AS and A Level Business redevelopment - FAQs 

We answer some of the most frequently asked questions about our plans to redevelop our AS/A Level Business.

Why are you redeveloping your qualifications?

As more and more students consider business at AS and A Level, we want to ensure our qualifications prepare them for their chosen next steps, whether that's further education or the world of work.  

To help achieve this goal, we recently undertook a review of our existing specifications. This involved gathering feedback from teachers and other key stakeholders on what they'd like to see more of at AS/A Level, as well as areas for improvement. 

Our new qualifications are being created in line with our findings, ensuring they are relevant to today, meet students’ needs and help them to succeed in the future as commercially minded, innovative individuals.

When can I start teaching the new specifications?

We have now submitted our draft specifications and sample assessment materials to Ofqual, the regulator, for their review. 

It’s our aim to have the qualification accredited and ready for first teach in September 2025 (subject to Ofqual approval).  

We will keep you informed throughout the process – sign up for our email updates to stay in the loop.   

What are the planned changes?

Our new qualifications have been designed for all AS and A Level Business teachers, including non-specialists.  

Subject to accreditation, our key planned changes include: 

  • streamlined content, especially that which overlaps with A Level Accounting and Economics such as accounting concepts and factors of production. You can expect a greater emphasis on the practical nature of business and less on theories and models 
  • shorter, restructured specifications that are organised by topic, making them easier to navigate and making sure you know exactly what needs to be taught 
  • more accessible assessments, which include low tariff and multiple choice questions in every exam, and a consistent paper structure with different content assessed on each paper 
  • adding new and redeveloping existing content to ensure it is relevant to today’s business landscape. There will be a greater focus on modern content such as sustainability, digital developments in business such as AI, work life balance and customer experience. 
What could the assessment model look like?

To ensure a consistent and accessible experience for students, we're planning to make several changes to our assessments. 

Subject to accreditation, these include: 

  1. a consistent paper structure and weighting: all papers within a qualification will have a consistent structure and command words. They will also be equally weighted. 
  2. reduced synopticity: synoptic assessment (applying knowledge from across the course) will now only be included in AS Level Paper 2 and A Level Paper 3.  
  3. enhanced accessibility: we're increasing the number of multiple choice questions and including lower-tariff questions across each paper. We also plan to shorten our case studies and include fewer question types to lessen cognitive load during exams. 
Will there be a textbook?

We plan to have a new, endorsed textbook available ahead of the first teach in September 2025 (subject to accreditation). 

What support can I expect?

Whether you're new to OCR or have been teaching with us for a while, we’ll offer a range of free support and resources to help you deliver our qualifications with confidence:  

  • An expert subject advisor to advise you, share updates and resources   
  • sample assessment materials and guides to help you navigate our exams  
  • curriculum planners and schemes of work, supporting planning and delivery  
  • a wide range of freely available planning, teaching and learning resources from OCR, accessed via Teach Cambridge* 
  • a textbook and new teaching and learning resources from third parties  
  • Access to Scripts – our free, on-demand service that allows you to download copies of students’ completed question papers 
  • candidate exemplars, practice papers and access to ExamBuilder: our free question-building platform that helps you to build your own tests as our bank of past live-series questions grows.  

*You will be able to access these free OCR resources on our secure platform, Teach Cambridge.   

If you already have a Teach Cambridge account, you will be able to log straight in. If you do not currently have access to the platform, please visit our website for guidance on how to gain it. You will also be able to sign up for a two-week free trial.

I don’t teach OCR Business now, but I’m interested in moving to the new specifications. How do I switch?

If your school or college is an approved OCR centre, teaching other qualifications with us, you can simply download our specification once it is accredited and start teaching from September 2025*.   

To help us support you, let us know if you're planning to teach the qualification by filling in this form.  

Please feel free to contact us on 01223 553998 or email us if you have any questions.  

If your school or college doesn’t offer any OCR qualifications currently, you may need to register with us. Please get in touch with our Customer Development Team, who can guide you through the process.  

  

*subject to accreditation 

I’m teaching OCR’s existing AS/A Level Business. What do I need to do?

For now, all you need to do is explore our draft resources and make sure you are signed up for our email updates to receive the latest news about our developments. 

Once we are accredited, we will let you know by email. You can then download and start teaching our new specification from September 2025*.   

To help us support you, let us know if you're planning to teach with us by filling in this form.  

You can contact us on 01223 553998 or by email if you have any questions.  

*subject to accreditation