Northern Ireland does not use the English 11+. It has its own entrance assessment, run by SEAG, and the timetable is different too.
If your child is in P7 this year, the two assessment papers are sat in November and the result arrives in January.
- Registration closes 11:59pm on Friday 18 September 2026. It opened on 18 May.
- Paper 1: Saturday 14 November 2026.
- Paper 2: Saturday 21 November 2026.
- Contingency date: Saturday 28 November 2026, used only if extreme weather stops an assessment going ahead.
- Results: Saturday 23 January 2027.
What the SEAG Entrance Assessment is
SEAG stands for the Schools' Entrance Assessment Group.
In its own words, it is "an organisation made up of all the post-primary schools in N. Ireland which include academic selection within their Year 8 admissions criteria".
That matters, because it means one assessment now covers the selective schools rather than a family having to sit more than one test.
The assessment itself is set and marked by GL Assessment, the same organisation behind the GL papers used widely in England.
The two papers
The Entrance Assessment is made up of two papers, sat a week apart on Saturday mornings.
Each paper covers both English (or Gaeilge, for Irish-medium pupils) and Maths, drawn from the Key Stage 2 curriculum.
Across the two papers your child answers 56 English or Gaeilge questions and 56 Maths questions, which together produce the final score.
Answers go on a separate answer sheet, which arrives pre-printed with your child's name, date of birth and UPN.
- A child who sits just one of the two papers still receives an outcome, but it is an estimated one, marked with an "e".
- That is worth knowing in advance, because it means missing a paper through illness is not the end of the process.
How it is scored
The headline result is the Total Standardised Age Score, or TSAS.
A standardised age score takes account of three things: how many questions your child answered correctly, how difficult the assessment was, and how old your child was on the day.
That last part is the one parents most often miss. A younger child in the year group is not competing on raw marks against an older one.
The result arrives as a Statement of Outcomes, viewed through your online SEAG account, and it is based on total performance across both papers.
Who can sit it
For the 2026 assessment, children born between 2 July 2015 and 1 July 2016 are eligible, with limited exceptions for early or late transfers.
Those children transfer to Year 8 post-primary education in September 2027.
Registration is done by parents, not by the primary school, and the window is fixed. Once 18 September passes, it passes.
How to prepare, honestly
SEAG publishes its own practice materials, and those should be your first stop because they are the only ones written by the people setting the assessment.
Beyond that, the useful thing to know is that GL Assessment sets the SEAG papers.
That means GL-style English and maths practice is genuinely relevant preparation, which is not something we could say about every test format.
Our free GL Assessment style practice papers, English papers and maths papers are all built to that format and cost nothing.
- Pip is not a SEAG-specific product and we do not publish SEAG papers.
- What transfers is the underlying skill: KS2 maths, comprehension, and working accurately at speed onto a separate answer sheet.
- For anything about dates, registration or your child's own circumstances, SEAG is the authority, not us.
How it differs from the English 11+
| SEAG, Northern Ireland | A typical English 11+ | |
|---|---|---|
| Papers | Two, a week apart | Often one sitting, sometimes two stages |
| Subjects | English or Gaeilge, and Maths | Often adds verbal and non-verbal reasoning |
| When | November of P7 | Usually September of Year 6 |
| Result | Total Standardised Age Score | Standardised score, varies by area |
| Registration | By parents, direct to SEAG | Varies: council, consortium or school |
The reasoning point is the big one. A child preparing for a Kent or Buckinghamshire test spends a lot of time on verbal and non-verbal reasoning, and SEAG does not test those as separate papers.
Frequently asked questions
When is the SEAG transfer test in 2026?+
The two assessment papers are on Saturday 14 November 2026 and Saturday 21 November 2026, one week apart. Saturday 28 November 2026 is held as a contingency date, used only if extreme weather prevents an assessment going ahead.
Results are planned for Saturday 23 January 2027.
When does SEAG registration close?+
Registration for the 2026 Entrance Assessment closes at 11:59pm on Friday 18 September 2026. It opened at 8am on Monday 18 May 2026.
Registration is done by parents rather than by the primary school, and the deadline is fixed.
Who can sit the 2026 SEAG assessment?+
Children born between 2 July 2015 and 1 July 2016 are eligible, with limited exceptions for early or late transfers. Those children transfer to Year 8 post-primary education in September 2027.
What subjects does the SEAG assessment cover?+
English, or Gaeilge for Irish-medium pupils, and Maths, drawn from the Key Stage 2 curriculum. Across the two papers there are 56 English or Gaeilge questions and 56 Maths questions.
There is no separate verbal reasoning or non-verbal reasoning paper.
How is the SEAG score worked out?+
The result is a Total Standardised Age Score. A standardised age score accounts for how many questions your child answered correctly, how difficult the assessment was, and how old your child was on the day of the assessment.
It is based on total performance across both papers and is reported in a Statement of Outcomes.
Who sets and marks the SEAG assessment?+
GL Assessment sets and marks the SEAG Entrance Assessment. That is the same organisation behind the GL papers used by many grammar schools in England, which is why GL style English and maths practice is relevant preparation.
What happens if my child only sits one paper?+
A child who sits only one of the two papers still receives an outcome, but it is an estimated one, shown with the letter e. Missing a paper through illness therefore does not remove your child from the process.
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