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Assessment
How Cambridge International AS and A Level Computer Science is assessed
AS Level is Papers 1 and 2. The full A Level adds Papers 3 and 4, either all in one series or staged, with AS taken first. Calculators aren’t allowed in any paper.
Syllabus 9618, for exams in 2026 and in 2027–2029 (two syllabuses with the same paper structure).
AS Level (Papers 1–2)
Paper 1: Theory Fundamentals
Written, all questions compulsory
- Time
- 1 h 30 min
- Marks
- 75
- Weight
- 50% of AS, 25% of A Level
Paper 2: Fundamental Problem-solving and Programming Skills
Written, answers in pseudocode
- Time
- 2 h
- Marks
- 75
- Weight
- 50% of AS, 25% of A Level
A Level adds Papers 3 and 4
Paper 3: Advanced Theory
Written, all questions compulsory
- Time
- 1 h 30 min
- Marks
- 75
- Weight
- 25% of A Level
Paper 4: Practical
Programming on a computer, without internet; you submit your code and test evidence
- Time
- 2 h 30 min
- Marks
- 75
- Weight
- 25% of A Level
Paper 4 is an on-computer programming exam in Java, Visual Basic (.NET) or Python, all in console mode.
From the official Cambridge International syllabus, checked October 2026. Read the syllabus
Syllabus content
What’s on the Cambridge International A Level Computer Science syllabus
AS Level
- Information representation
- Communication
- Hardware
- Processor fundamentals
- System software
- Security, privacy and data integrity
- Ethics and ownership
- Databases
- Algorithm design and problem-solving
- Data types and structures
- Programming
- Software development
A Level
- Data representation
- Communication and internet technologies
- Hardware and virtual machines
- System software
- Security
- Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Computational thinking and problem-solving
- Further programming
Where marks are lost
Common Cambridge International A Level Computer Science mistakes
Mixing up stacks and queues.
A stack is last in, first out, with one pointer to the top. A queue is first in, first out, with front and rear pointers.
Getting the two’s complement range wrong.
Eight-bit two’s complement runs from −128 to +127. The leftmost bit has a place value of −128.
Confusing primary and foreign keys.
A primary key uniquely identifies each record in its table. A foreign key is a field that links to the primary key of another table.
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FAQ
Cambridge International A Level Computer Science questions, answered.
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