Oxford and Cambridge Admissions Tests 2027: Course List

Oxford admissions tests for 2027 entry

From 2026, Oxford uses the UAT-UK tests (ESAT, TARA and TMUA) alongside the LNAT and UCAT. This is the full list of courses with a test, with the modules each course page asks for. Everyone applying by the 15 October UCAS deadline must take the October sitting.

The TARA note matters. For Economics and Management and for History and Economics, Oxford says applicants applying only to Oxford, and to no other course that requires the TARA, do not need to complete the Writing Task. They can finish after the Critical Thinking and Problem Solving modules. Every other Oxford TARA course needs all three. On Law with Law Studies in Europe, shortlisted applicants for the French, German, Italian or Spanish options usually have an oral language test at interview.

Three Astrophoria Foundation Year courses also have tests: Engineering Science with Foundation Year (ESAT) and PPE with Foundation Year (TARA), which can be taken in October 2026 or January 2027, and Law with Foundation Year (LNAT), which you must sit by 13 January 2027.

Oxford courses with no admissions test

Any Oxford course missing from the table above has no admissions test for 2027 entry. History's page, for example, says you do not need to take a written test. Many of these courses ask for written work instead, which must arrive at the college by 10 November.

For language courses there is no pre-interview language test in 2026; shortlisted candidates who are studying the language to A-level or equivalent are assessed on it at interview. Music applicants send a video of up to five minutes of a musical performance.

Cambridge admission assessments for 2027 entry

Cambridge has two kinds of assessment. Pre-registered tests are taken before shortlisting at a test centre near you, and you must book them yourself. College assessments are taken only if you're shortlisted, and you don't need to register for them: the College that interviews you arranges them.

College admission assessments apply to Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic; Architecture; Asian and Middle Eastern Studies; Classics (3- and 4-year); Design; English; Geography; History; History and Modern Languages; History and Politics; Human, Social, and Political Sciences; Linguistics; Linguistics and Modern Languages; Modern and Medieval Languages; Music; Philosophy; and Psychological and Behavioural Sciences.

Five Cambridge courses have no admission assessment at all: Archaeology; Education; Environment, Law, and Economics (previously Land Economy); History of Art; and Theology, Religion, and Philosophy of Religion.

STEP isn't a shortlisting test, but Cambridge says all Colleges usually include it in Mathematics offers, so it's worth starting early. Our STEP hub has the details.

Key dates for Oxbridge tests (2027 entry)

In China, Hong Kong and Macau the UAT-UK tests have fixed days: Cambridge says the ESAT must be taken on 12 or 13 October and the TMUA on 15 or 16 October, and UAT-UK runs the TARA there on 14 October. For more on sitting abroad, see UK admissions tests for international students. The full timetable is in our UAT-UK test dates guide.

After the tests, Oxford invites shortlisted applicants to online interviews in December 2026 and tells them the outcome on 12 January 2027.

Choosing the right test and modules

• Oxford or Cambridge, not both. Cambridge states that you cannot apply to Cambridge and Oxford in the same year, so you only need to plan for one of the two tables above.
• One test covers several universities. Oxford says applicants also applying to other universities that use the UAT-UK tests only need to take the relevant test once.
• Compulsory ESAT modules win. If one of your courses has a free choice of modules and another has compulsory ones, UAT-UK says the compulsory modules must decide your selection. Modules can't be changed after booking; you would have to cancel and rebook. Cambridge Natural Sciences plus Imperial Physics, for example, means Maths 1, Maths 2 and Physics.
• Writing Task. If you apply to Oxford Economics and Management but also to a UCL course that uses the TARA (where all modules are compulsory), sit all three TARA modules.
• No January safety net. The January sitting is not for Cambridge or Oxford applicants, except Cambridge mature colleges and Oxford Foundation Year courses with January deadlines.

Still unsure which test suits your subjects? Read TMUA vs ESAT vs TARA, then try a timed paper: the free TMUA practice test, the ESAT practice test or the TARA practice test.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

Every source below was accessed on the listed date. Pages — especially department admissions pages — change without notice; the links go to the live versions.

1. Admissions tests — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
2. Written work — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
3. Biomedical Sciences — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
4. Engineering Science — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
5. Physics — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
6. Computer Science — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
7. Economics and Management — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
8. History and Economics — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
9. Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
10. Law (Jurisprudence) — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
11. Medicine — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
12. History — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
13. Modern Languages — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
14. Music — University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
15. Admission tests and assessments — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
16. Engineering and Science Admissions Test (ESAT) — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
17. Test of Mathematics for University Admission (TMUA) — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
18. Law test (LNAT) — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
19. Clinical aptitude test (UCAT) — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
20. College admission assessments — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
21. Mathematics, BA (Hons) and MMath — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
22. Completing your UCAS application — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
23. Key dates — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
24. TMUA — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
25. Course List 2027 Entry — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
26. Dates and deadlines — LNAT. Accessed 2026-10-01.
27. UCAT test dates — UCAT Consortium. Accessed 2026-10-01.

Related guides

• TMUA, ESAT and TARA Dates 2026–27: Deadlines and Fees
• TMUA vs ESAT vs TARA: Which UAT-UK Test Do You Need?
• TMUA Score Explained: Scale, Averages and Good Scores
• ESAT Score Explained: Conversion, Averages and Good Scores