University of Oxford · UCAS CQ81
TARA for Oxford Psychology and Linguistics (CQ81)
Psychology and Linguistics at the University of Oxford (UCAS code CQ81) requires all three modules of the TARA, the Test of Academic Reasoning for Admissions, for 2027 entry. CQ81 is one of the streams Oxford lists on its Psychology, Philosophy and Linguistics course page, and the instruction there is that every applicant sits Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task. The test is run by UAT-UK and taken on screen at a Pearson VUE test centre: three modules of 40 minutes, 120 minutes in total, with 22 multiple-choice questions in Critical Thinking, 22 in Problem Solving, and one essay of no more than 750 words chosen from three titles. The two multiple-choice modules are scored on a 1.0 to 9.0 scale reported to one decimal place, there is no pass mark, and nothing is deducted for a wrong answer. The Writing Task is not marked by UAT-UK; your response is passed to the universities you applied to. Oxford accepts the October sitting only, which for 2027 entry runs from 12 to 16 October 2026, with results on 16 November 2026.
- 18
- Papers
- 810
- Questions
- 2
- Free to try
01
Why CQ81 sits the TARA
For 2027 entry the TARA is used by 16 courses: 10 at Oxford, counted by UCAS code, and 6 at UCL. Oxford lists Philosophy and Linguistics (VQ51), Psychology and Linguistics (CQ81) and Psychology and Philosophy (CV85) together on a single Psychology, Philosophy and Linguistics course page, and the requirement is the same for all three: all three modules, October sitting only. One sitting covers every TARA course you apply to.
The status of the essay is the detail worth getting right for CQ81. Oxford adds a note to exactly two course pages, Economics and Management (LN12) and History and Economics (LV11), saying the Writing Task will not be used by Oxford in admissions selection for that course. That note does not appear on the Psychology, Philosophy and Linguistics page, so nothing in Oxford's published material tells a CQ81 applicant the essay is set aside. Oxford has not published how the essay is used, and neither Oxford nor UAT-UK publishes a cut-off, a pass mark or an average score for CQ81 or for any other TARA course.
Three things are widely mis-stated online and are worth correcting:
- Oxford Computer Science sits the TMUA (Paper 1 and Paper 2), not the TARA. The word TARA does not appear anywhere on that course page.
- Oxford single-honours History requires no written test at all; the course page states that you do not need to take a written test as part of an application. Only the joint courses History and Economics (LV11) and History and Politics (LV21) sit the TARA.
- UCL adopted the TARA from 2026 entry, but for 2027 entry its social science degrees, including European and International Social and Political Studies, moved to UCL's own Thinking Skills Test and no longer use the TARA. UCL's six TARA courses are its computer science, computer science with mathematics, robotics and AI, and mechanical engineering programmes, the last of these newly included for 2027 entry.
02
What each module asks of a CQ81 applicant
Critical Thinking: 22 multiple-choice questions in 40 minutes, under two minutes per question on average. The official statement of coverage is the TARA Specification and the TARA Question Guide, both published free by UAT-UK. In practice the work is reading a short argument closely and answering questions about how it is built rather than about the subject matter, which is the habit a linguistics or philosophy tutorial trains.
Problem Solving: another 22 multiple-choice questions in 40 minutes, with no calculator and no dictionary permitted anywhere in the test. UAT-UK itself directs candidates to the archived BMAT Section 1 and TSA Section 1 papers for practice, and those remain the clearest public signal of the reasoning this module asks for.
Writing Task: 40 minutes, one title chosen from three, no more than 750 words. UAT-UK does not mark it and reports no score for it, but the response goes to the universities you applied to, so an Oxford tutor may read exactly what you typed. Settle the structure of the argument before you start, because 40 minutes leaves almost no room to rebuild it.
Both scored modules are reported on the 1.0 to 9.0 scale to one decimal place. There is no pass mark and no negative marking, so answer every question, including the ones you have to guess.
03
How to practise when there are no past papers
Official preparation material is thin. UAT-UK publishes the TARA Specification and the TARA Question Guide, and Pearson VUE hosts two practice sets, a specimen with explanations and a sample with an answer review, both covering all three modules. There are no official TARA past papers at all, and UAT-UK itself advises candidates to practise on the archived BMAT Section 1 papers (2003 to 2023) and TSA Section 1 papers (2008 to 2023), which it hosts on its own site.
FrontierVUE fills that gap with original material rather than reproduced papers. We publish 18 Frontier Original parallel papers, each built to the live format: 22 Critical Thinking questions, 22 Problem Solving questions and one Writing Task, sat under a single 120-minute clock, 810 questions across the papers. A further 350-question topic bank supports targeted drilling, for 1,250 TARA questions in total. Every question carries a worked explanation and a Chinese translation. Papers 1 and 2 are free to attempt, so you can compare our format against the official specimen before going further.
FrontierVUE is an independent preparation platform with no affiliation to UAT-UK, Pearson, the University of Oxford or UCL. Our papers are original parallel papers, not official past papers.
04
Key dates and fees for 2027 entry
The October sitting, the only one Oxford accepts:
- 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
- Test window: 12 to 16 October 2026. Candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau have fixed days within that window, and the TARA day is 14 October 2026 (ESAT falls on 12 and 13 October, TMUA on 15 and 16 October)
- Results released: 16 November 2026
A January sitting also exists: booking opens 26 October 2026 at 3pm GMT, booking closes 21 December 2026 at 6pm GMT, the test window is 4 to 8 January 2027 (with the TARA on 7 January 2027 for candidates in China, Hong Kong and Macau), and results follow on 8 February 2027. Because Oxford accepts the October sitting only, January is not a second attempt for a CQ81 applicant.
The entry fee is £78 for candidates in the UK and Ireland and £133 elsewhere. The test is sat at a Pearson VUE test centre rather than at home, so book a seat as soon as the window opens if you are in a city with few centres. Registration and booking are separate steps, and completing one does not complete the other.
SAME UNIVERSITY
Other University of Oxford courses that require the TARA
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Does Oxford Psychology and Linguistics (CQ81) need the TARA?
Yes. For 2027 entry, every applicant to the courses Oxford lists on its Psychology, Philosophy and Linguistics page, including the Psychology and Linguistics stream (UCAS CQ81), must sit all three TARA modules: Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task. 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. Booking closes on 28 September 2026 at 6pm BST and results are released on 16 November 2026.
Does the TARA Writing Task count for CQ81?
It is not marked by UAT-UK and carries no score, but it does reach Oxford: your response is sent to the universities you applied to. Oxford states that the Writing Task will not be used in admissions selection only on two course pages, Economics and Management (LN12) and History and Economics (LV11); no such statement appears on the Psychology, Philosophy and Linguistics page. Treat the 40-minute, 750-word essay as material an Oxford tutor may read. Oxford has not published how much weight it carries.
Are there TARA past papers to practise on?
No. UAT-UK has never released TARA past papers. The official material is 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, both covering all three modules. UAT-UK advises candidates to practise on the archived BMAT Section 1 papers (2003 to 2023) and TSA Section 1 papers (2008 to 2023). FrontierVUE's 18 papers are Frontier Original parallel papers written to the current format; they are not official past papers.
What TARA score does Oxford require for CQ81?
Neither Oxford nor UAT-UK publishes a cut-off, a pass mark or an average score for any TARA course. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving each produce a score on the 1.0 to 9.0 scale, reported to one decimal place, and nothing is deducted for a wrong answer, so leave no question blank. Scores are read alongside the rest of the UCAS application. Any specific CQ81 threshold quoted online does not come from an official source.
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 Psychology and Linguistics
18 Frontier Original TARA papers and 810 questions, every one with a worked solution. The first 2 papers are free to try.