How Cambridge and Imperial actually use your ESAT score
Cambridge uses your ESAT to decide who to interview. Imperial reads it with your UCAS application for interviews and offers. Neither has a cut-off.
The score moves through admissions, not around it
You get one score from 1.0 to 9.0 per module, and every ESAT course on your UCAS form sees them automatically.
- You sit the modules required by the exact course.
- UAT-UK sends the scores to that course automatically.
- The university reads them with your application.
- Where the course interviews, the score helps decide who is invited.
Cambridge: four courses, one published policy
Four Cambridge courses use the ESAT for 2027 entry. Colleges use it to decide who to interview, and a strong performance is usually needed.
| Course or department | Required modules | Published use or meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology | Mathematics 1, plus two from Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics 2 | Helps pre-interview shortlisting; retained for the offer decision |
| Engineering | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2 and Physics | Same University policy |
| Natural Sciences | Mathematics 1, plus two from Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics 2 | Same University policy |
| Veterinary Medicine | Mathematics 1, plus two from Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics 2 | Same University policy |
Stronger scores in your course's modules make a stronger case.
Imperial: the modules change by department
Imperial reads your ESAT alongside your UCAS application when deciding interviews and offers.
| Course or department | Required modules | Published use or meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Aeronautics | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Physics | Three separate scores enter selection |
| Chemical Engineering | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Chemistry | Chemistry replaces Physics |
| Civil and Environmental Engineering | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Physics | Three separate scores enter selection |
| Dyson School of Design Engineering | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2 | Two scores, not an invented total |
| Electrical and Electronic Engineering | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Physics | Test performance can contribute to interview shortlisting |
| Life Sciences | Mathematics 1, Chemistry, Biology | Biology and Chemistry are the course-facing sciences |
| Mechanical Engineering | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Physics | Three separate scores enter selection |
| Physics | Mathematics 1, Mathematics 2, Physics | Three separate scores enter selection |
Aeronautics, Design Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering interview, and use the test to shortlist.
What an interview adds
The ESAT shows speed on fixed problems. An interview shows how you take a hint, explain a choice and recover from a wrong turn.
Worked example The one-line answer and the interview answer
Let
Where does attain its greatest value? First find every candidate, not just the first stationary point:
Compare :
Correct: for the multiple-choice mark, differentiate and compare stationary points with both endpoints.
Trap: choosing as soon as changes from positive to negative misses the equal endpoint maximum.
The interview extension is the explanation: has signs across the interval, so is a local maximum and a local minimum; compactness means the endpoints must also be tested.
After results: what you control and what you do not
- Scores appear in your UAT-UK account about four weeks after the sitting.
- Universities receive them automatically. No need to send screenshots.
- Shortlisted for Cambridge? Practise solving unfamiliar problems aloud.
- Imperial timelines vary by department. A January sitting means later shortlisting.
- A disappointing score is not a rejection. Keep preparing until the university decides.