Frequently asked questions

Yes, there are two tiers of assessment: Foundation and Higher.

Students taking the Foundation Tier can achieve grades C - G. Students taking the Higher Tier can achieve grades A* - D(E).

For Foundation Tier, there are two written papers and one piece of coursework:

• Paper 1 lasts for 1 hour and is worth 30% of the final grade;
• Paper 2 lasts for 1 hour 30 minutes and is worth 45% of the final grade; and
• the internally assessed task is work 25% of the final grade.

For the Higher Tier, there are two written papers and one piece of coursework:

• Paper 1 lasts for 1 hour 30 minutes and is worth 32% of the final grade
• Paper 2 lasts for 2 hours and is worth 43% of the final grade; and
• the internally assessed task is work 25% of the final grade.

Assessment is available in the summer series of examinations.

In any one series of examinations, a student may not take examinations on this specification together with examinations on Science: Double Award and Science: Single Award.

The classification code for this specification is 1110.

A wide range of support is available for teachers of GCSE Chemistry including:

• past papers and mark schemes;
• agreement trials;
• support visits (on request);
• support events;
• Exemplification of Standards;
• Annual Review of Student Performance;
• this microsite;
• our subject specialists and specification manager; and
• Chief Examiner Reports.

Students can avail of the following support resources:

• this microsite;
• Chief Examiner Reports;
• Exemplification of Standards; and
• the student section of our main website.