UCS Junior Branch 7 Plus (7+) Exam Guide

About UCS Junior Branch

The Junior Branch of University College School in Hampstead admits around 60 boys at 7+ into three Year 3 classes, one of the largest 7+ intakes in north London. A separate, smaller 8+ entry into Year 4 also exists.

Assessment happens in two parts across the year: an autumn visit in small groups, then English and maths tests in January.

Key information for 2027 entry to UCS Junior Branch at 7 Plus (7+)

• School type: boys’ junior school (part of University College School), Hampstead
• Places at 7+: approximately 60, across three classes
• 8+ (Year 4) exists as a separate entry point with its own process
• Autumn term: a school visit in small groups, with listening and discussion exercises and a reading assessment
• January: English and maths tests in classrooms, about 3 hours including play and refreshments, with a teacher observing social interaction
• Applications close Thursday 1 October 2026
• Registration fee: £210
• Offers: end of January 2027
• Fee assistance exists at UCS generally; ask admissions about 7+ specifics

Admissions information for 2027 entry to UCS Junior Branch at 7 Plus (7+)

Mind the deadline first: applications close on 1 October 2026, among the earliest in London. The process then runs in two parts. In the autumn term, boys visit in small groups for listening and discussion exercises and a reading assessment. In January they return for English and maths tests, sat in classrooms over about three hours softened with play and refreshments, while a teacher watches how each boy gets on with the children around him.

Offers arrive at the end of January. UCS has a genuine fee-assistance programme, though its published detail concentrates on later entry points; ask admissions directly about what’s possible at 7+.

How can I register my child for the 7 Plus (7+) assessment at UCS Junior Branch?

Apply through the school’s website by Thursday 1 October 2026, with the £210 registration fee (the same fee across UCS’s entry points). The autumn visit is scheduled after registration, so an early application also means more notice of your dates.

What is the 7 Plus (7+) assessment format at UCS Junior Branch?

The assessed content is English, maths and reading, spread across the two visits, with listening and discussion exercises in the autumn and classroom-based written tests in January. There’s no reasoning paper. As telling as any paper, though, is the explicit observation of behaviour and social interaction during the January session: three hours in a classroom shows a great deal about how a boy listens, shares and settles.

Preparation therefore splits neatly: English and maths practice for the papers, and ordinary social confidence, clubs, playdates, being read to and talking about it, for everything else.

UCS Junior Branch 7 Plus (7+) top tips for your child

• 1 October is the hard deadline; miss it and the cycle is closed
• Practise listening tasks: hearing a passage read once and answering questions matches the autumn visit’s exercises
• No reasoning paper, so put practice time into English, maths and reading aloud
• Three hours is long at six: build stamina with unhurried practice sessions rather than short sprints only
• Ask admissions about fee assistance at 7+ rather than assuming either way; the published detail is thin

How to prepare your child for the 7 Plus (7+) UCS Junior Branch assessment

Our 7+ English and maths packs below cover the written tests with full answers, and the English passages double as listening practice when you read them aloud instead. That, plus daily reading, covers everything UCS assesses on paper; the classroom observation looks after itself in a boy who’s had a settled, sociable autumn.