A Level Computer Science Tutoring, for Every Board
A Level Computer Science is half programming and half precise theory, and most students are much stronger in one than the other. Each board also examines programming in its own setting — AQA in an on-screen exam built on a skeleton program it issues beforehand, OCR through written problem-solving, Cambridge International through pseudocode on paper and a practical exam at a computer — and AQA and OCR add a programming project assessed as coursework.
Short answer
A Level Computer Science is offered online, one-to-one.
A private lesson runs 90 minutes and starts at USD 95 per lesson; lessons are booked singly or in packages.
No group class runs for this exam.
From USD 95 per lesson
- Structure shown for AQA, OCR, Cambridge International
- Live online lessons of 90 minutes
- From USD 95 per lesson
How A Level Computer Science is assessed, board by board
3 awarding bodies examine this subject, and they do not examine it the same way: different papers, different weightings, different practical arrangements. Find your board — it is printed on your school's timetable and on past papers — and read that block. Nothing on this page describes one board's paper as though it applied to all of them.
AQA
AQA A-level Computer Science (7517)
| Component | Share of grade | Length | Marks | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 — An on-screen exam testing programming skills, data structures and algorithms | 40% | 2 hours 30 min | — | on-screen exam and programming |
| Paper 2 — Written paper on the theory content | 40% | 2 hours 30 min | — | short answer and extended response |
| Non-exam assessment: the computing practical project | 20% | Assessed in school | 75 marks | project and programming |
- Paper 1 is sat at a computer, not on paper. A student who has only written code on paper for a year is being examined on a skill they have not practised in the form it is tested.
Checked on 22 September 2026
OCR
OCR A Level Computer Science (H446)
| Component | Share of grade | Length | Marks | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer systems (01) — Processors, software development, exchanging data, data structures, legal and ethical issues. No calculators | 40% | 2 hours 30 min | 140 marks | structured questions and extended response |
| Algorithms and programming (02) — Computational thinking, problem solving, standard algorithms. No calculators | 40% | 2 hours 30 min | 140 marks | problem solving and programming |
| Programming project (03/04) | 20% | Assessed in school | 70 marks | project and programming |
Checked on 22 September 2026
Cambridge International
Cambridge International AS & A Level Computer Science (9618)
| Component | Share of grade | Length | Marks | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: Theory Fundamentals — Syllabus sections 1 to 8 | 25% | 1 hour 30 min | 75 marks | structured questions |
| Paper 2: Fundamental Problem-solving and Programming Skills — Sections 9 to 12, answered in pseudocode | 25% | 2 hours | 75 marks | problem solving and programming |
| Paper 3: Advanced Theory — Sections 13 to 20 | 25% | 1 hour 30 min | 75 marks | structured questions |
| Paper 4: Practical — Sat at a computer | 25% | 2 hours 30 min | — | programming |
- Calculators are not permitted in any paper, and Paper 2 is answered in Cambridge pseudocode rather than a real language. Practising only in Python leaves a quarter of the qualification untested until the exam.
- Pearson does not award an International A Level in Computer Science, so the realistic choice is AQA, OCR or Cambridge.
Checked on 22 September 2026
Specifications are revised periodically. Each block links to the specification it was read from and gives the date it was checked; if your school has moved to a newer specification, that document takes precedence.
What A Level Computer Science covers
The syllabus areas most boards share. Which ones appear, in what order and on which paper differs by board and by specification code — your own specification is the final word. Topic names are left in English, as they appear on the paper.
Computer Systems
Von Neumann architecture, CPU components · Binary arithmetic, character encoding, image/sound representation · Operating systems, virtual memory, scheduling · Network topologies, protocols, cybersecurity
Algorithms and Data Structures
Sorting (merge, quick, bubble) and search algorithms · Stacks, queues, linked lists, binary trees · Big O notation and algorithmic complexity · Graph algorithms: Dijkstra, A*
Programming and OOP
Object-oriented programming principles · Inheritance, polymorphism, encapsulation · File handling and SQL databases · Software development life cycle
Where A Level Computer Science marks are usually lost
Code that only works in your head
Questions that ask students to trace, complete or write code on paper are marked for logic that would actually run: correct loop bounds, initialised variables, the right comparison and the empty or final case handled. Students used to an editor catching their errors lose marks for loops that run once too often and variables never set. At Cambridge, answers must also follow the published pseudocode guide rather than Python habits.
Theory answers missing the key term
Questions on processors, data representation, networking and databases are marked on precise terms: what each register does in the fetch–execute cycle, how lossy and lossless compression differ, what normalisation actually removes. Answers that are roughly right but lack the key term earn little. Floating-point representation, two’s complement and Boolean simplification also catch students out when they are practised too little and too late.
Practising in the wrong setting
Each board tests programming differently, and students lose marks by practising in a setting they will not meet. AQA’s on-screen paper favours students who know the skeleton program well enough to modify it quickly; Cambridge’s practical paper needs fluent console programs, with evidence of testing; OCR’s algorithms paper is answered on paper, without a computer. Calculators are not permitted in OCR or Cambridge papers.
A Level Computer Science coursework
AQA and OCR include a programming project as non-exam assessment; Cambridge International has none and examines programming in a timed practical paper instead. The student chooses a problem, analyses it, designs and builds a substantial solution, tests it and evaluates it, documenting each stage in a report; OCR asks for principles from an agile development approach, in a suitable programming language. A tutor helps the student judge whether a project idea is ambitious enough for the higher mark bands yet realistic to finish, explains the marking criteria, and questions design choices and test plans in review sessions.
A tutor can explain the criteria, question a draft and point to what is weak. The research, the writing and every decision in it stay the student’s own, as the awarding body’s rules require.
How we teach A Level Computer Science
A tutor treats programming as a skill practised every week and theory as a vocabulary to be exact about. Programming work uses the language the school has chosen, building from short exercises to the standard algorithms — searching, sorting, recursion, stacks, queues, trees and graph traversal — and then to board-specific practice: AQA’s skeleton program, worked through feature by feature once the preliminary material is out; OCR’s scenario-based problem-solving questions; Cambridge pseudocode alongside timed practical tasks at the computer. Theory is taught with diagrams and worked examples, then tested in short written answers checked against mark schemes. Trace tables are used throughout, because they build the habit of running code mentally, which every board’s written papers demand.
Your starting point is reviewed before the study plan is finalised. The exact method depends on the programme and is agreed on the intro call — for some students that means a timed section, for others it means reading a recent score report or a piece of marked work. We will tell you which applies to you before you book anything, rather than describing a process here that may not be the one you get.
Related subjects and pages
A Level Mathematics
Live online A Level Mathematics tutoring for AQA, OCR, Pearson Edexcel and Cambridge: pure, statistics and mechanics, and each board’s calculator rules.
A Level Further Mathematics
Live online A Level Further Mathematics tutoring for AQA, OCR, Pearson Edexcel and Cambridge: proof, complex numbers, matrices and your optional papers.
A Level Physics
A Level Physics lessons online for AQA, OCR, Pearson Edexcel and Cambridge: method marks, uncertainties, graph work, practical skills, clear explanations.
A Level Tutoring
Board-aware A Level tutoring online: AQA, OCR, Pearson Edexcel (UK and International A Level) and Cambridge International, subject by subject.
A Level prices
A Level tutoring from USD 95 per 90-minute lesson. Compare lesson packages and included materials.
A Level Computer Science: reviews from our students
Students and parents who prepared with us write these reviews themselves. We check each one before publishing it and never change its words or its star rating.
Nobody has reviewed this programme here yet. If you prepared with us, tell other students across Africa how it went.
Frequently asked questions
Short, direct answers. If yours is not here, ask us.
Talk to us about A Level Computer Science
Tell us your board or level, your predicted grade and when you sit it. We will tell you honestly whether you need a tutor, and which one.