How similar is the style of A Level Maths to GCSE?

Hi,

Just been wondering what exactly makes A Level Maths such a step up from GCSE and the main differences between them. I understand maths is maths but would I be right in saying there are less 'word' problems at A Level maths and more just raw numbers (which I like) than at GCSE? If so are there more differences/defining features of A Level maths and how hard would it be to understand the concepts? I understand that it is completely subjective on how difficult we find maths but say for an A* at GCSE, what grade is likely with hard work?

in the old spec yes pure modules are less wordy but applied ones can still be wordy, not sure about new spec

I've heard the new spec means we are required to take applied ones grrr

pretty much always had to take applied ones unless u were taking pure maths as an A level, you could take a look at a spec paper for your board on their website btw

Hahaha I feel silly not thinking to do that! How do you think that someone who got an A* in Maths would do if they kept a similar aptitude? Would it result in a higher or lower grade because I've heard Maths is that much harder at A Level

well for me I kept at the same pace(got an A*) and was failing at the start of AS(C's and D's but once it clicks it gets pretty easy(now predicted an A*), you will have to work though- again not sure about new spec

Hahaha I feel silly not thinking to do that! How do you think that someone who got an A* in Maths would do if they kept a similar aptitude? Would it result in a higher or lower grade because I've heard Maths is that much harder at A Level

Hi, I got an A* in A-level maths (finished this year) and only got an A in GCSE (1 ums off an A* - peak )

From what i've been told from my A-level teacher, who was also teaching the new syllabus for GCSE maths (1-9 grading system), you guys effectively had the 'easier' topics from C3/C4 (not sure if it was C4, can't remember) which we didn't have when we're were doing GCSE. So in other words, you'll probably have a better preperation for A-level maths then us old spec people

Yeah I've seen the old spec papers and I shrivelled thinking about what the jump from GCSE to A level must have been like for you guys. Congrats on the A* tho

I sat Edexcel GCSE Maths

I am currently sitting AQA A level Maths


Huge difference in terms of the wording. GCSEs were very 'English-ly' whereas A level is more 'Math-sy'.

Layout difference was a big shock to me at first. Loads of spacing for working (which suits my thinking perfectly as I NEED to write down all my thoughts)

There are less topics to learn in A level however the topics are a lot harder and link together significantly more than GCSE where you learn one topic and it doesn't correlate much to any other topics in the syllabus.

You could get away at GCSE Maths pretty easily if you did a few past papers. With A level maths, it's not as hard as people make it on here (everyone f***ing exaggerates it like it's solving the cure to cancer) but you do need to think veeerryryyyyyyyy logically and think outside the box a little. Some questions may not click straight away like GCSE so you need to sit there for a minute and think; don't panic which is where I went wrong in my first AS exam.

At GCSE I got an A* in maths. Honestly I didn't find the transition between GCSE and A-level difficult, and many of the concepts in C1 (easiest module) are very simular to GCSE, so it felt more of a review. The style of questions are slightly different though, as the questions are more focused on functions and manipulation of algebra, and less of basic computation of numbers. At AS I was so excited to learn more complex maths that I started to learn C3 and C4 (A2 modules) before my AS exams, but this lead to me neglecting C2 and S1 (Harder AS modules) past papers, which resulted in me getting a B (2ums from an A) at AS. Just a heads up in case you make the same mistake as me.
This year I got an A* in maths, and an A* in further maths (I took AS and A2 this year) so even if the first year doesn't go as well as you would like, you progress naturally through the second year and the course doesn't seem to get more difficult, in my opinion.

in gcse you might give 15 to 20 questions. more room for error. in a level you might only have 7 or 8 questions. mess up one question and you could drop up to 3 grades. it does happen.

my experience from the old spec

Thanks for the heads up, would you say that because there are less questions, it grants us greater flexibility on time allowance, e.g would I be able to think about the question longer before answering it than GCSE where we have to work relatively quickly?