diff --git a/.github/workflows/frontend-admin-tests.yml b/.github/workflows/frontend-admin-tests.yml
index 2e5f082ce..21ee8562e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/frontend-admin-tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/frontend-admin-tests.yml
@@ -123,8 +123,16 @@ jobs:
         shell: bash
         run: |
           pnpm run dev &
-          log "Waiting for Etherpad to accept connections (http://localhost:9001)..."
-          sleep 20
+          connected=false
+          can_connect() {
+          curl -sSfo /dev/null http://localhost:9001/ || return 1
+          connected=true
+          }
+          now() { date +%s; }
+          start=$(now)
+          while [ $(($(now) - $start)) -le 15 ] && ! can_connect; do
+          sleep 1
+          done
           cd src
           pnpm exec playwright install
           pnpm run test-admin