University of Oxford · UCAS L0V0
Philosophy, Politics and Economics (Oxford, L0V0) and the TARA
Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Oxford (UCAS code L0V0) requires all three modules of the Test of Academic Reasoning for Admissions (TARA) for 2027 entry. The TARA is run by UAT-UK and delivered on screen at Pearson VUE test centres. It runs for 120 minutes in total, organised as three 40-minute modules: Critical Thinking (22 multiple-choice questions), Problem Solving (22 multiple-choice questions) and the Writing Task (one essay chosen from three prompts, up to 750 words). Critical Thinking and Problem Solving are scored from 1.0 to 9.0 and reported to one decimal place, with no pass mark and no negative marking; the Writing Task is not marked by UAT-UK, and your response is passed to the universities you have applied to. Calculators and dictionaries are not permitted. The fee is £78 in the UK and Ireland and £133 elsewhere. Oxford accepts only the October sitting, which for 2027 entry falls in the 12-16 October 2026 testing window, with fixed regional dates in China, Hong Kong and Macau where the TARA is sat on 14 October 2026. Results are released on 16 November 2026.
- 18
- Papers
- 810
- Questions
- 2
- Free to try
01
What Oxford requires for L0V0
For 2027 entry, the admissions test for Oxford PPE is owned and managed by UAT-UK rather than by the university itself, and it is booked and sat through Pearson VUE.
- Sixteen courses use the TARA for 2027 entry: ten at Oxford and six at UCL. One sitting covers all of them.
- Every Oxford course page for a TARA subject states that all Oxford applicants must take all three modules (Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task). The PPE page carries no exemption.
- Oxford accepts only the October sitting; the January window does not apply to an L0V0 application.
Because UAT-UK has never released a TARA past paper, the closest published guide to question style is UAT-UK's own recommendation that candidates practise on the BMAT Section 1 archive (2003 to 2023) and the TSA Section 1 archive (2008 to 2023).
One point to be clear about: neither Oxford nor UCL publishes a TARA cut-off, an average score for successful applicants, or a weighting. Any threshold circulating online is not an official figure, and it is not a sound basis for setting your own target.
02
What each module means for L0V0
Critical Thinking: 22 multiple-choice questions in 40 minutes, roughly 109 seconds each, on identifying conclusions, spotting flaws in arguments and assessing evidence. This is the closest analogue to the reasoning demanded by philosophy and politics essay work, compressed into a timed multiple-choice format.
Problem Solving: another 22 questions in 40 minutes, with no calculator. Numerical fluency here has to be practised in advance rather than improvised on the day.
The Writing Task: this is where L0V0 differs from two neighbouring Oxford courses. The Economics and Management (LN12) and History and Economics (LV11) course pages each carry a note stating that the Writing Task will not be used by Oxford in selection for that course. The PPE page carries no such note, so your response goes to Oxford with the rest of your application. You choose one prompt from three and write up to 750 words in 40 minutes. UAT-UK does not mark it, so what Oxford reads is exactly what you submitted, unedited and unscored.
Oxford has not published how the three modules are weighted against the rest of the application, so treating the Writing Task as "the part that does not count" is a clear misreading for L0V0.
03
How to practise when no past papers exist
Official TARA material is deliberately thin. There are three things: the TARA Specification, the TARA Question Guide, and two practice sets on Pearson VUE (a specimen with explanations and a sample with an answer review, each covering all three modules).
UAT-UK has never released a TARA past paper. Its own advice is to practise with the BMAT Section 1 archive (2003 to 2023) and the TSA Section 1 archive (2008 to 2023), which it hosts as PDFs.
Work through the official material first, since it is the only source that reflects the current interface and instructions. Once it runs out, the constraint becomes volume under real timing.
FrontierVUE has built 18 Frontier Original parallel papers on the live structure: 45 items each (22 Critical Thinking, 22 Problem Solving, one Writing Task) across 120 minutes, 810 questions in the papers, plus a 350-question topic bank for weak areas, giving 1,250 TARA questions in total. Every question carries a worked explanation and a Chinese translation, and Paper 1 and Paper 2 are free to attempt.
To be explicit: these are original papers written in-house, not past papers, and FrontierVUE is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, UAT-UK, Pearson, the University of Oxford or UCL.
04
Key dates and fees for 2027 entry
These are the dates published by UAT-UK for 2027 entry (UK time).
- Registration opens: 1 June 2026, 3pm BST
- Booking opens: 20 July 2026, 3pm BST
- Access arrangements deadline: 14 September 2026, 6pm BST
- Bursary deadline: 21 September 2026, 6pm BST
- Booking closes: 28 September 2026, 6pm BST
- October testing window: 12-16 October 2026, with regional variations for China, Hong Kong and Macau (12-13 October for ESAT, 14 October for TARA, 15-16 October for TMUA)
- Results released: 16 November 2026
Seats are held at Pearson VUE test centres, so confirm which centre is nearest to you well before booking closes. The fee is £78 for candidates in the UK and Ireland and £133 elsewhere.
Oxford accepts only the October sitting. The January window (booking opens 26 October 2026 at 3pm GMT and closes 21 December 2026 at 6pm GMT, testing 4-8 January 2027 with the TARA on 7 January 2027 in China, Hong Kong and Macau, results on 8 February 2027) does not apply to an L0V0 application. Calculators and dictionaries are not permitted in any of the three modules.
SAME UNIVERSITY
Other University of Oxford courses that require the TARA
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Does Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford require the TARA?
Yes. For 2027 entry, every applicant to Oxford PPE (UCAS L0V0) must sit the TARA, and all three modules are required: Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task. Oxford accepts only the October sitting, which runs from 12 to 16 October 2026, with the TARA fixed on 14 October 2026 for candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau. Results are released on 16 November 2026.
Does the TARA Writing Task count for Oxford PPE?
It does. The Oxford course pages for Economics and Management (LN12) and History and Economics (LV11) each note that the Writing Task will not be used in Oxford's selection for those courses; the PPE page carries no such note, so all three modules go to Oxford with your application. UAT-UK does not score the Writing Task, so Oxford reads the response exactly as you wrote it, up to 750 words in 40 minutes. Oxford has not published how much weight it carries.
What TARA score do I need for Oxford PPE?
There is no published figure. Oxford has not published a TARA cut-off, a minimum score or a weighting for PPE, and neither has UCL for its own TARA courses. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving are each reported on a 1.0 to 9.0 scale to one decimal place, with no pass mark and no negative marking. Any "PPE cut-off" circulating online is not an official number.
Are there past TARA papers I can practise on?
No. UAT-UK has never released a past TARA paper. The official material is the TARA Specification, the TARA Question Guide and two practice sets on Pearson VUE, and UAT-UK recommends supplementing them with BMAT Section 1 papers (2003 to 2023) and TSA Section 1 papers (2008 to 2023). FrontierVUE's 18 Frontier Original papers are written in-house to the same structure, 45 items in 120 minutes, and are not past papers.
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。
Start preparing for the TARA for Philosophy, Politics and Economics
18 Frontier Original TARA papers and 810 questions, every one with a worked solution. The first 2 papers are free to try.