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Exam Countdown

Live countdown to the 2027-entry ESAT, TARA and TMUA booking deadlines, test windows and results, including the fixed test days for mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, plus STEP 2026 dates.

TestSittingBooking closesTest windowCN / HK / Macau dayResults
ESATOctober 202628 Sept 202612 Oct 2026 – 16 Oct 202612 Oct 2026 or 13 Oct 202616 Nov 2026
ESATJanuary 202721 Dec 20264 Jan 2027 – 8 Jan 20276 Jan 20278 Feb 2027
TARAOctober 202628 Sept 202612 Oct 2026 – 16 Oct 202614 Oct 202616 Nov 2026
TARAJanuary 202721 Dec 20264 Jan 2027 – 8 Jan 20277 Jan 20278 Feb 2027
TMUAOctober 202628 Sept 202612 Oct 2026 – 16 Oct 202615 Oct 2026 or 16 Oct 202616 Nov 2026
TMUAJanuary 202721 Dec 20264 Jan 2027 – 8 Jan 20278 Jan 20278 Feb 2027
STEPJune 2026 (2027 TBC)4 May 2026STEP 2: 4 Jun 2026
STEP 3: 10 Jun 2026		n/a (paper-based, worldwide)13 Aug 2026

UAT-UK dates are the official 2027-entry schedule. Candidates in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau must sit on the fixed days shown (no exceptions granted). One sitting per admissions cycle. STEP dates are the published 2026 series; OCR has not yet released 2027.

ABOUT

How to read the numbers

The detail that matters most for candidates in China: in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau you cannot pick any day in the week-long window. UAT-UK fixes each test to one or two days (October: ESAT on the 12th or 13th, TARA on the 14th, TMUA on the 15th or 16th; January: the 6th, 7th and 8th respectively) and grants no exceptions. You sit once per cycle, and Oxbridge applicants are generally required to take the October sitting. STEP belongs to the OCR system, sat on paper in June; 2027 dates are not yet published, so the table shows the published 2026 series.
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Which days can I sit the ESAT in mainland China?
For 2027 entry: 12 or 13 October 2026 in the October sitting, and 6 January 2027 in the January sitting. This is an official rule with no exceptions granted.
October or January sitting?
UAT-UK says neither sitting is advantaged, but you sit only once per cycle, and applicants to Cambridge or Oxford are generally required to take October (exceptions: mature-college January-deadline applicants and the Oxford Astrophoria Foundation Year).
SOURCES

Official sources

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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.

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