ESAT preparation guide

How to plan your ESAT revision, week by week

A workable ESAT revision plan has three moves, and the order is not negotiable: lock your module combination, tick off the specification chapter by chapter, then switch to full timed sittings. Get the combination wrong and every hour of revision after it is wasted. Start drilling whole papers before the chapter list is finished and you are simply confirming, over and over, which chapters you cannot do.
This page sets out the confirmed 2027-entry dates, a week-by-week structure built on the number of chapters you actually have to cover, and an honest account of what UAT-UK provides free of charge. Every date, rule and topic list here comes from UAT-UK's own pages, the official Content Specification and the 2027-entry Course List. Where the official pages contradict each other, we say so rather than pick the version that reads better.
10 sections3,185 words16 min read9 official sources
Papers
72
Questions
2790
Free to try
2
ESAT Revision at a Glance
Test windows
12 to 16 Oct 2026 and 4 to 8 Jan 2027; in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau only 12 or 13 Oct and 6 Jan
Attempts
One sitting per admissions cycle; modules cannot be changed once booked
Format
27 questions in 40 minutes per module; most candidates sit three back to back, 120 minutes in total
The sequence
Make Mathematics 1 airtight, tick off the specification chapter by chapter, then run full timed sittings
Boundaries
No pass mark, no published boundaries, no appeals

Every date, rule and topic list on this page comes from UAT-UK's own pages, the official Content Specification and the 2027-entry Course List.

In short
  • Fix your module combination before you revise anything. Modules cannot be changed once booked without cancelling and re-booking, and if you apply to two ESAT courses, the one with compulsory modules dictates your choice.
  • There are two sittings for 2027 entry (12 to 16 October 2026 and 4 to 8 January 2027). In mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau the ESAT runs only on 12 or 13 October and 6 January, and you may sit once per admissions cycle.
  • The sequence is fixed: make Mathematics 1 airtight (every module assumes it), tick off the specification chapter by chapter, then run modules back to back under time. Allocate weeks by chapter count, not by dividing evenly across subjects.
  • UAT-UK states that all necessary preparatory materials are free to every candidate, and that it does not endorse any commercial preparation service. The historic ENGAA and NSAA papers are usable, but out-of-specification questions are flagged, so mine them question by question rather than sitting them whole.
  • There is no pass mark, no published grade boundary and no appeal against a score. Set process targets instead: chapter coverage, zero unattempted questions, a falling arithmetic-error rate, and time left at the end of each module.
I

Part 1 of 3

Sections 01 to 04

01

Lock the module combination before you revise anything

Modules cannot be changed once your test is booked; the only way out is to cancel and re-book. That single rule is why the combination has to be settled before you open a textbook. The official position: every candidate sits Mathematics 1, most candidates sit two further modules, and some courses specify exactly which two. Four universities use the ESAT for 2027 entry: Imperial College London, Cambridge, Oxford and UCL.
The rule that catches people out: if you apply to two or more courses that require the ESAT, and one allows a free choice of modules while the other specifies compulsory ones, your selection must be dictated by the course with compulsory modules. Register for the wrong set and your application to that course may be invalid.
Modules
Cambridge Engineering (H100)Mathematics 1 + Mathematics 2 + Physics
Cambridge Natural Sciences (BCF0), Veterinary Medicine (D100), Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (H810)Mathematics 1 + any two of Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics 2
Oxford Engineering Science, Biomedical/Chemical/Civil/Electrical/Information/Mechanical Engineering, Physics, Physics and PhilosophyMathematics 1 + Mathematics 2 + Physics
Oxford Biomedical Sciences (BC98)Mathematics 1 + any two
Imperial Aeronautics, Civil and Environmental, EEE, Mechanical, PhysicsMathematics 1 + Mathematics 2 + Physics
Imperial Chemical EngineeringMathematics 1 + Mathematics 2 + Chemistry
Imperial Life SciencesMathematics 1 + Chemistry + Biology
Imperial Design Engineering (28G3)Mathematics 1 + Mathematics 2 (two modules only)
UCL Electronic and Electrical EngineeringMathematics 1 + any two of Maths 2, Physics, Chemistry, Biology

Check the official Course List against your exact UCAS course code before you book.

Imperial's Design Engineering is the only course in the table without a third module; for most candidates the whole test runs to 120 minutes, while Design Engineering candidates sit two modules. One detail that gets missed on the free-choice courses (Cambridge Natural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Oxford Biomedical Sciences, UCL EEE): Mathematics 2 is a legitimate pick there too. Before deciding, ask the honest question of which option you can actually make airtight in the weeks you have.
02

The confirmed 2027-entry timeline, straight into your calendar

There are two test windows for 2027 entry and the dates are already fixed. Every row on this timeline deserves a calendar reminder. Times are UK time.
2026 – 2027Timeline
Jun 26
Jul 26
Aug 26
Sep 26
Oct 26
Nov 26
Dec 26
Jan 27
Feb 27
Accounts, access arrangements and bursary applications open
1 Jun, 15:00 BST
Booking opens, October sitting
20 Jul, 15:00
Access arrangements deadline, October sitting
14 Sep, 18:00 BST
Bursary deadline, October sitting
21 Sep, 18:00 BST
Booking closes, October sitting
28 Sep, 18:00
Test window 1
12 to 16 Oct
In mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau the ESAT runs only on 12 or 13 October.
Booking opens, January sitting
26 Oct, 15:00
Results released, October sitting
16 Nov
Access arrangements deadline, January sitting
7 Dec, 18:00 GMT
Bursary deadline, January sitting
14 Dec, 18:00 GMT
Booking closes, January sitting
21 Dec, 18:00
Test window 2
4 to 8 Jan
In mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau the ESAT runs only on 6 January.
Results released, January sitting
8 Feb
Hard deadline Event WindowThe access arrangements deadline lands a fortnight before booking closes and the bursary deadline a week before. If you need either, work backwards from those dates rather than from the booking deadline.
Why mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau get only one or two days
UAT-UK says the restriction follows reports in October 2024 of candidates attempting to obtain and sell test content without authorisation. Practically, it means there is no booking-later-in-the-week option: fix your centre and date as soon as booking opens.
How many sittings per admissions cycle
One. The October 2026 and January 2027 sittings both belong to the 2027 cycle, and registering again under a second account is treated as misconduct.
October or January
Most Cambridge and Oxford applicants whose course requires the test must sit in October. The exceptions are mature applicants to a Cambridge mature college with a January deadline, and applicants to Oxford's Astrophoria Foundation Year. Applicants to other institutions can choose, and UAT-UK states plainly that there is no advantage to either session.
Can the fee be covered by a bursary
Imperial's ESAT page notes that UK candidates facing financial hardship can apply for a bursary to cover the fee; the eligibility rules are on the official site.
03

Turn dates into weeks, then allocate by chapter count

From the day accounts open (1 June 2026) to the first test day on 12 October is exactly 19 weeks. That is the most generous version; most candidates in practice get eight to twelve weeks of real work in. However many you have, there is one allocation rule: divide the weeks by specification chapter count, never into equal thirds because there happen to be three modules. The reason is that every module is 27 questions in 40 minutes, but the chapter counts are nowhere near equal.

Mathematics 1

7 chapters

Codes M1 to M7

Mathematics 2

8 chapters

Codes MM1 to MM8

Physics

7 chapters

Codes P1 to P7

Chemistry

17 chapters

Codes C1 to C17

Biology

11 chapters

Codes B1 to B11

15 chapters

Maths 1 + Maths 2 (Imperial Design Engineering)

22 chapters

Maths 1 + Maths 2 + Physics (most engineering and physics routes)

32 chapters

Maths 1 + Maths 2 + Chemistry (Imperial Chemical Engineering)

35 chapters

Maths 1 + Chemistry + Biology (Imperial Life Sciences)

Same number of modules, yet the Life Sciences route carries roughly sixty per cent more specification than the standard engineering combination. Split your weeks evenly across subjects and Chemistry's seventeen chapters will not get finished. That is not a motivation problem, it is an arithmetic one.
01Weeks 1 to 3

Cover all of Mathematics 1

Work through all seven chapters and rebuild your non-calculator arithmetic.
02Week 4

Chapter self-test

Self-test Mathematics 1 chapter by chapter, send anything unticked back through, and do not move on.
03Weeks 5 to 15

The two further modules

Allocate weeks proportionally: weeks available multiplied by that module's chapters, divided by your total chapters.
04Weeks 16 to 18

Full timed sittings

Modules run back to back with no break.
05Week 19

Rhythm maintenance

No new chapters. Rhythm maintenance and error review only.
The eight-week compressed version: weeks 1 to 2 Mathematics 1, weeks 3 to 6 the two further modules split by chapter count, weeks 7 to 8 timed sittings. What compression removes is the second and third revision pass, never the coverage. The chapter list gets finished either way.
04

Phase one: Mathematics 1 is the foundation, not the warm-up

The specification states that every module assumes knowledge of the content of Mathematics 1. That is not a courtesy line, it is how the questions are built. Leave Mathematics 1 shaky and you keep bleeding marks inside your other two modules, and they are the worst marks to lose: the arithmetic slips and the unit errors.

Mathematics 1

Seven chapters (M1 to M7), assumed by every module

BiologyChapters B1 to B11
  • Items carry their own B tags
  • Plus the M tags
ChemistryChapters C1 to C17
  • Items carry their own C tags
  • Plus the M tags
PhysicsChapters P1 to P7
  • Items carry their own P tags
  • Plus the M tags
Mathematics 2Chapters MM1 to MM8
  • Items carry the M tags
  • Plus the MM tags

Tap a branch to unfold

The seven official Mathematics 1 topics are Units, Number, Ratio and proportion, Algebra, Geometry, Statistics and Probability. Note what is absent: no trigonometry and no calculus, both of which live in Mathematics 2. Note also what gets skipped: Units, and Ratio and proportion, because they look like something you finished with years ago. The specification expects fluency with SI prefixes from nano to giga and with units written using negative indices. With no calculator in the room, those two chapters set your speed for the whole test.
01Action 1

Chapter by chapter, tested the same day

Self-test each chapter the day you finish it. Do not save them all for a Sunday.
02Action 2

Rebuild mental arithmetic

Fractions, percentages, squares and cubes, estimating roots, multiplying and dividing in standard form, all without a calculator. The centre provides an erasable surface for rough work and a pen, and nothing that calculates.
03Action 3

Build the units habit

Write units on every line and check the dimensions at the end. That habit keeps paying you back in Physics and Chemistry.
Do not open a second module until Mathematics 1 is ticked. It is the single most valuable piece of discipline in this plan, and the one candidates talk themselves out of first.
II

Part 2 of 3

Sections 05 to 08

05

Phase two: ticking off the specification, made concrete

"Work through the specification" is advice everyone gives and almost nobody operationalises. On paper it should be a six-column table keyed on the official chapter codes.
What goes in it
Chapter codeThe official code (M4, MM6, P4, C11, B6), never your own label
First testThe day you finish the chapter
ResultAll correct, errors, or could not start
Error typeConcept, wrong formula recalled, arithmetic, missed a condition, ran out of time
Retest dateFive to seven days after the first test
StateBlank, seen, can do, can do under time
When does a chapter count as ticked, reaching 'can do under time'? All four of the following must hold at once.

Calculator

None at any point

Speed

Under 90 seconds per question on average

27 questions in 40 minutes works out at roughly 89 seconds each

Wrong options

You can explain which step makes each incorrect option incorrect

Not merely identifying the right one

Retest

It still passes a week later

Keying the table on official codes has a hidden benefit. Every practice question you meet should map to a chapter; anything that maps to none of them is out of specification, so cross it out and spend the time elsewhere. That rule earns its keep the moment you start using the historic papers.
The error-type column matters far more than the result column. Look at the distribution after three weeks. If arithmetic accounts for more than half your errors, your problem is not coverage but mental arithmetic, so go back to phase one. If running out of time dominates, you are ready for phase three earlier than planned. If concept errors cluster in a few chapters, those are your retest priority and everything else can drop to a lower frequency. The point of the table is not to fill it in; it is that every week you decide what to do next from data rather than from how you feel about a subject.
06

Phase three: full timed sittings, because the constraint is the exam

Half of what makes the ESAT hard is structural. Each module is 27 questions in 40 minutes, each is separately timed, time saved on one module does not carry into the next, and there are no breaks between modules. Most candidates sit three in a row, 120 minutes in total. So the last phase does not train knowledge; it trains behaviour under that structure.
01

Back to back, in exam order

Run your three modules in the order you will meet them, with no drink, no phone and no looking anything up in between.
02

Paper and one pen only

No calculator and no dictionary. Paper for rough work and a pen, nothing else.
03

Lock at the bell

Time each module separately and lock it when the clock runs out. No going back to finish the previous one.
04

Count the blanks before marking

When you stop, record the number of unattempted questions before you mark anything.
Each correct answer scores one mark and nothing is deducted for a wrong answer, so a blank is a pure loss with no strategic justification whatsoever. Your unattempted count has to reach zero before your accuracy target does. The habit to build is mechanical: put an answer down rather than nothing, note the question number on your rough work, move on, and come back with whatever time is left.
One detail candidates underrate: this is a computer-based test. You answer on screen and the paper is there only for working. If you have revised entirely on paper, sit at least a few full sessions on a screen before the day, or a meaningful slice of your first module will go on getting used to the interface.
FrontierVUE hosts past papers and original mock papers you can sit under real time limits, modules back to back, with wrong answers classified by error type and fed back into your chapter table. That does not replace the official specification. It does replace timing yourself on a phone and never recording why you got things wrong.
07

What the official materials give you, and how to use the historic papers

UAT-UK states on its preparation page that all necessary preparatory materials are available, free of charge, to all candidates. That sentence should determine the order of your materials list.
01First

The official Content Specification

The current version covers the October 2026 and January 2027 sittings and is the only authority behind your tick-list. Copy the Appendix 1 topic list into your table verbatim, changing nothing, before you revise a single chapter.
02Second

The official ESAT preparation materials page

UAT-UK gathers the free materials on this page, the historic papers below among them.
03Third

The historic ENGAA and NSAA papers

UAT-UK describes them as historic papers and flags the questions that fall outside the current specification.
That third item is the one candidates misuse. ENGAA and NSAA are earlier tests, built on content that does not match the current specification. The fact that UAT-UK bothers to flag out-of-specification questions is the warning: do not sit these papers whole, under time, as ESAT mocks. You would burn minutes on material that cannot appear and come away with a distorted score, then make your next revision decision from it.
Use them question by question instead. Map each one onto your chapter table: anything that maps is a free, well-written practice question, and anything that maps to nothing gets discarded without reading the solution. This is exactly the payoff for keying that table on official codes.
One honest line from the specification itself: the test is designed to be challenging, in order to differentiate effectively between able applicants, including those who might have achieved the highest possible grades in school examinations. A row of A* grades is not a reason to revise less. It only means your starting point is reasonable.
08

UAT-UK endorses no commercial preparation, ours included

UAT-UK says it plainly on its preparation page: it is not connected to, does not endorse and does not promote commercial preparation services, and it cannot verify whether the information those companies or individuals provide is accurate. The same page states that all necessary preparatory materials are free to every candidate.
We reproduce that here because it is useful to you. No preparation provider, FrontierVUE included, has a privileged channel to the exam board. We have no affiliation with, authorisation from or partnership with UAT-UK, Pearson or any university. Every rule and date on this page can be checked against the official sources listed at the bottom, and you should check them.
That gives you a clean filter. A third party can supply structure, timed conditions, error classification and explanation. It cannot supply authority. Anyone advertising inside information, predicted questions or a guaranteed score threshold fails against UAT-UK's own sentence: the board does not publish grade boundaries at all, so nobody can be holding one.
One further line worth stating without hedging. You must not share or discuss the test with anyone after sitting it. The reports in October 2024 of candidates trying to obtain and sell test content are the direct reason candidates in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau now have only one or two available days. Trading recalled questions is not just a personal risk of misconduct; it has already cost every candidate in that region most of their scheduling flexibility. There is no grey area here, and no version of 'everyone does it' that survives contact with the consequence.
III

Part 3 of 3

Sections 09 to 10

09

Scores: what is knowable, what is not, and what to aim at

Score scale

Each module scored separately, from 1 (low) to 9 (high), to one decimal place

No combined total; modules are equated and scaled separately

Pass mark and boundaries

None exist

No pass or fail, and UAT-UK publishes no grade boundary of any kind

Appeals

Not accepted

UAT-UK's stated reason: scoring is tested and quality assured before, during and after every window

One thing worth saying out loud: the official results page carries two mutually inconsistent statements about the 90th-percentile anchor of the scale, and the board has not clarified which is correct. So when anyone tells you a particular score is 'safe', however precise it sounds and however many percentiles it cites, there is nothing underneath it. We will not print such a number, because printing one would mean inventing it.
So where do targets go? Into process. The four metrics below are entirely within your control, and you can measure all of them every week.

Chapter coverage

The share of chapters marked 'can do under time'

The only metric that maps directly onto the specification

Unattempted questions

Zero, in every timed sitting

Nothing is deducted for a wrong answer, so a blank buys nothing

Arithmetic error share

A number that falls week on week

Track the share of logged errors tagged as arithmetic

Time distribution

Two or three minutes left per module to revisit unsure questions

Much more means giving up too early; none at all means too slow an opening

Those four beat an unsourced score threshold in every respect. They also mean that when you walk out of the centre you already know where you were weak, instead of waiting four weeks to reverse-engineer it from a single number.
10

Test day and afterwards, rehearsed in advance

Everything about test day is already known. Walk through it in your head a week beforehand and nothing on the day will be a surprise.

Arrival

30 minutes before your scheduled sitting

More than 15 minutes late may mean refused entry, with the fee forfeited

Calculator and dictionary

Neither is allowed

Rough-work materials and a pen are provided; raise your hand for a replacement

The rough-work surface

Whatever you are handed

Official pages call it an erasable booklet, an erasable notebook or a whiteboard; what is certain is the centre provides and swaps it

Breaks between modules

None

Finish one early and the spare minutes are gone, not banked

Fee

£78 in the UK and Republic of Ireland, £133 elsewhere

Set by the location of your test centre, not nationality or residence

Results arrive roughly four weeks after the sitting: for 2027 entry that is 16 November 2026 for the October window and 8 February 2027 for January. They are matched course by course against your UCAS application and sent automatically to every institution whose course requires the test, whether the test is compulsory or optional for that course. You cannot choose which institutions see your score, and you do not need to send anything yourself. And one hard rule survives the exam: do not share or discuss the content with anyone afterwards.
One last planning point: you sit once per admissions cycle, this plan has no 'next time' branch, and every date has to be built around getting it right on the single attempt. Which is precisely why the fussy-looking discipline earlier on (lock the modules first, make Mathematics 1 airtight, finish the chapter list before drilling whole sittings) is worth actually following.
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How far in advance should I start revising for the ESAT?
From the day accounts open (1 June 2026) to the first test day on 12 October is 19 weeks, which is the roomiest version. Most candidates realistically get eight to twelve weeks of proper work in. What matters is not the total but the order: do not open a second module until Mathematics 1 is solid, and do not move to full timed sittings until the chapter list is finished. Note too that the weeks you need depend on your combination, not on the number of modules. Maths 1 + Chemistry + Biology spans 35 official chapters; Maths 1 + Maths 2 + Physics spans 22. Plan by chapters.
Does Mathematics 1 include trigonometry or calculus?
No. The specification lists exactly seven Mathematics 1 topics: Units, Number, Ratio and proportion, Algebra, Geometry, Statistics and Probability. Trigonometry is MM4 in Mathematics 2, and differentiation and integration are MM6 and MM7. The reverse point matters more, though: every module assumes knowledge of Mathematics 1, so even on a Maths 1 + Physics + Chemistry combination those seven chapters underpin all three modules. And do not skip Units or Ratio and proportion. The specification expects fluency with SI prefixes from nano to giga and with units written using negative indices.
Should I sit the ESAT in October or January?
If you are applying to Cambridge or Oxford and your course requires the test, you will normally have to sit in October. The exceptions are mature applicants to a Cambridge mature college with a January deadline and applicants to Oxford's Astrophoria Foundation Year. Applicants to other institutions, Imperial and UCL among them, can choose, and UAT-UK states there is no advantage to either session. The real constraint is that you sit once per cycle, and October 2026 and January 2027 both belong to the 2027 entry cycle. Candidates in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau have a further consideration: the ESAT runs there only on 12 or 13 October and 6 January.
Are there free official ESAT past papers, and can I still use ENGAA and NSAA papers?
UAT-UK states that all necessary preparatory materials are free to every candidate, and it keeps a dedicated ESAT preparation materials page where the historic ENGAA and NSAA papers sit. Those historic papers are usable, but not as whole timed ESAT mocks. They belong to earlier tests built on different content, and UAT-UK flags the questions that fall outside the current specification. Mine them question by question instead: map each one onto the official chapter codes (M, MM, P, C, B), keep what maps, discard what does not. Save whole timed sittings for material that matches the current specification.
Which days can candidates in mainland China sit the ESAT?
For 2027 entry, the ESAT runs in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau only on 12 or 13 October 2026 and on 6 January 2027. Candidates elsewhere can be scheduled across the full windows, 12 to 16 October and 4 to 8 January. UAT-UK says the restriction follows reports in October 2024 of candidates attempting to obtain and sell test content without authorisation. For your planning it means there is effectively no flexibility to move your date. Book your centre and day as soon as booking opens (15:00 UK time on 20 July 2026 for the October window) and count your revision weeks backwards from it.
What is a good ESAT score? Is there a cut-off?
There is no official answer. UAT-UK publishes no grade boundaries and no pass mark, and there is no pass/fail outcome. Each module is scored separately from 1 (low) to 9 (high) to one decimal place, there is no combined total, and modules are equated and scaled independently. On top of that, the official results page contains two contradictory statements about the percentile anchoring of the scale and the board has not clarified them, so no specific "safe score" claim has a reliable source behind it. Aim at process instead: the share of your chapters marked "can do under time", zero unattempted questions in timed sittings, a falling proportion of arithmetic errors, and two or three minutes left at the end of each module for the questions you were unsure of.
Can I resit the ESAT, or appeal a score I am unhappy with?
Neither is possible. You may sit each UAT-UK test once per admissions cycle, and the October 2026 and January 2027 sittings both fall inside the 2027 cycle. Registering again under a second account is treated as misconduct. Scores cannot be appealed either; UAT-UK's stated reason is that the scoring process is rigorously tested and quality assured before, during and after each testing window. On top of that, the modules you select at booking cannot be changed without cancelling and re-booking. Taken together: your combination, your sitting and your revision timeline all have to be settled before you book, because the plan has no second attempt in it.

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