All about A level Biology – course information

A Level Biology provides a solid grounding in analytical thinking, writing reports and clear communication – all of which are useful transferable skills. You will undertake lab and field experiments which underpin theoretical concepts, and which improve your teamwork and practical skills.

You will need excellent organisational skills to manage the demands of the A Level Biology course, alongside strong literacy and numeracy skills, as the course contains a large amount of specialist vocabulary and regular use of calculations. You will need to develop your knowledge and understanding of different areas of the subject and demonstrate how they relate to one another.

The A Level Biology course will encourage you to develop a logical and methodical approach to understanding concepts, and the ability to apply your knowledge and understanding of Biology to unfamiliar contexts. It is helpful to have good practical skills from your previous science courses, together with the ability to read and follow complex instructions. Throughout the course, you will also develop your ability to analyse and evaluate information and data, which is an essential skill in any science-related field, as well as being a useful tool to apply to many different careers.

For most A level Biology courses, you need grade 5s or above at GCSE in Biology (or Double Science), English and Mathematics.

A basic understanding of key principles in Chemistry from GCSE or equivalent is important, as chemical principles link to many concepts in Biology. Biology also requires you to be competent in maths: you need to be comfortable with data presented in tables and graphs, with calculations and with applying statistical tests.

Biology will support your study of other sciences and maths, as well as subjects like Geography and Psychology. Additionally, if you study Biology alongside a language or an essay subject like English at A level, you might have even more career options.

A level Biology is essential for degree courses such as Medicine, Veterinary Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmacology (it’s important to be aware that for many of these courses you will also need to study A-level Chemistry). It is also a useful subject to study in preparation for many degree courses, due to the demanding nature of the course and the skills this allows you to develop. Biology-related degrees are a popular option at university – you can study a broad-based degree or choose to specialise in a specific aspect of Biology, and these qualifications open the door to an enormous variety of potential career paths.

It is perfectly possible to complete the whole A level Biology course in a year if you are prepared to be disciplined, diligent and organised about your work. There’s a lot to learn so you need to stay focused throughout the course.

All main exam boards offer A level Biology courses, and all follow the same general assessment pattern. Your A level grade is determined by your performance in three written papers at the end of the course, which include questions relating to both theory and practical skills.

In the OCR Biology specification, for example, the first two papers (containing a combination of multiple choice, short-answer and extended response questions) each cover roughly half of the course content and account for 74% of the final mark. Paper 3 includes synoptic questions which might relate to any part of the specification, and contains only short-answer and extended response questions. It accounts for 26% of the final mark.

Practical skills are assessed by your teacher throughout the A Level course, with a record kept of the skills you have demonstrated. If you demonstrate all the required skills, a Practical Endorsement will be awarded as part of the A Level qualification at the end of the course. This does not contribute to your final grade, but it is needed for many Science-related university courses and careers.