The route into engineering and science courses at Cambridge and Imperial. Modular, sat on screen under time pressure, and the gap between knowing the physics and scoring well on it is almost always pace.
Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology are offered as modules, and which ones you sit depends on the course you are applying to. Each is scored 1.0 to 9.0.
It is sat on screen, which changes how it feels: no margin to scribble in, no flicking back through a paper. Working on screen at speed is a skill of its own and is worth practising before the day rather than discovering on it.
Most ESAT candidates know the content. What separates scores is working through it at exam speed on a screen, which is a different activity from doing it well on paper.
We work through past modules at exam pace rather than revision pace, because the two produce entirely different experiences of the same question.
No margin, no flicking back. Working cleanly on screen with limited scribble space is worth practising deliberately.
There is no point preparing Chemistry for a course that does not ask for it, and we establish which modules your offers actually require before planning anything.
Elimination and estimation are legitimate and fast, and they are skills most candidates arrive without.
The same process every ILE student goes through, set out in full on our method page.
A free 60-minute session on the modules you are sitting, to see which one is holding the score down.
Maths 1 and Maths 2 first where needed, since the science modules lean on them under time.
The content is largely known; the difficulty is doing it quickly and without a calculator, which is its own practice.
Full modules to time in the run-up, reviewed for where the seconds went as well as the marks.
Applying to Cambridge or Imperial. For engineering, natural sciences or related courses.
Strong physicist, slow under time. The commonest profile by a distance.
Unsure which modules to sit. It depends on the course, and getting it wrong wastes preparation.
Unused to on-screen exams. It changes how the paper feels more than candidates expect.
Starting in Year 12. The sitting falls early in the application cycle.
Applying alongside A-Levels. Where the timetable needs planning rather than goodwill.
A full 60-minute session on the ESAT, with no card details and no commitment. Hourly rates after that are on the pricing page.
It depends entirely on the course. Mathematics is required almost everywhere and Physics is the usual second; we confirm what your specific offers ask for before planning.
The content is broadly comparable. The difficulty is pace and the on-screen format, which is why preparation focuses on working at speed rather than on new material.
The ESAT replaced them. It is modular, scored 1.0 to 9.0 per module, and sat on screen.
A full 60-minute lesson with your matched tutor, with no card details and no commitment. It is a real session rather than a sales call.
Yes, on Google Meet, anywhere in the UK.
A full 60-minute session on whichever module you are least confident in, free and with no card details.
Book a free trial lesson →