GCSE Combined Science specification
GCSE Combined Science (also called Double Award or Trilogy/Synergy depending on board) is a single course covering biology, chemistry and physics that is worth two GCSE grades (reported as a paired grade, e.g. 6-6). It is the most common science route, building scientific knowledge, working-scientifically skills and required practical technique, and giving access to A-level sciences.
100% externally assessed by written exams; there is no NEA or coursework. Most boards use six papers - two each in biology, chemistry and physics (AQA Trilogy, Edexcel, OCR). AQA Synergy is the exception, using four longer papers organised around integrated themes. Practical skills are assessed indirectly through exam questions on a set of required practicals (16 for AQA, 18 for Edexcel, ~8 Practical Activity Groups for OCR); students are not assessed while carrying them out.
High-level topics
The main areas of content and what a student is expected to know and do.
Cell structure, microscopy, cell division and transport (diffusion, osmosis, active transport), plus how cells form tissues, organs and systems including the digestive, circulatory and respiratory systems.
Communicable and non-communicable disease, the immune system, drug development, plus homeostasis, the nervous and hormonal systems and how the body maintains internal conditions.
Photosynthesis and respiration (aerobic and anaerobic), the factors affecting them and how organisms use the energy released.
DNA and genetics, reproduction, genetic inheritance and variation, natural selection, evolution and classification.
How organisms interact with each other and their environment, food chains, the carbon and water cycles, biodiversity and human impacts on the environment.
The structure of the atom, isotopes, the development and arrangement of the periodic table, and the properties of groups such as alkali metals, halogens and noble gases.
Ionic, covalent and metallic bonding, states of matter and the properties of materials, plus moles, relative formula mass, conservation of mass and chemical calculations.
Reactivity of metals, acids and bases, electrolysis, and exothermic/endothermic reactions including reaction profiles.
Rate and extent of chemical change (collision theory, equilibrium), crude oil and hydrocarbons, and chemical analysis including tests for gases and ions and chromatography.
Evolution of the atmosphere, greenhouse gases and climate change, plus the sustainable use of Earth's resources including potable water, recycling and life-cycle assessment.
Energy stores and transfers, conservation and dissipation of energy, power and efficiency, national and renewable energy resources, and electric circuits, mains electricity and the national grid.
Density, internal energy, changes of state and specific/latent heat, plus the structure of the atom, radioactivity, nuclear radiation and half-life.
Scalar and vector quantities, forces, motion (speed, acceleration, the equations of motion), Newton's laws, momentum and stopping distances.
Transverse and longitudinal waves, the electromagnetic spectrum and its uses and dangers, plus magnets, electromagnets and the motor effect.
Exam boards
The awarding bodies that offer this qualification, how their papers are structured, and what's distinctive about each - with links to the official specification.
AQA GCSE Combined Science: Trilogy
Papers & assessment
6 written papers - two each in biology, chemistry and physics. Each paper is 1h15, worth 70 marks and 16.7% of the GCSE; tiered Foundation/Higher. No NEA; 16 required practicals assessed in the written papers. Double award (two GCSE grades).
What's distinctive
Trilogy keeps biology, chemistry and physics as clearly separate disciplines (six discipline-specific papers), the most conventional structure. It mirrors AQA's separate-science specs, so content maps cleanly onto AQA Biology/Chemistry/Physics for schools running mixed groups.
Specification
Past papers & mark schemes
AQA GCSE Combined Science: Synergy
Papers & assessment
4 written papers - two 'Life and environmental sciences' papers and two 'Physical sciences' papers, each 1h45; tiered Foundation/Higher. No NEA; 16 required practicals assessed in the written papers. Double award (two GCSE grades).
What's distinctive
Synergy is AQA's alternative integrated Combined Science: content is organised into cross-cutting themes (e.g. building blocks, transport, interactions, explaining change) that draw connections across biology, chemistry and physics, rather than into separate single-science papers. Fewer, longer papers than Trilogy. It is a distinct qualification, not a different tier of Trilogy.
Specification
Past papers & mark schemes
Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Combined Science
Papers & assessment
6 written papers - Biology 1 & 2, Chemistry 1 & 2, Physics 1 & 2; each 1h10 and 60 marks; tiered Foundation/Higher (all papers entered at one tier). No NEA; 18 core practicals assessed in the written papers. Double award (two GCSE grades).
What's distinctive
Edexcel uses the largest set of mandated practicals (18 core practicals) and provides an explicit list of physics equations students must recall (Appendix: Equations in Physics). Discipline-based six-paper structure similar to AQA Trilogy.
Specification
Past papers & mark schemes
OCR GCSE (9-1) Gateway Science Suite - Combined Science A
Papers & assessment
6 written papers across biology, chemistry and physics, each 1h10 and 60 marks (some papers combine topics across the two halves of a science); tiered Foundation/Higher. No NEA; practical skills assessed in exams via Practical Activity Groups (PAGs). Double award (two GCSE grades).
What's distinctive
Gateway A is OCR's concept-led suite, organising content into traditional discipline topics and using PAGs to frame required practical work rather than a fixed numbered list. It is one of OCR's two Combined Science suites.
Specification
Past papers & mark schemes
OCR GCSE (9-1) Twenty First Century Science Suite - Combined Science B
Papers & assessment
6 written papers across biology, chemistry and physics, tiered Foundation/Higher. No NEA; practical skills assessed in exams via Practical Activity Groups (PAGs). Double award (two GCSE grades).
What's distinctive
Twenty First Century Science B is OCR's context-led / scientific-literacy suite - content is framed around real-world questions ('How do organisms grow and develop?' etc.) and the nature of scientific evidence, originally developed with the University of York. It is the alternative to Gateway A; schools choose one of the two OCR suites.
Specification
Past papers & mark schemes
WJEC Eduqas GCSE (9-1) Combined Science (Double Award)
Papers & assessment
6 written components - two each in biology, chemistry and physics (Concepts in Biology/Chemistry/Physics, then a second component per science), each around 1h45 and 90 marks; tiered Foundation/Higher; linear. No NEA; practical work embedded and assessed in the exams. Double award (two GCSE grades). This is the Eduqas spec for centres in England.
What's distinctive
Eduqas is WJEC's brand for England-regulated (Ofqual) GCSEs. Combined Science follows the standard three-science double-award model; physics equations are provided for use in the physics components.
Specification
Past papers & mark schemes
WJEC GCSE Science (Double Award)
Papers & assessment
Six unit assessments across biology, chemistry and physics, tiered Foundation/Higher; linear; no NEA (the 2016 spec for centres in Wales). Double award (two GCSE grades). A new WJEC GCSE The Sciences (Double Award) is being introduced for teaching from 2026 for centres in Wales, regulated by Qualifications Wales.
What's distinctive
WJEC is the awarding body for Wales (regulated by Qualifications Wales, not Ofqual); centres in England use the Eduqas version instead. WJEC is replacing the 2016 spec with GCSE The Sciences (Double Award) from 2026 as part of the new Curriculum for Wales suite.
Past papers & mark schemes
All boards deliver the same three sciences, award two GCSE grades, are tiered Foundation/Higher and linear, and have no coursework/NEA - practical skills are tested through exam questions on required practicals. The biggest structural choices are: (1) AQA offers two distinct specs - Trilogy (8464), six discipline-specific papers of 1h15, and Synergy (8465), four longer 1h45 papers built around integrated cross-science themes; a centre picks one. (2) OCR also offers two suites - Gateway A (J250), concept-led, and Twenty First Century B (J260), context-led / scientific-literacy with topics framed as real-world questions; again a centre picks one. (3) Edexcel (1SC0) and AQA Trilogy use the familiar six-paper Bio/Chem/Physics layout; Edexcel mandates the most practicals (18 core practicals vs AQA's 16) and gives an explicit list of physics equations to recall. (4) Eduqas vs WJEC is a regulator split, not a content split: Eduqas is the England-regulated (Ofqual) version, WJEC the Wales-regulated (Qualifications Wales) version, with WJEC moving to a new GCSE The Sciences (Double Award) from 2026 for Welsh centres. When choosing or revising, the practical points are: which AQA spec (Trilogy vs Synergy) or OCR suite (A vs B) the school uses, the number of papers and their length, and the exact required-practical/equation list for that board.
Original sources
Straight from the awarding bodies - the specifications these summaries are drawn from.
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