How to prepare for the ESAT

What the ESAT looks like

The ESAT has five modules: Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Everyone takes Mathematics 1. Most people then take two more, so a typical sitting is three modules of 40 minutes each, about two hours in all.

Each module has 27 multiple-choice questions. You can't use a calculator or a dictionary. A wrong answer doesn't lose you a mark, so you should never leave a question blank.

27 questions in 40 minutes works out at just under 89 seconds a question, but you won't spend that long on each one. A question asking which graph shows a quantity doubling might take you well under a minute. A mechanics problem with three steps might need nearer three. Getting quicker at telling the two kinds apart is a big part of preparing for this test.

Which modules to take

Before you plan anything, open the course page for each university you're applying to and write down which ESAT modules it asks for. Don't go by what a friend on a similar-sounding course is taking. Requirements differ between courses and between universities.

UAT-UK asks you to choose the modules your course requires when you book, and you can't change them at the test centre. If two of your choices ask for combinations that clash, contact UAT-UK before you book.

Some courses leave one module up to you. If yours does, sit a timed module in each subject you're considering and compare how they went. Look at the kind of mistakes you made as well as the mark. If your Chemistry errors were mostly small arithmetic mistakes, they're quick to fix. If every Physics question took too long because you weren't sure what it was asking, that will take longer to sort out.

Once you've decided, write down the modules, the page you checked and the date, so the question doesn't come back to worry you later.

Checking the specification

Download the official ESAT specification and the ESAT Guide from the UAT-UK website. Go through the topics for each of your modules and mark every one as secure, rusty or not yet taught at school.

A secure topic only needs to turn up in mixed practice now and then. A rusty one needs a short refresher: an evening with your notes and a handful of questions. A topic you haven't been taught needs a proper lesson from a textbook or a teacher before you practise it.

Try not to turn this into weeks of note-making. Copying the specification out neatly feels useful, but it never checks whether you can use any of it. For each rusty topic, decide how you'll test yourself. For moles and concentration, that might be six short questions without a calculator, then the same idea a week later inside a mixed set where it isn't labelled.

Your first timed paper

Sit one full module under real conditions early on, before you feel ready for it. That means 40 minutes, no calculator, no pausing and your phone in another room. Mathematics 1 is a sensible first choice because everyone takes it.

When you mark it, note more than the score. Write down roughly how long each question took, which ones you left until the end, and which correct answers were really guesses. A question you got wrong in thirty seconds usually means you answered before you'd read it properly. A question you got right in four minutes means your method works but is too slow to use across a whole paper.

Then sort your mistakes into four groups: things you didn't know, methods that were too slow, questions you misread, and time lost on a question you should have left. That list is what the next few weeks are built around.

The free ESAT paper on this site is a full Mathematics 1 module you can use for this. The estimated score it gives is our own estimate, not an official result, so pay more attention to which questions cost you marks and time.

Working without a calculator

Most ESAT questions need very little arithmetic if you simplify before you put numbers in. Cancel units, keep fractions as fractions, and rearrange the formula before you substitute.

Look at the answer options before you calculate. If they only differ by sign, you only need to work out the sign. If they're far apart, say 0.2, 20 and 2000, a rough idea of the size is enough. If they're in different units, you can often cross one or two out straight away.

It helps to know some things by heart: common fractions as percentages, squares and simple powers, and how to handle standard form quickly. Practise them inside real questions, such as a concentration calculation or a gradient read from a graph, so they come back to you in the exam.

Pacing a 40-minute module

Aim to reach the end of the paper on your first pass with a few minutes left. Your own mocks will show you roughly where you should be at halfway. There isn't one split that suits everyone.

A good rule for the first pass: if you've spent about a minute on a question and still can't see how to start, pick the most likely answer, flag it and move on. There's no penalty for a wrong answer, so a flagged guess is always better than a blank.

When you come back to your flags, start with the ones you nearly finished or had narrowed to two options. Leave the answers you were sure about. Going back over them uses time and can talk you out of a right answer.

After each mock, check whether the rule helped. You want to finish more of the paper without getting the early questions wrong because you rushed them.

Sitting all three modules together

In the real test you'll probably sit three modules, about two hours of work. A good mark on one module on a Tuesday evening doesn't tell you how your third module goes when you're tired.

Once your methods are fairly solid, set aside a morning for a full sitting. Use the module order and breaks the official test allows, keep your phone out of the room, and leave the marking until the next day if you need to.

Then compare the three modules. If you made more arithmetic mistakes in the last one, the fix may be sleep, food or a calmer flagging rule, and more revision won't help. If one subject always takes too long, look at how you read its questions. You don't need to do this every week. The plan below has one full sitting, in week seven.

Weeks one to six

Here is how eight weeks might look. If you have longer, give the extra time to weeks three and four, and keep some of the official practice material back for later.

Weeks one and two: confirm your modules, go through the specification, and sit one timed module in each of your three subjects.

Weeks three and four: work on the biggest gaps those papers showed. Spend most sessions on one topic or one kind of mistake. Once a week, do a short timed set that mixes questions from across the module, so you get used to spotting the topic for yourself.

Weeks five and six: do more full 40-minute modules. Use your flagging rule every time, check the answer options before calculating, and get used to switching between topics.

The last two weeks

In week seven, sit all three modules in one session, as close to the real test as you can make it. Use what goes wrong to pick a few small things to fix in the days after.

Week eight is for keeping things ticking over. Go back over the mistakes you keep making, do short timed sets so your pacing stays familiar, and try the Pearson sample test so the on-screen software isn't new on the day. Sort out the practical side too, such as how you're getting to the test centre and what you need to bring.

Don't try to learn a whole module in the last few days. Sleep properly and keep doing the kind of practice you've been doing.

Which materials to use, and when

Start with the official material. The specification and the ESAT Guide tell you what can be tested. The official specimen and practice tests show you the style of question and let you practise with the software you'll use on the day.

UAT-UK also links older ENGAA and NSAA papers, with notes on which questions fall outside the current specification. There aren't many of them, so take your time: mark each one carefully and go through every mistake before you start the next.

Beyond that, you'll need original questions written to the specification, and it's worth checking that whoever wrote them says where they come from. Noetra's mocks and practice questions are all original. We never copy real past-paper questions, we're not affiliated with UAT-UK, Pearson VUE or any university, and every paper is checked by script before it's published, with many answers worked out again from the question's own numbers.

Questions students ask

How long should I prepare for the ESAT?

There's no fixed answer. Eight focused weeks is enough for the plan above if you've been taught most of the content. Start earlier if there are topics you haven't covered at school or haven't looked at for a while.

How many questions are in each ESAT module?

Each ESAT module has 27 multiple-choice questions and lasts 40 minutes. Most candidates take Mathematics 1 plus two further modules.

Can I use a calculator in the ESAT?

No. UAT-UK states that calculators and dictionaries are not permitted.

Is there negative marking in the ESAT?

No. UAT-UK says incorrect answers do not lose marks, so candidates should attempt every question.

Official sources

Current details were checked against these primary sources on the date shown above.

• UAT-UK: ESAT format and official guidance
• UAT-UK: ESAT preparation materials
• UAT-UK: preparation and sample-test guidance
• UAT-UK: 2027-entry dates