IAL One Year Programme

IAL stands for International A-Levels, so in terms of the syllabus content and the exam topics, it’s actually pretty similar to GCE/A-levels. The only significant difference is in how the exams are structured. IAL has 6 papers, 4 which cover compulsory topics. These are called P1, P2, P3, and P4, where P indicates Pure Maths. There are also additional electives that you can choose from: Mechanics (M1 and M2), Statistics (S1 and S2), or Decisions (D1). You must pick 2 electives out of that range. The most popular combinations are M1 and M2, or S1 and S2. Focusing purely on either mechanics or statistics gives students a comprehensive overview of that specific topic. It is also common to choose M1 and S1, which will offer broader but less comprehensive knowledge of both.

GCE/A-levels have recently changed their syllabus, and their exams differ somewhat. For Maths, 3 final exams are taken all in one go at the end of two years. These papers are Pure Maths 1, Pure Maths 2, and Statistics and Mechanics. In terms of content, Pure Maths 1 and 2 are about the same as P1-4 in IAL. There are very few differences. On the other hand, Statistics and Mechanics covers the material from S1 and M1 with a few additions. Students will often consider the difference in number of exam papers when picking IAL or GCE.

Is the Statistics or Mechanics course closer to DSE?

The answer depends on whether you have taken DSE Physics before. Mechanics is more similar to physics than other topics in maths, so if you have already studied DSE Physics, it might be more intuitive and relatable to you. If you have not taken DSE Physics, we generally recommend you to choose statistics. It may cover new concepts and information, but it is intuitively more similar and related to DSE Maths.

Which syllabus is more difficult?

Since the syllabus content is so similar, the only big difference is with the exams. In IAL, assessments are broken up into 6 different exams. It is fairly common to take 3 exams after your first year, usually P1, P2, and S1 or M1. Then in the next year you will complete P3 and P4, as well as your remaining elective. This is highly beneficial because you can spread your exams over two years. If you were unhappy with the results of your first year exams, you can retake them in the second year. Moreover, your studying and revision can be spread out, so you only have to focus on a few topics at any one time.

Conversely, A-level exams are taken in one go at the end of the second year, after you have finished the entire course. It consists of 3 big exam papers.

So to summarise, there is not much difference between GCE/A-level Maths and IAL Maths in terms of difficulty or content. But the exam format is very different, so do assess for yourself which format will suit you better.

Most universities require students to take three AL (A level) / IAL (International A level) subjects. For students who have gotten used to studying 5 or so subjects prior to high school, it can be difficult to narrow down the options to three. That’s why it’s a good idea to base your choices on what you want to study at university. For example, if you want to study medicine, you will probably need to take AL / IAL Chemistry and preferably Biology. Both are needed for UK medical schools, but different schools may have different requirements. The same logic applies for other subjects. If you want to study Economics or Engineering, you probably need Further Maths. If you want to go into a top Law school like LSE, they may require a good combination of science, maths, and humanities, targeting candidates that are able to demonstrate logic and superb writing skills. So if you’re sure what you want to study at university, choosing your AL / IAL subjects accordingly is a good decision.

Of course, if you are unsure about what to study at university, the best thing to do is leave your options open. Think carefully - what subjects do you not mind studying at university? Choose a combination of subjects that you are still interested in, but that can lead down several paths.

Another common question students ask is: Three AL / IAL subjects fulfil the requirements, but are three A-levels enough to get me into a good university? Usually, yes. But if you want to demonstrate your strengths as a learner and think that you can handle the workload, you can choose to do four subjects. Some HK schools do require four subjects on a conditional offer, but you will find that even the top UK schools (Cambridge, Oxford, London School of Economics (LSE) , Imperial, UCL etc.) usually formally require three A-levels.

However, these requirements change if you want to stay in Hong Kong and study medicine, for example - med students in HK need four A-levels. In addition, Chinese University does not count Chinese as a qualifying subject, and counts the combination of Maths and Further Maths together as one subject for medical applicants. Students in this specific scenario must be careful to choose subjects that fulfil the requirements and “count” according to their universities. In most other cases, three A-levels are enough.

If you are a chemistry student wondering whether to take the IAL (International A-Level) in Hong Kong, or the AL (A-Level) offered in the UK, there are several factors you should consider. Though the courses are equivalent qualifications and are both A-Levels, there are some minor differences between the two. Let’s go through these differences below.

UK A-Level offers more exam boards

In Hong Kong, you may either take your IAL Chemistry exams from the CIE or Edexcel exam board. The CIE IAL Chemistry exam has five papers, whereas the Edexcel IAL Chemistry exam has six. In the UK, there are many more options for exam boards, such as the Edexcel, CIE, OCR, and AQA. In terms of papers, a typical UK AL Chemistry student usually takes 3 exam papers (2 exam papers for AS Chemistry). Resit is also allowed, but all the examination components are to be taken in the same exam session. The exam session duration is longer for the IAL than the UK A-level, as more papers would be sat by the students.

Differences in exams arrangements and styles

There are some advantages to having more exam papers in the IAL. One benefit is that the mark distribution is spread out more widely per paper, which means that each exam paper counts for less. In addition, each exam paper will only cover a few topics.

IAL exams are typically held in three sessions - January, May, and October, while the UK A-level exam is only held one time a year in May/June normally (There might be exceptions due to the Covid situation). IAL students can arrange sitting for different exam papers in different exam sessions e.g. Sitting Paper 1 and 2 in October, paper 3 and 4 in January etc. This allows IAL students to focus their study on a limited number of topics right before each upcoming exam. This arguably allows for greater concentration and information retention. Notably, IAL Chemistry does still have one final paper that covers all the topics in one go, but most of the papers have limited focus.

The style of exams also differs somewhat between HK IAL and UK A-Level. In the HK IAL exam for Chemistry, the questions tend to be phrased in a more complicated, subjective way. Some students may find them more difficult to parse. In contrast, UK A-Level exam questions tend to be more straightforward, but with more cross-topic questions. Students hoping to succeed in IAL Chemistry should familiarise themselves with both the curriculum content and the style of exam questions. With the differences above, it is fair to assume that the IAL Chemistry exam is more difficult overall than UK A-Level. However, this difference is ultimately small.

Differences in content difficulty

No matter whether you are taking IAL in Hong Kong or AL in the UK, it all still counts as an A-level. The content and level of difficulty between both exams are very similar and mostly overlapping, as the curriculums are designed to be mostly identical. After all, the two qualifications are supposed to be equivalent. There may be only some minute differences. For example, some UK A-Level exam boards require more focus on organic chemistry, while some require more study of chemical reactions and the theory behind them. But in general, the differences in topic and content are limited between HKIAL and UKAL.

If you are a local Hong Kong student who wants to study International A-Level (IAL) Maths by yourself, perhaps because you’re applying for a UK university - you are not alone! Many students choose to self-study IAL subjects in order to get a better chance of studying in the UK.

If you are a maths student, you may be wondering how different DSE maths is from IAL maths. Before we discuss the differences, we must understand the different components of IAL maths.

• 4 compulsory units: Pure maths 1, Pure maths 2, Pure maths 3, Pure maths 4
• 2 elective units: You may choose 2 from the options of Statistics 1, Statistics 2, Mechanics 1, Mechanics 2, or Decision Maths 1.

The most popular combinations for electives are [Stats 1 and 2] OR [Mech 1 and 2]. This is because students will study each topic in its entirety, in a focused fashion. Another popular choice is to take [Stats 1 and Mech 1]. This is appealing because students will study the technically easier parts of each topic, and gain a wide range of knowledge too.

So how different are the components of DSE Maths from the components of IAL Maths? How much do you need to cover to make up any differences?

The answer depends heavily on your background with DSE. Not only will most DSE Maths students study Core Maths, but many will also take Extended Module 1 or Extended Module 2. How easily you can transition into IAL Maths depends on whether you have already studied Extended Module 1 or Extended Module 2.

For example, perhaps some students have taken Core Maths and Extended Module 2. These students will have covered about 80% of the Pure Maths components in IAL, and only need to self-learn the additional 20% information that doesn’t overlap.

Or perhaps some other students have taken Core Maths and Extended Module 1. These students will have covered less of the IAL Pure Maths components, perhaps about 60% of the modules. However, these DSE students have a different advantage. If they choose to take the IAL statistics elective, then they will have studied much of it already. This is because DSE’s Extended Module 1 is primarily about statistics.

The difficulty of self-studying IAL Maths also depends on whether you took Physics at DSE. Students who took Physics have basically covered all of the IAL Mechanics 1 and 2 modules already. There is a huge overlap, and you may only need to study an additional 10% of the IAL modules to make up the difference.

Overall, students who have taken Core Maths, Extended Module 2, and Physics at DSE are recommended to take IAL Pure Maths 1-4 and Mechanics 1 and 2.

Conversely, students who have taken Core Maths and Extended Module 1 at DSE are recommended to take IAL Pure Maths 1-4 and Statistics 1 and 2.

If you have not taken DSE Physics or studied Extended Modules 1 or 2, self-studying IAL Maths will be more difficult for you. A-Level Maths is basically the DSE core syllabus and extended modules, plus a bit more additional material. Students who have only completed the Core Maths component at DSE may then only have approximately 50% of the IAL Pure Maths components covered. Pure Maths 1 and 2 will already contain a few elements that are unfamiliar to these students, and Pure Maths 3 and 4 will be entirely new, unfamiliar material. Moreover, these students may also struggle with the IAL electives. IAL Mechanics and Statistics have very little overlap with DSE Core Maths, and Statistics 2 will be entirely unfamiliar material.

In conclusion, the ease of your transition from DSE Maths to IAL Maths depends strongly on whether you have taken the DSE Extended Modules or DSE Physics. If you have only taken DSE Core Maths, you must carefully consider how much time and effort you are willing to put into self-studying IAL Maths.

In International A-Level Chemistry, the highest grade students can achieve is not an A, but an A*. This distinction is what separates great students from top students. Generally, you will need 80% overall to get an A, and 90% or above to get an A*. Students who are aiming for an A* therefore cannot afford to lose many marks. Not only must they learn the material in a very detailed and comprehensive fashion, they also need to possess good exam techniques. Here are 4 top tips to improve your chances of hitting the mark scheme requirements, and reduce the chances of answering a question incorrectly.

1) Familiarise yourself with the format of exam questions

Students who are knowledgeable and confident in Chemistry might still do poorly in exams, if they are unfamiliar with what examiners expect from them. That’s why it is important to have a good understanding of the common terms used in exam questions. Common terms include: deduce, describe, explain, etc. Make sure you know the difference between these terms. Also, it’s very beneficial to be able to look at the number of marks allocated to each question and figure out how much information it requires. This way, you know how much you have to write, and how much detail to include.

Moreover, in the IAL syllabus, the phrasing of the question is very important. Phrasing communicates the meaning, but also indicates what kind of answer the examiner approximately wants in response. The best way to understand the relationship between question type and the expected answer type is to do lots of past paper questions for your syllabus. Not only will you effectively revise the syllabus material, you will also improve your exam technique, and the ability to comprehend and respond to exam questions.

2) Pay attention to units, sign and number of significant figures of the numerical solution

In science subjects, there are often a lot of math components, calculations, and data to process. Usually, the requirements of the numerical answer will be listed at the end of the question. Sometimes, students fall into the error of ignoring or forgetting the units in the question. Even though they knew how to answer the question and the numerical solution was correct, they lost marks because of unit errors! For example, when calculating Enthalpy change of a reaction, many students will forget to convert the unit Joules back to Kilojoules, and also forget to put the sign in front of the answer. This leads to possible incorrect final solutions.

Often, the only difference between an A and A* student is their attention to detail, and the care they take while calculating. To prevent careless mistakes with units, you can complete lots of practice questions before your exam. With each practice, remind yourself - which formula fits the question, and which units do I need to use? You can also keep things clear by writing the unit beside each number in your rough working out. That way, you will reduce the chances of forgetting what units you’re using.

3) Learn the structure for long questions

Chemistry, like the other sciences, will sometimes include long questions worth 4 marks or more. Some of these questions may require more complex calculations and some are theory based questions. For example, a long question might ask you to talk about transition metal complexes and why they are coloured. Another theory based question might ask you to explain the mechanisms within organic chemistry.

These long questions may seem daunting because they are worth a lot of points, but each question type is structured around similar scenarios. If you familiarise yourself with the question types, it will be much easier to respond well. As a rule, if you miss out on marks, it is because you didn’t respond with enough detail and hit the required points.

To prepare for these long questions, students should identify the different types of long questions and cross reference with past paper mark schemes to get a sense of how to hit the points. Students can mark down the keywords in their notebook that are usually present in the marking scheme and use them during the exam. For complex calculations, it is highly recommended to write down a few words about what is calculating instead of just stating out the equation. It will be easier for revision and also clearer for the examiner to mark on it. It is possible to get full marks, even with these high-mark questions!

4) Be familiar with in-class practical experiments

GCE IAL Chemistry consists of questions that relate to their in-class practical experiments which are worth a significant proportion of the final grades. Often, IAL Chemistry students may be self-studying the syllabus and do not have the opportunity to experience conducting experiments in class. For these students, experiment-based questions in the exam may cause them to lose marks and respond poorly. To address this, self-study students should take care to spend ample time revising material on experiments, as well as studying theory and practicing calculations. For example, it is important to know the steps of your typical scientific experiment - how to set up independent, dependent, and control variables, how to measure for results, how to address anomalies, etc. Students must also be aware of possible assumptions in the experiment, and know how to explain possible errors when conducting correlation experiments.

If students only concentrate on book theory, they may not understand correlational experiments entirely. If there is no way of conducting the experiment yourself under safe conditions, you can also find chemistry websites online and find video examples of the experiment being conducted. This tends to be the next best thing to conducting it yourself.

Overall, these tips may seem insignificant but are very important for boosting your results to an A*. Besides knowing the syllabus material well, it is also crucial to know exam techniques and do lots of past papers. If you develop confidence in all these requirements, you will be well on your way to ace your IAL Chemistry exams!

The A-Levels aka. Advanced Levels are upper-secondary qualifications that many students will take before progressing to university or post-secondary education. GCE A-Level stands for the General Certificate of Education: Advanced Level. This syllabus is primarily taught in the UK, though a rare few overseas schools will also do GCE A-Levels. It differs from International A-level (IAL), which is a curriculum specifically for schools outside of the UK.

Besides region, there are a few differences between the two curricula.

Available exam boards

GCE A-Levels have relatively more exam boards compared to IAL. There are five available boards from the UK, including AQA, OCR, Edexcel, GCEA, and WJEC. IAL only has three available exam boards, including Cambridge, Edexcel, and AQA. Note that Cambridge has no available GCE A-Level curriculum. They only offer IAL and Pre-U, an alternative qualification equivalent to the GCE.

Subject differences

Each exam board and curriculum offers various topics. If you choose to take GCE A-level, then you will have relatively more subjects to choose from across the available exam boards (AQA, OCR, Edexcel, GCEA, WJEC). For example, Edexcel offers both GCE and IAL - but Edexcel GCE includes 52 topics whereas IAL only includes 30. If you want to take Edexcel Chinese or Statistics, these are only offered through Edexcel GCE, not IAL. AQA also offers both GCE and IAL, but offers 35 topics for GCE and only 12 topics for IAL. OCR only offers GCE, but has 36 topics on offer.

Cambridge (CIE) is a little different from the others. It does not offer GCE A-Level, but has an alternative curriculum called Pre-U. Pre-U has fewer topics compared to GCE - only 25. However, Cambridge is advantageous because it focuses on IAL, offering 67 topics. For example, if you wanted to take Chinese at IAL, you would only be able to take this subject with Cambridge.

Though GCE in general has more topics than IAL, the most popular and mainstream subjects will still be available across all exam boards and syllabi, e.g. Maths, Sciences, English, Economics, etc. If you are interested in a more niche subject, you can look at specific exam boards.

Overall, students who choose to take GCE have more options for topics and various exam boards, but even IAL students can access many topics, especially those offered by Cambridge (CIE). Most of the time, students do not have the option to choose between GCE and IAL anyway. It is dependent on what your school offers.

Examinations

GCE A-levels are assessed cumulatively. This means that you study the curriculum for two years and take the final exams all in one go. GCE A-level final results are separate from AS Level results, which are not counted towards the final.

In contrast, IAL is assessed by units. For example in IAL Edexcel science, you can take an examination covering three units which counts as an AS result, then add on an extra three units. Three AS-Levels units and three extra units will count as your entire A-level grade.

Students often prefer the unit-by-unit structure for exams because it’s more straightforward and arguably easier. You can finish reviewing a unit, take the examination, and leave it behind to focus on the next units. Cumulative exams like the GCE A-level finals are more challenging, where students must remember everything they learnt over two years.

Exam schedules for GCE A-level also differ from International A-Level. For GCE, you can only take exams once a year, during the May/June finals period. In IAL, you have 2-3 chances annually to take exams - typically in January, May/June, and October. May/June is the main examination period. Multiple examination periods are beneficial because it is easier to retake exams. For example, if you did poorly on your GCE finals, you must wait an entire year to retake them. This may affect your plans to go to university and at worst, you may have to go a year late. In IAL, exams are by unit so you can target the exact topics that you tested poorly on and retake just that exam a few months later. For example, a failed exam in January can be retaken in May/June. You will have a chance to improve your score without delaying any plans of going to university.

Reputation

Lastly, parents and students may wonder if there are any differences between GCE A-level vs International A-level in terms of recognition or reputation. The GCE and IAL certification is equal according to worldwide top universities, which will assess them equally based on student grades.

This article has focused primarily on general differences between GCE A-level and International A-level. If you want to know more about subject-specific differences across the two curricula, please browse the subject specific page for the GCE A-level and please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

For enthusiastic students who want to target the most challenging parts of the International A-Level Chemistry syllabus, here is a detailed list of topics that may need more revision.

DSE students can prepare for IAL Physics relatively easily. There are just a few differences between the two curriculums to keep in mind. Firstly, DSE and IAL Physics topics are mostly the same. However, please note there will be a couple of compulsory topics in IAL Physics that were electives in DSE. There’s a chance that a DSE student didn’t choose that topic and therefore needs to self-study for IAL Physics.

Moreover, the exam styles are different. IAL Physics prefers case-study questions that reflect real life situations, or problems that have a story behind it. Examiners are looking at whether a student can understand the question, deduce what is going on in this specific situation, and apply the physics theories they learnt in class. Keep this in mind as you resolve these questions.

In addition, IAL Physics emphasizes the relevance that different topics have to each other whereas DSE Physics tends to treat each topic as a separate unit. In A2 (second-year IAL), for example, the first few concepts and topics you learn will be strongly related to the last topic studied in AS (first-year IAL). In the A2 exams, it’s highly likely that your question will address multiple topics at once. Though it’s pretty common for students to forget earlier material since the exams are split over two years, remember that answering correctly depends on you recalling the relationships between different topics.