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  • Cambridge International AS & A Level Marine Science (9693)

Cambridge International AS & A Level Marine Science (9693)

Syllabus overview

Cambridge International AS and A Level Marine Science provides a coherent and stimulating introduction to the science of the marine environment. We recommend that learners starting this course should have completed a course in Cambridge O Level or Cambridge IGCSE in Biology or Marine Science or the equivalent.

The emphasis throughout is on the understanding of concepts and the application of ideas to new contexts. It is expected that practical activities will underpin the teaching of the whole course. Science is a practical subject and research suggests that success in future scientific study, or a scientific career, requires good practical skills.

Cambridge International AS and A Level Marine Science can form part of an ideal subject combination for learners who want to study Marine Biology or Environmental Science at university or to follow a career in shipping, fisheries, tourism or aquaculture.

Syllabuses

The syllabus year refers to the year in which the examination will be taken.

  • 2022 - 2024 Syllabus (PDF, 740KB)
    • 2022 - 2024 Syllabus update (PDF, 164KB)
  • 2025 - 2027 Syllabus (PDF, 1MB)

Syllabus updates

  • Summary of the changes
    • We review all of our syllabuses regularly to make sure they continue to meet the needs of our schools and are up-to-date with current thinking. We have updated this syllabus and all assessment materials to improve the clarity and consistency between Marine Science and other sciences in the Cambridge International AS & A Level suite. These changes are for examination in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

      How has the syllabus changed?

      • We have an updated subject content section to reflect current practice in the field. The content has been restructured into nine new topics and learning outcomes rewritten to make the requirements more explicit and help teachers with what needs to be taught and learnt.
      • Investigative skills and the scientific method have become an essential part of the course underpinning many of the syllabus topics. A further emphasis on investigative skills will better prepare students for successful study of a science course at university level, for which some practical exposure is important.

      How has the assessment changed?

      The assessment objectives have been updated and regrouped into three new assessment objectives:

      • AO1 Knowledge and understanding
      • AO2 Handling and applying information
      • AO3 Experimental skills and investigations (The testing of AO3 is new to this syllabus, allowing a further emphasis on the teaching of investigative skills).

      When do these changes take place?

      The updated syllabus is for examination from June and November 2022 onwards. Please see the 2022-2024 syllabus above for full details.

  • Teaching and learning resources
    • Support

      We have a comprehensive range of materials to help you teach the 2022-2024 syllabus including:

      • Scheme of work
      • Learner guide
      • Specimen Paper answers
      • Example Candidate Responses.

      These materials are available on our School Support Hub.

      Endorsed resources

      View the supporting resource for Cambridge International AS & A Level Marine Science (9693).

      Cambrige International Marine Science front cover (Cambridge University Press)

      Marine Science for Cambridge International AS & A Level (Cambridge University Press)

      Help students explore the wonders of the underwater world and develop their theoretical and practical marine science skills. Following extensive classroom research, this series has been revised by experienced teachers for examination from 2022.

      Read more on the Cambridge University press website

Subscribe to syllabus updates

Important notices

  • Syllabus availability
    • Up to examination in 2021, this syllabus is available in the June series in all administrative zones. It is also available in the November exam series for schools in Mauritius and New Zealand (upon approval) only.

      From 2022 this syllabus will be available in all administrative zones in both the June and November series. Check the administrative zones for your school.

  • Grade descriptions
    • For some subjects, the syllabus states that Grade Descriptions will be made available after first assessment in 2020, 2021 or 2022.

      Publication of grade descriptions was paused in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the temporary changes to the grading standard that have been in place for 2020, 2021 and 2022. We are currently working on producing these grade descriptions. This work will make sure that grade descriptions reflect examination outcomes appropriately and are based on the more stable grading standard that we expect to have in place for June 2023 onwards.

  • Front covers
    • From 2020, we have made some changes to the wording and layout of the front covers of our question papers to reflect the new Cambridge International branding and to make instructions clearer for candidates - learn more.

School Support Hub

We provide a wide range of support so that teachers can give their learners the best possible preparation for Cambridge programmes and qualifications. For teachers at registered Cambridge schools, support materials for specific syllabuses are available from the School Support Hub (username and password required).

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