AQA Geography gives pupils the opportunity to explore the world around them and better understand how it works. This aims to develop and extend Key Stage 3 by looking at both human Geography in terms of cities, development, resources and population and also physical Geography such as volcanoes, weather hazards, rainforests and UK landscapes. This is all embedded in real world examples.

The most important aspect is that you are interested in the world around you. If you are keen to discover more about people across the world and want to learn about how the planet can sustain itself in the future, then this may be the GCSE for you. Geography is now 100% exam based and candidates will need to able to understand complex questions, maps and resources. The required reading age of the examinations is 16 and candidates must be able to develop their ideas and points during extended writing tasks. It also offers the opportunity for fieldwork so you should be an independent learner.

The course is divided into 3 papers with the following sections:

Paper one: Living with the physical environment

• Section A: The challenge of natural hazards
• Section B: The living world
• Section C: Physical landscapes in the UK

Paper two: Challenges in the human environment

• Section A: Urban issues and challenges
• Section B: The changing economic world
• Section C: The challenge of resource management

Paper three: Geographical applications

• Section A: Issue evaluation
• Section B: Fieldwork

There are three written examinations:

Paper 1: 35% of total GCSE

Paper 2: 35% of total GCSE

Paper 3: 30% of total GCSE