Business Studies

Exam Board: Cambridge Assessment International Education

Syllabus Number: 0986

What will I be studying?

1.    Understanding business activity 

  • Business activity
  • Classification of businesses
  • Enterprise, business growth and size
  • Types of business organisation
  • Business objectives and
  • stakeholder objectives

2.    People in business 

  • Motivating workers
  • Organisation and management
  • Recruitment, selection and training of workers
  • Internal and external communication

3.    Marketing 

  • Marketing, competition and the customer
  • Market research
  • Marketing mix
  • Marketing strategy

4.    Operations management 

  • Production of goods and services
  • Costs, scale of production & break-even analysis
  • Achieving quality production
  • Location decisions

5.    Financial information and decisions

  • Business finance: needs and sources
  • Cash-flow forecasting and working capital
  • Income statements
  • Balance sheets analysis of accounts

6.    External influences on business activity

  • Government economic objectives and policies
  • Environmental and ethical issues
  • Business and the international economy

How will I be assessed?

This IGCSE has two examination papers at the end of the course:

Paper 1: 1-hour 30 minutes – 50%
Written examination consisting of four questions requiring a mixture of short answers and structured data responses. Candidates answer all questions.
80 marks. Externally assessed.

Paper 2: 1-hour 30 minutes – 50%
Written examination consisting of four questions based on a case study, provided as an insert with the paper. Candidates answer all questions. 
80 marks. Externally assessed.

Is there anything else I need to know about this subject course?

Students will need to have a genuine interest in, and be willing to follow the news media with particular reference to business and economics items. There will be an opportunity to set up and run a mini-enterprise during the course.

Examination method

Written exam 100%