TARA preparation guide

The TARA Writing Task

The Writing Task is one of the three compulsory TARA modules: 40 minutes, one task chosen from three prompts, a 750-word limit, and no score at the end of it. UAT-UK does not mark it. A copy of what you write is sent to each university you applied to, and it is read there. That single fact should change how you prepare, because there is no mark scheme for your answer to be measured against. No band descriptors have ever been published, no TARA past paper exists, and the official guidance is brief but unusually specific. This page sets out what is fixed about the task, what the official recommendations actually say, and how to spend the 40 minutes.
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The TARA Writing Task at a Glance
Time and choice
40 minutes, separately timed; one task chosen from three prompts
Length
A 750-word ceiling; no minimum length is published
Marking
Not scored by UAT-UK; a copy goes to each university you applied to
Subject knowledge
Not expected and not required
Past papers
None: UAT-UK has never released one

Where the card comes from: the "not scored" line is quoted from the UAT-UK TARA page and the subject-knowledge line comes from the TARA Question Guide; the timing, the choice of prompts and the 750-word ceiling are UAT-UK's published rules; and the past-paper entry records that UAT-UK has never released a TARA past paper.

01

What the Writing Task is, exactly

The Writing Task is one of the three TARA modules and it is compulsory for every candidate. Each module is separately timed at 40 minutes, giving 120 minutes in total. Two things follow. The Writing Task has a full 40 minutes of its own, and a module's unused minutes do not carry into the next one, so those 40 minutes are all the time it will ever have.

The Writing Task

One of the three compulsory TARA modules, taken by every candidate

Timing40 minutes, separately timed
  • 120 minutes across the three modules
  • A module's unused minutes do not carry into the next one
Prompts and lengthOne of three prompts, 750 words maximum
  • Three prompts are shown and you answer one of them
  • Each prompt is built around a short statement
  • Your response has a 750-word limit
How you answerComputer-based and typed, not handwritten
  • You are given an erasable booklet for working, and that is where your plan belongs
  • Calculators and dictionaries may not be used
  • Spelling and word choice are entirely on you, so write around anything you are unsure of
What is not testedDetailed subject knowledge is not expected or required
  • You are not asked to cite research, quote statistics or name theorists
  • Candidates for different courses are all asked to do the same thing here

Tap a branch to unfold

The more important point is what is not being tested. The TARA Question Guide is explicit that detailed subject knowledge is not expected or required. A candidate applying for Human Sciences and a candidate applying for Philosophy and Linguistics are being asked to do the same thing: take a statement apart, argue honestly against it, and then say what they actually think and why.
That also means preparation is not reading. It is rehearsal, done to time, in the shape the task already fixes for you.
02

The three questions every prompt asks

Every prompt asks the same three things, in the same fixed order, and the wording below is the TARA Question Guide's own. That structure does most of the planning work for you. You are not choosing a shape for the essay: the shape is given, and the job is to fill three sections well.
01Part one

Explain what you think is meant by the statement

This is interpretation, not restatement. The real work is opening up the vague or abstract words in the statement: what they cover, where their edges are, and how a different reading would change things.

02Part two

Give a reasoned argument against the statement

It asks you to argue against the statement whether or not you believe the counter-case, which is deliberate: it tests whether you can make a position you do not hold sound properly reasoned.

03Part three

To what extent do you agree with the statement?

It asks to what extent, which invites a qualified judgement with conditions attached rather than a slogan.

The official general recommendations map straight onto this structure.

Address all three parts

Clearly and fully

Be precise

Make your points precisely and avoid repeating yourself

Group similar points

Group similar points together rather than splitting them across the answer

One way to lose the answer is to let part one run to half the word count: part two is then squeezed into a single paragraph and part three becomes a summary of what came before. The official guidance warns against exactly that last move: your view should be expressed in its own right, not assembled out of recap.
03

UAT-UK does not mark it. Universities read it.

UAT-UK states on its TARA page: "The Writing Task is not scored by UAT-UK." Instead, a copy of your response is sent to the universities where you applied.

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Each returns a score from 1 to 9, to one decimal place

The Writing Task

Returns nothing

No score, grade or band is produced

Where the answer goes

A copy goes to each university you applied to

It is read there, rather than being marked against a rubric

There is no mark scheme, no band descriptor and no published standard to reverse-engineer, so any material claiming to give you one is not official. Since the scoring rules do not exist, writing clearly and making your reasoning hold up is a far better aim than guessing at a scoring system that does not exist.
How it is used varies by course.

Oxford

Ten courses use the TARA, and Oxford accepts the October sitting only

Oxford's own wording

"All Oxford applicants must take all three modules (Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task)."

From Oxford course pages

Courses that say it is not used in selection

Only two Oxford courses add that line: LN12 Economics and Management and LV11 History and Economics

We checked five of the others individually (PPE, Psychology and Linguistics, Experimental Psychology, Human Sciences and History and Politics) and none carries this line

UCL

Six courses use the TARA: G400, G402, G430, H300, H301 and H700

The practical rule is the same either way. The module is compulsory, so you sit it regardless, and unless a course page says otherwise you should write as though it will be read at the university.
04

A 40-minute budget

The official guidance gives one hard number for timing: plan for 5 to 10 minutes before you start writing, group your ideas around the three parts, and then use that plan to express your points persuasively and concisely. Built out across the full 40 minutes, a budget that works looks like this.
010 to 2 min

Choose

Read all three prompts before committing. Pick the one you can genuinely argue against, not the one you agree with most, because part two requires a counter-argument.

022 to 9 min

Plan on the erasable booklet

Three columns, one per question. Column one lists the words in the statement that need defining. Column two collects counter-arguments from different angles. Column three states your view and names which earlier points support it.

039 to 34 min

Write

The order is already decided, so these 25 minutes are for turning the plan into sentences, not for rethinking the argument halfway through.

0434 to 40 min

Read back

Check three things only: that all three parts are answered, that nothing is repeated wholesale, and that the final part is not just a recap.

On length, 750 is a ceiling rather than a target, and no minimum length is published. Something like 150 / 300 / 300 across the three parts is a sensible working split, with interpretation shortest and the counter-argument and your own view carrying the weight. Six hundred well-chosen words that answer all three parts properly are worth more than 750 that run out of time in part three.
One reminder: a module's unused minutes do not carry into the next one, so nothing can extend these 40 minutes.
05

The official recommendations, turned into a process

The official recommendations are short, and each one converts into something you actually do at the keyboard. They come to four habits.
Engage with the exact wording
The guidance asks you to engage closely with the statement, to take a broad and nuanced view of its general or abstract terms, and to avoid unfocused or overly general discussion of the topic area. A useful test: if a paragraph would survive unchanged under a different statement, it is not answering the question. The essay should start from the vaguest word in the statement, not from background about the subject.
Always try to see both sides
That phrase, always try to see both sides, is the official one. Use targeted, concrete examples, but watch the two traps the guidance names: arguments that rest solely on examples, and examples that are overly general or contextless. An example is one link in a chain of reasoning, never the chain itself.
Make the counter-argument strong
This part rewards the extra effort, because the official advice asks for a range of points rather than one: strengthen the counter-case by covering different angles of the same argument, while leaving out irrelevant background information. A counter-case you have taken seriously tells a reader far more about your judgement than a straw man built to be knocked over.
Express your view clearly and support it
The guidance asks for your view stated clearly and in enough depth, supported by reference to your earlier arguments, and explicitly not a summary of what you have already said. In practice, part three should name specific points from earlier, explain why you land where you do after weighing them, and say what would change your mind.
06

Practising when no past paper exists

UAT-UK has never released a TARA past paper. Not one. That is the honest starting point: no official past paper exists for the Writing Task, and none exists for the other two modules either.
The official material comes to exactly three things, and the archive UAT-UK also hosts gives you no Writing Task practice. The two are worth setting side by side.
The official TARA material (three items)The BMAT and TSA archive UAT-UK hosts
What it isThe TARA Content Specification, the TARA Question Guide, and two practice tests on the Pearson VUE landing pageBMAT Section 1 papers (2003 to 2023) and TSA Section 1 papers (2008 to 2023)
What UAT-UK says about itUAT-UK says the two practice tests mirror the exact format and software used for its live testsUAT-UK hosts them on the stated basis that Critical Thinking and Problem Solving share a common history with those tests
Use for the Writing TaskThe Question Guide is the one that speaks to it directly: the three-part structure and every recommendation quoted on this page come from it, and it repays a second readingThat archive serves the two multiple-choice modules and gives you no Writing Task practice
So rehearsal has to be built rather than downloaded, and three rules make it work.

Write to a timer

The full 40 minutes, in one sitting

Type it

Type it, because the real test is typed and typing changes your pace

Plan on paper first

Plan on paper first, since that is what the erasable booklet is for

Our own 18 Frontier Original TARA papers each contain one Writing Task and run to 120 minutes, and papers 1 and 2 can be attempted free.
They are original parallel papers we write ourselves, not official past papers, because no official past papers exist. Treat them as a timer and a structure, never as a prediction.
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is the TARA Writing Task marked?
Not by UAT-UK. UAT-UK does not score it. Instead a copy of your response is sent to the universities where you applied, and they read it themselves. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving each return a score from 1 to 9 to one decimal place; the Writing Task returns no score, grade or band. No marking scheme or band descriptors have ever been published, so anything claiming to be one is not official.
How long is the TARA Writing Task and how many words should I write?
40 minutes, separately timed, with one task chosen from three prompts and a 750-word limit. That ceiling is the published limit; no minimum length is given. A module's unused minutes do not carry into the next one, so the Writing Task is always exactly 40 minutes. A workable split is 2 minutes to choose, 7 to plan (the official advice is 5 to 10 minutes of planning), 25 to write and 6 to read back.
Do I have to do the Writing Task if I am applying for Economics and Management at Oxford?
Yes. Oxford course pages state: "All Oxford applicants must take all three modules (Critical Thinking, Problem Solving and the Writing Task)." All three modules are compulsory for every candidate. Only two Oxford courses add that the Writing Task will not be used in admissions selection for that course: LN12 Economics and Management and LV11 History and Economics. We checked five of the others (PPE, Psychology and Linguistics, Experimental Psychology, Human Sciences, History and Politics) and none carries this line.
Are there any TARA Writing Task past papers or example essays?
No. UAT-UK has never released a TARA past paper, so no official example answers exist either. The official material is exactly three things: the TARA Content Specification, the TARA Question Guide, and two practice tests on the Pearson VUE landing page, which UAT-UK says mirror the exact format and software used for its live tests. Our own 18 Frontier Original TARA papers each contain one Writing Task; they are original parallel papers we write ourselves, not official past papers.
What are the three parts of the TARA Writing Task question?
They are fixed and identical on every prompt: "Explain what you think is meant by the statement", then "Give a reasoned argument against the statement", then "To what extent do you agree with the statement?" All three must be addressed clearly and fully. The official guidance also asks you to express your own view in enough depth and to support it by reference to your earlier arguments, rather than simply summarising what you have already said.
Do I need subject knowledge or research to write the TARA essay?
No. The TARA Question Guide states that detailed subject knowledge is not expected or required, and no subject-specific knowledge is needed anywhere in the test. The official advice does ask for targeted, concrete examples, but it also warns against arguments that rest solely on examples and against examples that are overly general or contextless. An example supports reasoning; it cannot replace it.
SOURCES

Official sources

MORE GUIDES

Other TARA preparation guides

Learn it as a lesson

Writing Task: the overview

5 min · 4-question check · progress saved

The student version of this guide: one sitting to read, checked as soon as you finish.

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