Subject
Biology
Course
A-level Biology
Exam Board
AQA
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Brief introduction:
Biology at OLSC is a tried and tested course giving good outcomes for its students in a well-resourced department. Students benefit from experienced advice and excellent teaching maximising your potential in the examinations. Students who study Biology at OLSC also benefit from studying in our new laboratory suits.
A-level courses – A minimum of Grade 5 in English Language and Maths, you will also need at least Grade 7 in the subject you wish to study. Please check the exact course requirements with individual subjects as they may vary.
Assessment
A-level Biology lasts two years, with exams at the end of the second year. There is no coursework on this course. However, your performance during practicals will be assessed. There are three exams at the end of the two years for A-level, all of which are two hours long. At least 15% of the marks for A-level Biology are based on what you learned in your practicals. Biology, like all sciences, is a practical subject. Throughout the course you will carry out practical activities including:
- using microscopes to see cell division
- dissection of animal or plant systems
- aseptic technique to study microbial growth
- investigating activity within cells
- investigating animal behaviors
- investigating distributions of species in the environment.
These practicals will give you the skills and confidence needed to investigate the way living things behave and work. It will also ensure that if you choose to study a Biology-based subject at university, you’ll have the practical skills needed to carry out successful experiments in your degree.
Year 12
- Biological molecules
- Cells
- Organisms exchange substances with their environment
- Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms
Year 13
- Energy transfers in and between organisms
- Organisms respond to changes in their internal and external environments
- Genetics, populations, evolution and ecosystems
- The control of gene expression
Studying A-level Biology gives you all sorts of exciting career options, including:
- Doctor
- Clinical molecular geneticist
- Nature conservation officer
- Pharmacologist
- Research scientist
- Vet
- Secondary school teacher
- Marine biologist
- Dentist.
The top seven degree courses taken by students who have an A-level in Biology are:
- Biology
- Psychology
- Sport and exercise science
- Medicine
- Anatomy
- Physiology and Pathology Pharmacology
- Toxicology and Pharmacy Chemistry
2023-24
92.3% A*-E 15.4% A*-B
100% A*-E 25% A*-B
