ASSESSMENT OF THE MAIN SUBJECTS
A
ssessment varies from subject to subject and details are given with each subject entry. All courses are examined as A levels, which are taught in a linear fashion, and assessed via a set of terminal examination papers, sat in the summer of the Upper Sixth. Some courses have additional coursework requirements, or portfolios of work which are prepared over the two years of study and then submitted to be marked centrally by the examination board. All A level units and examinations are automatically certificated (colloquially, “cashed in”) in order to obtain a final grade. This is done at the end of the Upper Sixth; once the grade is awarded it cannot be declined. Marks for each paper or unit vary, as do the total number of marks available for a subject.
USEFUL WEBSITES • www.aqa.org.uk • www.cambridgeinternational.org.uk • www.edexcel.org.uk • www.ocr.org.uk • www.wjec.co.uk
E Q U I VA L E N C Y OF GRADES
M
ost leading universities make their offers based on exam grades. Offers are occasionally made on the basis of a pointscore, known as the UCAS Tariff. This tariff, given in the table opposite, allows a comparison between the different grades available for different awards.
A level
AQA EPQ
UCAS tariff
A*
56
A
48
B
40
C
32
A*
28
D
A
24
B
20
E
C
16
D
12
E
8
The AQA Extended Project Qualification is a Level 3 award, which places it roughly equivalent to half an A level. 2
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