 minutes in total, made up of three 40-minute modules. The first two are scored; the Writing Task is compulsory but is not marked by UAT-UK.
Critical ThinkingProblem SolvingWriting Task
Length and questions40 minutes, 22 multiple-choice questions, roughly 109 seconds each40 minutes, 22 multiple-choice questions40 minutes, one essay chosen from three prompts, 750 words maximum
What it asks of youIdentifying conclusions, assumptions and flaws in short argument passagesNumerical, spatial and logical reasoning on data compact enough to handle in your head or on paper, with no calculator and no dictionary. It does not test a particular A-level syllabus; it tests selection and speed under time pressureWriting one essay on one of the three prompts offered
How it is scoredScored from 1.0 to 9.0, reported to one decimal place; no negative marking and no pass markScored from 1.0 to 9.0, reported to one decimal place; no negative marking and no pass markNot scored by UAT-UK, which sends your response on to every university you applied to
What it means for LN12CompulsoryCompulsoryCompulsory, but Oxford's course page for Economics and Management states that Oxford will not use it in selection for this course

Neither multiple-choice module carries negative marking and there is no pass mark, so nothing should be left blank.

Oxford will not use the Writing Task in selection for LN12, but if your UCAS form also carries a course that does use it (any of the other eight Oxford TARA courses, for instance), that department will still read what you wrote, so it is not a section to abandon on the day.
03

How to practise when there are no past papers

The official preparation set comes down to three things, and past papers are not among them.

Official documents

The TARA Specification and the TARA Question Guide

Official practice tests

Two on Pearson VUE: a specimen with worked explanations and a sample with an answer review

Both cover all three modules

Past TARA papers

None

UAT-UK has never released past TARA papers

Official advice on what to use instead

BMAT Section 1 papers from 2003 to 2023 and TSA Section 1 papers from 2008 to 2023

UAT-UK's own recommendation, and it hosts those PDFs on its site

That leaves an obvious gap between the format you will actually sit and the material available to rehearse it in. The BMAT and TSA question types are close relatives, but the pacing, the question count and the switch between modules are not the shape of a TARA sitting.
FrontierVUE closes that gap with 18 Frontier Original parallel papers built to the live structure: 45 questions each (22 Critical Thinking, 22 Problem Solving and one Writing Task) across 120 minutes. A separate 350-question topic bank lets you drill single question types. Papers 1 and 2 are free to attempt.

18

Frontier Original parallel papers, 45 questions and 120 minutes each

810

Questions inside those 18 parallel papers

350

Questions in the topic bank for drilling single question types

1160

Questions in total, all with worked explanations and Chinese translations

These are papers we write ourselves, not official past papers, because no official past papers exist.
04

Key dates and fees for 2027 entry

Oxford accepts the October sitting only for Economics and Management, so the October dates on the timeline below are the ones that decide things for an LN12 applicant. The January sitting, which Oxford does not accept, is listed alongside them to keep the two apart.
2026 – 2027Timeline
Jun 26
Jul 26
Aug 26
Sep 26
Oct 26
Nov 26
Dec 26
Jan 27
Feb 27
October sitting: registration opens
1 Jun 2026, 3pm BST
October sitting: booking opens
20 Jul 2026, 3pm BST
Access arrangements deadline
14 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
For candidates who need access arrangements, applications close at 6pm BST on this day.
Bursary deadline
21 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
October sitting: booking closes
28 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
October sitting: test window
12-16 Oct; 14 Oct in China, HK and Macau
Candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau sit the TARA on 14 October 2026.
October sitting: results
16 Nov 2026
January sitting (not accepted by Oxford): booking opens
26 Oct 2026, 3pm GMT
January sitting (not accepted by Oxford): booking closes
21 Dec 2026, 6pm GMT
January sitting (not accepted by Oxford): test window
4-8 Jan; 7 Jan in China, HK and Macau
Candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau sit the TARA on 7 January 2027. Oxford does not accept this sitting for Economics and Management.
January sitting (not accepted by Oxford): results
8 Feb 2027
Hard deadline Event WindowOther tests in the same October window: the ESAT on 12 and 13 October 2026 and the TMUA on 15 and 16 October 2026.

Fee (candidates in the UK and Ireland)

£78

Fee (candidates elsewhere)

£133

In the test room

Calculators and dictionaries are not permitted at any point

Sitting accepted for Oxford Economics and Management

The October sitting only

Two things worth flagging. The booking deadline is for securing a seat, not for taking the test. Access arrangements and bursary applications both close in September, ahead of the booking deadline, so deal with those first if either applies to you.
SAME UNIVERSITY

Other University of Oxford courses that require the TARA

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Does Economics and Management at Oxford require the TARA?
Yes. For 2027 entry, every applicant to Economics and Management at the University of Oxford (UCAS LN12) must sit all three TARA modules: Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task, 120 minutes in total. Oxford accepts the October sitting only, which runs from 12 to 16 October 2026, with candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau sitting the TARA on 14 October 2026. Results are released on 16 November 2026 and booking closes at 6pm BST on 28 September 2026.
Does Oxford use the TARA Writing Task for LN12?
No. Oxford's course page for Economics and Management states that the Writing Task will not be used by Oxford in admissions selection for this course, and LN12 is one of only two Oxford TARA courses carrying that note (the other is LV11 History and Economics). It remains a compulsory module, so you sit it on the day: 40 minutes, one prompt out of three, 750 words maximum. UAT-UK does not score it and sends your response to every university you applied to, so any other course on your UCAS form that does use it will still see what you wrote.
Are there past TARA papers for Economics and Management?
No. UAT-UK has published a specification, a question guide and two practice tests on Pearson VUE (a specimen with explanations and a sample with an answer review, both covering all three modules), and it has never released past papers. Its own recommendation is to practise with BMAT Section 1 papers from 2003 to 2023 and TSA Section 1 papers from 2008 to 2023. FrontierVUE adds 18 Frontier Original parallel papers written to the live format (45 questions in 120 minutes, 810 questions in all) plus a 350-question topic bank, with explanations and Chinese translations across all 1160 questions. Papers 1 and 2 are free.
What TARA score do I need for Oxford Economics and Management?
Oxford publishes no cut-off score, no average score for successful applicants and no weighting for the TARA, and the test itself has no pass mark and no negative marking. Scores run from 1.0 to 9.0 and are reported to one decimal place. Since nothing has been published officially, treat any number quoted online as an LN12 threshold with suspicion. Working for a stable performance across the two multiple-choice modules is more useful than chasing a threshold that does not exist.
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.

FrontierVUE 是独立的备考练习平台，与 UAT-UK、Pearson、OCR、剑桥大学、 帝国理工学院或任何官方入学考试主办方均无隶属或背书关系。

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