SubjectMath
- What your child learns
- Your child learns calculus, mechanics, and statistics in the AS/A-Level Mathematics & Further Mathematics course.
A Level
A Level students take LAB.CO classes to learn the math and science concepts their A Level subjects demand and to write answers and essays in English.
See which subject combination fits your child's intended major, then work out with us which subject to strengthen first.
Curriculum and assessment
How IGCSE leads to AS Level and A Level
Cambridge International AS & A Level is a British curriculum in which students choose subjects and study them in depth. The A Level is a qualification earned separately in each subject at the stage after IGCSE, and Cambridge gives the age range as 16–19.
The AS Level is a separate qualification covering part of an A Level subject, and some schools call the following year A2.
- G9–10IGCSECambridge Upper Secondary
- G11AS LevelThis stage
- G12A Level (A2)This stage
Choosing subjects with an intended major in mind
A Level students take fewer subjects but study each one in more depth.
G11: AS
- Math: AS Math
- Science: AS Bio, Chem, Phys
- English: AS English Literature
- Social studies and history: AS History and Economics
G12: A2
- Math: A2 Math and Further Math
- Science: A2 Bio, Chem, Phys
- English: A2 English Literature
- Social studies and history: A2 History, Economics, and Politics
What to check when choosing subjects
Subjects colleges and majors require
Check the latest admissions information for the subjects and grades your child's target colleges and majors require.
Subjects the school offers
Look at the AS & A Level subjects and timetable the school actually offers to find subjects your child can take together.
Syllabi and your child's current level
Use each syllabus to see what the subject covers, then compare it with what your child has already learned, their English, and their lab experience.
Workload by subject
Coursework, practicals, and exams vary by subject, so each subject's workload matters more than the number of subjects.
Assessment and carrying AS results forward
| Item | What to check |
|---|---|
| Assessment objectives | Check the subject guide to see whether the subject calls for knowledge, application, analysis, or argument, and compare that with your child's answers. |
| Components | Besides written exams, some subjects assess coursework, practicals, portfolios, fieldwork, or essays. |
| Staged assessment | Check whether the subject lets students take the AS first and complete the A Level later. |
| AS carry-forward | Check Cambridge's latest rules on whether AS results can count toward the A Level grade, and up to which exam series. |
Before and after changing schools
What to check before your child changes schools
- Topic: Exam board and subject guides
What to look at: Check whether the current and new schools use the same examination board, subject guides, and assessment components.
- Topic: Records of finished assessments
What to look at: Gather records of completed practicals, coursework, and AS assessments, the exam series taken, and grades and submissions.
- Topic: Recognition at the new school
What to look at: Ask how the new school handles coursework already submitted and AS results.
- Topic: Next semester's subject plan
What to look at: Look at the subjects your child's intended major requires, the subjects the new school offers, and the timetable and exam calendar together.
What your child practices to write in-depth A Level answers
Your child practices writing answers against their school's subject guide and assessment criteria.
- Practice area: Proof and argument
How your child practicesIn math, your child justifies every step; in humanities and social science answers, they build a claim and respond to counterarguments.
What to look at firstSteps in recent math answers that skipped the justification
- Practice area: Data analysis and practicals
How your child practicesYour child analyzes data and graphs and writes up experiment designs and interpretations of results the way the subject's assessment criteria require.
What to look at firstThe school's practical and coursework guidelines, read together with your child's records
- Practice area: Academic writing
How your child practicesYour child builds a structure that fits the question and writes with relevant evidence and interpretation of sources.
What to look at firstSchool teacher feedback and the mark scheme for the next assessment
If a teacher says your child's essay evidence is weak
Your child reads the teacher's comments alongside the assessment criteria, then rewrites, adding one piece of evidence to each claim.
LAB.CO classes and advanced study
Research courses and competitions
Keep school assessment work separate from work for other qualifications or competitions, and check your school's rules first on how much outside help is allowed.
Option · Details
- Global Perspectives & Research
- An optional subject assessed through a written exam, an essay, a team project, and a Research Report. Not every school offers it.
- Cambridge International Project Qualification (IPQ)
- A separate qualification earned by completing an independent research project. Check separately whether your school offers it, and its registration requirements and qualification rules.
- Research and outside competitions
- Your child does a research project on a math, science, or humanities topic they're interested in, or enters outside competitions.