UCLUCAS H301
TARA for UCL Mechanical Engineering MEng (H301)
UCL's Mechanical Engineering MEng (UCAS code H301) requires applicants for 2027 entry to sit the TARA, the Test of Academic Reasoning for Admissions, a test mechanical engineering applicants did not have to take in earlier cycles. The TARA is run by UAT-UK and delivered in person at Pearson VUE test centres. One sitting lasts 120 minutes and is made up of three 40-minute modules: Critical Thinking (22 multiple-choice questions), Problem Solving (22 multiple-choice questions) and the Writing Task (one response chosen from three prompts, no more than 750 words). Critical Thinking and Problem Solving are each reported on a scale from 1.0 to 9.0 to one decimal place, with no pass mark and no negative marking. The Writing Task is not marked by UAT-UK; your response is sent on to the universities you applied to. Calculators and dictionaries are not permitted. The fee is £78 for candidates in the UK and Ireland and £133 elsewhere.
- 18
- Papers
- 810
- Questions
- 2
- Free to try
TARA for H301 at a Glance
- Required?
- Yes. Applicants to UCL Mechanical Engineering MEng (H301) sit the TARA for 2027 entry; Mechanical Engineering is included for the first time in the 2027 cycle
- Which modules
- All three: Critical Thinking + Problem Solving + Writing Task, in one 120-minute sitting of three 40-minute modules
- How it is scored
- Critical Thinking and Problem Solving each get a score from 1.0 to 9.0 to one decimal place, with no negative marking and no pass mark; the Writing Task is not marked by UAT-UK and is sent on to the universities you applied to
- October sitting for 2027 entry: booking and dates
- Registration opens 1 June 2026, booking closes 28 September 2026 at 6pm BST; test 12 to 16 October 2026, with 14 October for China, Hong Kong and Macau; results 16 November 2026
- Venue and fee
- Sat in person at a Pearson VUE test centre; £78 for candidates in the UK and Ireland, £133 elsewhere
All of the above is for the 2027 entry cycle. There is also a January window (4 to 8 January 2027, and 7 January for China, Hong Kong and Macau); Oxford accepts the October sitting only, and if you are applying to UCL's H301 alone and considering January, check the UCL course page first for which sittings it accepts. Neither UCL nor UAT-UK has published a weighting, an average score or a threshold for any part of the test.
4 sections1,168 words6 min read
01
Why H301 now sits the TARA
UCL adopted the TARA from the 2026 entry cycle, and Mechanical Engineering is included for the first time in the 2027 cycle, so guidance written for earlier years will not mention this requirement.
For 2027 entry, 16 courses in total require the TARA: 10 at Oxford and 6 at UCL. The UCL six, with their UCAS codes, are below.
Computer Science BSc
G400
Computer Science MEng
G402
Computer Science and Mathematics MEng
G430
Robotics and Artificial Intelligence MEng
H700
Mechanical Engineering BEng
H300
Mechanical Engineering MEng
H301
This page is about this course, UCL Mechanical Engineering MEng
Two points are routinely reported incorrectly elsewhere and are worth naming. First, UCL's social science degrees (European Social and Political Studies, International Social and Political Studies and the ESPS dual degrees) moved to UCL's own Thinking Skills Test for 2027 entry and no longer sit the TARA. Second, Oxford's Computer Science course uses the TMUA, not the TARA.
It is also worth being clear about what the TARA is not. It is a non-subject-specific reasoning test, so there is no mechanics, materials or A-level mathematics syllabus to revise, there is no mechanical engineering version of the paper, and there is no subject knowledge to memorise.
02
What the three modules ask of you
The TARA is one 120-minute test made up of three 40-minute modules, so every H301 candidate answers all three.
| Critical Thinking | Problem Solving | Writing Task | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Length | 40 minutes | 40 minutes | 40 minutes |
| Format | 22 multiple-choice questions | 22 multiple-choice questions | One response chosen from three prompts, no more than 750 words |
| What it asks | Arguments, assumptions, flaws and inference; no arithmetic is involved | Numerical, spatial and logical reasoning | Whatever you write in response to the prompt you pick |
| Scoring | 1.0 to 9.0, reported to one decimal place | 1.0 to 9.0, reported to one decimal place | Not marked by UAT-UK; your response is sent on to the universities you applied to, so UCL reads exactly what you wrote |
Critical Thinking leaves just under two minutes per question. There is no negative marking and no pass mark. Calculators and dictionaries are not permitted at any point.
No calculator is allowed in Problem Solving, and no dictionary either. This is the constraint engineering applicants most often underestimate, because many have not worked a numerical problem without a calculator since GCSE.
One detail about the Writing Task is worth getting right. For 2027 entry, only two courses, both at Oxford (Economics and Management, LN12, and History and Economics, LV11), state on their course pages that the Writing Task will not be used in admissions selection. No such statement applies to H301, and UCL has not published how it uses the module. At the same time, neither UCL nor UAT-UK has published a weighting, an average score or a threshold for any part of the test.
03
How to practise when no past papers exist
The official preparation set is small, and it is only three things: the TARA Specification, the TARA Question Guide, and two practice papers hosted on Pearson VUE (a specimen with explanations and a sample with an answer review), both covering all three modules.
UAT-UK has never released a TARA past paper. It advises candidates to practise instead with the BMAT Section 1 archive (2003 to 2023) and the TSA Section 1 archive (2008 to 2023), and hosts those PDFs itself. Both archives are genuinely useful for question style, but neither matches the current 22 plus 22 plus 750-word structure or the 120-minute clock.
Arranged into a workable sequence, the four steps below are what we suggest.
01Official
Work through the three official items first
The TARA Specification and the TARA Question Guide are the official account of the test; of the two practice papers on Pearson VUE, the specimen comes with explanations and the sample with an answer review, and both cover all three modules.
02UAT-UK's own advice
Add question-style practice from BMAT Section 1 and TSA Section 1
The BMAT Section 1 archive runs from 2003 to 2023 and the TSA Section 1 archive from 2008 to 2023, and UAT-UK hosts those PDFs itself. Remember that neither archive matches the current 22 plus 22 plus 750-word structure or the 120-minute clock.
03FrontierVUE
Sit Frontier Original parallel papers under the full 120 minutes
Each paper carries 45 items: 22 Critical Thinking, 22 Problem Solving and one Writing Task, taken under the full 120 minutes. Papers 1 and 2 are free to sit.
04FrontierVUE
Drill weak areas in the topic bank
The topic bank is organised for targeted drilling. Every question has a worked explanation and a Chinese translation.
18
Frontier Original parallel papers on FrontierVUE
810
Questions across those 18 papers
350
Questions in the topic bank
To be explicit: our papers are original material written to the published format, not reproductions of official tests, and FrontierVUE has no affiliation with or endorsement from UAT-UK, Pearson or UCL.
04
Key dates and fees for 2027 entry
The 2027 entry cycle has two sittings, October and January. October is the only one Oxford accepts, and it is the main route for UCL applicants too. The full schedule for both is below.
2026 – 2027Timeline
Jun 26
Jul 26
Aug 26
Sep 26
Oct 26
Nov 26
Dec 26
Jan 27
Feb 27
October sitting: registration opens1 Jun 2026, 3pm BST
October sitting: registration opens
1 Jun 2026, 3pm BST
Registration for the 2027-cycle October sitting opens.
October sitting: booking opens20 Jul 2026, 3pm BST
October sitting: booking opens
20 Jul 2026, 3pm BST
Booking a seat is a separate step from registering, and this is when it opens.
October sitting: access arrangements deadline14 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
October sitting: access arrangements deadline
14 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
Candidates who need access arrangements must apply before this point.
October sitting: bursary deadline21 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
October sitting: bursary deadline
21 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
The deadline for applying for a fee bursary.
October sitting: booking closes28 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
October sitting: booking closes
28 Sep 2026, 6pm BST
Booking for the October sitting closes at this point.
October sitting: test window12 to 16 Oct 2026
October sitting: test window
12 to 16 Oct 2026
There are regional variations for China, Hong Kong and Macau, where the TARA is sat on 14 October 2026.
January sitting: booking opens26 Oct 2026, 3pm GMT
January sitting: booking opens
26 Oct 2026, 3pm GMT
Booking for the January sitting opens.
October sitting: results released16 Nov 2026
October sitting: results released
16 Nov 2026
Results day for the 2027-cycle October sitting.
January sitting: booking closes21 Dec 2026, 6pm GMT
January sitting: booking closes
21 Dec 2026, 6pm GMT
Booking for the January sitting closes at this point.
January sitting: test window4 to 8 Jan 2027
January sitting: test window
4 to 8 Jan 2027
For China, Hong Kong and Macau the date is 7 January 2027.
January sitting: results released8 Feb 2027
January sitting: results released
8 Feb 2027
Results day for the 2027-cycle January sitting.
Hard deadline Event WindowOxford accepts the October sitting only, so anyone applying to both universities has one realistic window; if you are applying only to UCL's H301 and considering January, check the UCL course page first for which sittings it accepts.
Registering is not the same as booking a seat: they are two separate steps, and both must be done before the 28 September 2026, 6pm BST cut-off.
How it is sat
By computer at a Pearson VUE test centre, in person
No calculators or dictionaries at any point
Fee: UK and Ireland
£78
Fee: elsewhere
£133
Fee bursary
For the October sitting, apply before 21 September 2026, 6pm BST
SAME UNIVERSITY
Other UCL courses that require the TARA
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Does UCL Mechanical Engineering MEng require the TARA?
Yes. For 2027 entry, applicants to Mechanical Engineering MEng (UCAS H301) and Mechanical Engineering BEng (H300) sit the TARA. The TARA is a single 120-minute test made up of Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task, and candidates answer all three modules. UCL adopted the TARA from the 2026 entry cycle and Mechanical Engineering was added for 2027, so guidance written for earlier years will not mention it.
Do Mechanical Engineering applicants have to do the TARA Writing Task?
Yes. The Writing Task is one of the TARA's three modules: 40 minutes, one prompt chosen from three, no more than 750 words. UAT-UK does not score it, and your response is sent to the universities you applied to, so it reaches UCL exactly as you wrote it. For 2027 entry, only two Oxford courses (LN12 Economics and Management and LV11 History and Economics) state that the Writing Task will not be used in admissions selection. No such statement applies to H301, and UCL has not published how it uses the module.
Are there TARA past papers for Mechanical Engineering?
No. UAT-UK has never published a TARA past paper, and because the TARA is non-subject-specific there is no mechanical engineering version of it. The official materials are the TARA Specification, the TARA Question Guide and two practice papers on Pearson VUE. UAT-UK itself points candidates to BMAT Section 1 (2003 to 2023) and TSA Section 1 (2008 to 2023) for extra practice. FrontierVUE's 18 papers are Frontier Original, written to the published format, and are not reproductions of official tests.
What TARA score do I need for UCL Mechanical Engineering?
There is no published answer. Neither UCL nor UAT-UK has released a cut-off, an average score or a weighting for the TARA, and the test itself has no pass mark. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving are each reported from 1.0 to 9.0 to one decimal place. Any specific threshold quoted online for H301 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 Mechanical Engineering MEng
18 Frontier Original TARA papers and 810 questions, every one with a worked solution. The first 2 papers are free to try.