AS and A Level Mathmatics

(See below for Further Mathematics)

Math­em­at­ics is suit­able for inclu­sion with either Science or Arts subjects, being partic­u­larly recom­men­ded if Phys­ics, Chem­istry or Biology are taken at A level.  Stat­ist­ics is being used increas­ingly in other subjects, if not at A level, then in more Advanced courses e.g. in Psycho­logy, Econom­ics or Geography.  Students are advised not to start the AS level course unless they have followed the GCSE Higher Tier course and gained grade A or better in the subject as it is consid­er­ably more demand­ing than at GCSE level, and contains a lot of algebra.  Students with a B will be considered.

All Sixth Form Math­em­at­ics courses contain both Pure and Applied Math­em­at­ics (Mech­an­ics and Stat­ist­ics). The Pure Math­em­at­ics includes calcu­lus and more advanced algebra and trigo­no­metry; the Mech­an­ics is based initially on Newton’s laws of motion and includes both stat­ics, the study of forces on station­ary bodies, and dynam­ics – bodies in motion.  Many of the mech­an­ics topics are stud­ied, from a differ­ent perspect­ive, in the Phys­ics course. The stat­ist­ics units aim to help students select appro­pri­ate stat­ist­ical tech­niques for hand­ling data.

A and AS level Math­em­at­ics
Math­em­at­ics can be taken at AS level or A level. This is achieved by using a modu­lar system which will not change until 2012.

For AS level three units are required – two compuls­ory Pure units, the third either Mech­an­ics or Statistics.

For A level six units are required – four compuls­ory Pure units, the other two can be chosen from four Mech­an­ics and four Stat­ist­ics units.

Gener­ally our candid­ates take one mech­an­ics and one stat­ist­ics unit in addi­tion to the four compuls­ory Pure ones.

Specific­a­tion: OCR Math­em­at­ics AS 3890 A level 7890
Click here to down­load the current specific­a­tion for this A level course.

Student comments
“AS Maths combines core Maths and Mech­an­ics and Stat­ist­ics and it would be easier than you would expect. After a bit of prac­tice, it’s actu­ally quite fun.”  Zhenbo

“AS Maths is quite a step up from GCSE, but it is manage­able if you’re confid­ent and put the work in.  It’s very popu­lar, prob­ably because by study­ing AS Maths, you’ll reap the bene­fits in later life.”  Callum

“AS level Maths may seem like a big jump from GCSE Maths, but once we get into it, it’s still quite a straight forward course, simply depend­ing on the time and effort we put into it. Core Maths is some­thing I feel is very similar with GCSE Maths in a way which we solve the ques­tions but Mech­an­ics 1 and Stat­ist­ics 1 may be chal­len­ging as it is some­thing new. Even so, I believe A level Maths is not some­thing at an impossible stand­ard for anyone and most people are certainly capable of having a go at it. It can even be inter­est­ing some­times!” Elbert

AS and A Level Further Mathematics

Further Math­em­at­ics can only be stud­ied as an addi­tional AS or A level to the stand­ard A level Math­em­at­ics. The course would be suit­able for students who have achieved a grade A* at GCSE level. The aim is to broaden and deepen their math­em­at­ical know­ledge and fluency. This qual­i­fic­a­tion is partic­u­larly useful to all who intend to study degrees with a strong math­em­at­ical content, such as Engin­eer­ing, Sciences, Comput­ing and Math­em­at­ics itself.

The course contains both Pure and Applied Math­em­at­ics (Mech­an­ics, Stat­ist­ics and Decision Math­em­at­ics). The Pure Math­em­at­ics modules include matrices, complex numbers, groups and more advanced calcu­lus and algebra. Projectile motion, work, energy and power and colli­sions are covered in the Mech­an­ics module, and sampling and hypo­thesis tests on vari­ous distri­bu­tions in the Stat­ist­ics module. The Decision Math­em­at­ics modules involve model­ling real-life situ­ations using algorithms, networks, linear program­ming and crit­ical path analysis.

Further Math­em­at­ics can be taken at AS level or A level. This is achieved by using a modu­lar system.

For AS level three units are required - one compuls­ory Pure unit and two other applied units which may not include the Pure units from A level mathematics.

For A level six units are required – two compuls­ory Pure units, the other four which will normally be two Mech­an­ics, one Stat­ist­ics and one Decision Math­em­at­ics units.

Order of Aggreg­a­tion
In the major­ity of cases, certi­fic­a­tion for A level Math­em­at­ics will be made at the same time as the request for A level Further Math­em­at­ics certi­fic­a­tion. In this aggreg­a­tion process, the best A level Math­em­at­ics grade will be determ­ined first and the remain­ing units will be used to grade the Further Math­em­at­ics A level.

Specific­a­tion: OCR Math­em­at­ics (Further) AS 3892 A 7892
Click here to down­load the current specific­a­tion for this A level course.

Student comments
“Further Maths is a subject for people who are inter­ested in Maths. It is more diffi­cult than the Maths A level and requires a lot of self study. The subject is chal­len­ging and great fun.” Maggie

“Further Maths is very differ­ent from Maths.  You really can fulfil your poten­tial and chal­lenge your­self.” Xuetong

“Further Maths is essen­tially a chal­len­ging exten­sion to Maths and takes you out of your comfort zone.  It’s a great chal­lenge, but very reward­ing at the same time.” Callum