At Key Stage 5 we offer A-levels in Biology, Chemistry and Physics with the examining board AQA. These courses focus on developing scientific literacy, analytical skills and practical application.
All courses follow the new AQA specification and are examined through a linear approach, with all A-level exams taking place in the summer of Year 13. These comprise of three written exams, which include all topics covered from Years 12 and 13 and also practical content covered throughout the course.
AQA A-level Biology (7402)
A-level Biology will give you the skills to make connections and associations with all living things around you. Biology literally means the study of life and if that’s not important, what is? Being such a broad topic, you’re bound to find a specific area of interest, plus it opens doors to a fantastic range of interesting careers.
Possible career options from studying Biology at university include medicine, clinical molecular genetics, veterinary science, and marine biology to name but a few.
You will study;
1. Biological molecules;
2. Cells;
3. Organisms exchange substances with their environment;
4. Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms.
5. Energy transfers in and between organisms;
6. Organisms respond to changes in their internal and external environments;
7. Genetics, populations, evolution and ecosystems;
8. The control of gene expression.
AQA A-level Chemistry (7405)
A-level Chemistry attempts to answer the big question - ‘what is the world made of?’, and it is the search for this answer that makes the subject so fascinating. From investigating how one substance can be changed drastically into another, to researching a new wonder drug to save millions of lives, the opportunities that chemistry provides are endless.
Possible career options from studying Chemistry at university include analytical chemistry, chemical engineering, pharmacology, and toxicology.
You will study;
Physical Chemistry: atomic structure, amount of substance, bonding, energetics, kinetics, chemical equilibria, Le Chatelier’s principle, thermodynamics, rate equations, the equilibrium constant Kp, electrode potentials and electrochemical cells.
Inorganic Chemistry: periodicity, Group 2 the alkaline Earth metals, Group 7(17) the halogens, properties of Period 3 elements and their oxides, transition metals, and reactions of ions in aqueous solution.
Organic Chemistry: introduction to organic chemistry, alkanes, halogenoalkanes, alkenes, alcohols, organic analysis, optical isomerism, aldehydes and ketones, carboxylic acids and derivatives, aromatic chemistry, amines, polymers, amino acids, proteins and DNA, organic synthesis, NMR spectroscopy, and chromatography.
AQA A-level Physics (7408)
A-level Physics explores the fundamental nature of almost everything we know of. Physicists probe the furthest reaches of the Earth to study the smallest pieces of matter. Join them to enter a world deep beneath the surface of normal human experience.
Possible career options from studying Physics at university include Geophysics/field seismology, medical physics, meteorology, and structural engineering. You can also move into engineering, astrophysics, chemical physics, nanotechnology, renewable energy and more - the opportunities are endless.
You will study;
- Measurements and their errors;
- Particles and radiation;
- Waves;
- Mechanics and materials;
- Electricity;
- Further mechanics and thermal physics;
- Fields and their consequences;
- Nuclear physics;
Plus, one option from the following:
- Astrophysics;
- Medical physics;
- Engineering physics;
- Turning points in physics;
- Electronics.
Covers of the Collins Science books used for A-Level are shown below.
