What will you do on this course?
This is designed for students who gained a 4-9 pass at GCSE and would benefit from continuing maths studies to support other subjects, or for access to employment, but do not wish to undertake a full AS/A Level in mathematics. While not an absolute requirement it is very strongly suggested that if you are doing a subject that requires mathematics you should take this qualification. The subjects that it supports are Business, Economics, Psychology, Biology, Geography, Chemistry, Computing and DT at A Level, and also the BTEC courses. The Core Maths qualification consolidates and builds on students’ mathematical knowledge and develops further mathematical understanding and skills in the application of maths to authentic problems, thereby offering progression from GCSE mathematics. The qualification provides a sound basis for the mathematical demands that students will face at university and within employment across a broad range of academic, professional and technical fields. While some content will be familiar from GCSE we will also be applying this knowledge to real life contexts and adding additional content that may be of use in other subjects and in business.
How will you be assessed?
There are two 1 hour and 40 minute papers:
Paper 1 – “Comprehension” assessing Applications of Statistics, Probability, Linear Programming, sequences and growth. There is a pre-released booklet and two extended tasks (40%)
Paper 2 – “Applications” assessing the same topics but with one longer and three shorter tasks (60%)
What could this course lead to?
A Level 3 qualification worth up to 20 UCAS points (equivalent to 1 AS Level)
"Whilst we would not discriminate against students who do not/are unable to take a Core Maths course... we welcome the ethos behind this development. For example, students in social sciences, business, psychology, sciences and health sciences who are not taking A/AS Level Maths may find the Core Maths element useful in preparing for university study where a working application of maths or statistics may be required”
Aston University
Requirements
GCSE Mathematics Grade 4-9
What syllabus do you follow?
Edexcel (Pearson) Mathematics in Context 7MC0