TMUA Score Explained: Scale, Averages and Good Scores

How the TMUA score scale works

You get one overall TMUA score, not a score per paper. It is reported on a scale from 1 (low) to 9 (high) to one decimal place, and there is no pass or fail score. Your result is based on the number of questions you answer correctly, and you do not lose marks for wrong answers, so you should answer every question.

Behind the scenes, UAT-UK analyses all responses with a statistical model (the Rasch model) so that people who sat different versions of the test can be placed on the same scale. For the TMUA, Papers 1 and 2 are equated and scaled together to produce your single score.

The scale is anchored to the October cohort each year: the median is fixed at 4.5 and the 90th percentile at 7.0. January scores are mapped onto the same scale. The official Explanation of Results puts it simply: typical candidates score around 4.5, about one candidate in ten scores higher than 7.0, and scores are capped at 1.0 and 9.0.

• Scale: 1.0 to 9.0, one decimal place.
• What you receive: one overall score for both papers combined.
• Marking: number of correct answers; no negative marking.
• Anchor points: October median 4.5, October 90th percentile 7.0.
• Pass mark: none. UAT-UK publishes no grade boundaries.

Can you convert a raw TMUA score to a scaled score?

Not in advance. The TMUA is scored after each test window closes, using that year's candidates. UAT-UK says its official practice tests deliberately do not give a score, because the scale in any year is based on the ability of that year's cohort. It also states that it does not provide any grade boundaries or a pass mark.

The technical report explains why a fixed raw-mark table would not be fair: your raw mark depends partly on which version of the test you sat, and those small differences in difficulty are removed through equating. The result is that scaled scores are comparable within an admissions cycle, whichever version or sitting you took.

If you are comparing with older scores, note that the scale changed in 2024. Durham's maths admissions page says a 2023 score of 6.5 equates to 5.0 from 2024 onwards, and a 2023 score of 4.5 equates to between 3.2 and 3.5. Durham describes this as a change to the scale, not to the standard it looks for.

The most useful thing you can do with practice marks is track accuracy and timing. Our free TMUA practice test gives you two timed papers in the same multiple-choice format, with worked solutions, so you can see where marks are slipping.

TMUA score distribution: real 2025–26 figures

UAT-UK's Annual Report 2025–26 Candidate Data shows that 16,888 people booked the TMUA for 2026 entry and 16,092 sat it, making it the largest of the three UAT-UK tests. That report covers candidate numbers rather than scores. The score statistics come from the separate TMUA Technical Report 2025–26:

So across everyone who sat in 2025–26, a score of 5.3 put you in roughly the top quarter and 6.7 in roughly the top 10%. January candidates scored lower on average, but the report is clear that both sittings share one scale: a candidate who scored 6.5 in either sitting has a higher ability than one who scored 4.2 in either sitting.

The same report breaks scores down by where candidates live. Candidates from outside the UK and EU scored higher on average:

One more number worth knowing: the report gives a scaled-score standard error of measurement of about 0.62 to 0.64. In plain terms, a difference of a few tenths between two candidates is within the test's normal measurement error, so don't read too much into 4.8 versus 5.0.

What is a good TMUA score? What universities actually say

Most universities do not publish a TMUA cut-off. The few that give a number are Warwick and Durham. Here is what each university's own page says:

• Warwick (Mathematics): in the 2025 entry cycle, the majority of offers went to applicants with 5.0 and above, with some offers below 5.0 after a holistic review. Warwick sets interim thresholds during the cycle and a final threshold around April.
• Warwick (Statistics, MORSE, Data Science): most offers include the option of meeting the requirement with 5.0 in TMUA or grade 2 in any STEP. For Computer Science, the exact TMUA requirement is set once results are in and is not published.
• Durham (Mathematics, Mathematics and Statistics): a score of 5.0 or above makes you automatically eligible to be considered for a reduced offer, one grade below the standard offer. Scores below 5.0 down to a yearly threshold (between 3.2 and 3.5) still count as positive evidence.
• Cambridge: there is no pass or fail mark, but a strong performance is usually needed to be invited to interview.
• Oxford (Maths, Computer Science and joint courses): there is no "pass" mark; TMUA scores are used with your UCAS application and school background to shortlist around three applicants per place.
• Imperial: there are no grade boundaries or pass marks; a high score does not guarantee an offer and a low score does not mean rejection. Imperial publishes an interactive dashboard of 2025 entry scores by department, which it says is historic and not a guide to future requirements.
• LSE: the TMUA is mandatory for BSc Economics and BSc Econometrics and Mathematical Economics and recommended for other listed courses, where a good score may make an application more competitive. LSE gives no number.

Putting those statements next to the 2025–26 figures: 5.0 sits above the overall median (4.1), and the October 90th percentile is 7.0 by design. For the most competitive courses, Cambridge and Oxford only say that strong performance matters, so aim as high as you can rather than for a fixed target.

When you get your TMUA score and who sees it

For the October 2026 sitting, UAT-UK lists results in candidate accounts on Monday 16 November 2026. For the January 2027 sitting, results are due on 8 February 2027. Dates for every deadline are in our UAT-UK test dates guide.

• Scores are sent automatically to the universities on your UCAS application whose courses use the TMUA. You cannot choose which ones see it.
• Matching is course by course, so a university only sees your score if your chosen course uses the test.
• UAT-UK does not accept appeals of test scores.
• You can only take the test once in an application cycle, and scores from a previous year are not carried over.

How to raise your TMUA score

UAT-UK recommends reading the test specification and its Notes on Logic and Proof, then answering the practice test under timed conditions. Time pressure is real: in 2025–26, 91% of candidates used between 2 hours 15 minutes and the full 2 hours 30 minutes.

1. Read the content specification first. The TMUA is based on maths usually covered in Higher GCSE and AS-level courses, so revise any topics you have not met yet.
2. Practise Paper 2 on its own. It tests mathematical reasoning and simple ideas from elementary logic, so give it its own practice time.
3. Practise without a calculator. Calculators and dictionaries are not allowed.
4. Time each paper at 75 minutes for 20 questions, and never leave an answer blank.
5. Review every wrong answer and note whether it was a knowledge gap, a slip or a timing problem.

Start with TMUA Paper 1 practice for applied maths, then move on to TMUA Paper 2 logic and reasoning practice. If you are also applying for engineering or science, see how ESAT scores work, or compare the three tests in TMUA vs ESAT vs TARA.

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. TMUA – The Test of Mathematics for University Admission — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
2. Test Results — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
3. Key Dates — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
4. FAQs — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
5. TMUA Explanation of Results – October 2025 and January 2026 — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
6. UAT-UK Technical Report 3 2025-26: TMUA — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
7. UAT-UK Annual Report 2025-26 Candidate Data — UAT-UK. Accessed 2026-10-01.
8. Admissions Tests (TMUA) — University of Warwick. Accessed 2026-10-01.
9. Mathematics entry requirements — Durham University. Accessed 2026-10-01.
10. Admission tests and assessments — University of Cambridge. Accessed 2026-10-01.
11. TMUA — Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford. Accessed 2026-10-01.
12. Understanding your ESAT and TMUA scores — Imperial College London. Accessed 2026-10-01.
13. Test of Mathematics for University Admission (TMUA) — London School of Economics and Political Science. Accessed 2026-10-01.

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