Chemistry

Studying Chemistry at Bow Sixth Form

Exam Board: Edexcel

Entry Requirements: A minimum of a grade 6 in five subjects at GCSE, including a 7-6 in Combined Science, or grade 6 in Separate Sciences.

Why study this course?

A-Level Chemistry is a good subject for anyone who is interested in science and wants to understand how things
work. It builds on what you learn at GCSE and gives you a better understanding of things like chemical reactions, atoms and how different substances behave. Chemistry is also useful for lots of university courses and careers, including medicine, engineering, pharmacy, healthcare and other areas of science.

What will I study?

AQA A-Level Chemistry is split into three main areas: Physical Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry and Organic Chemistry. You will learn more about the topics you studied at GCSE but in more detail, as well as learning
some completely new topics. Some of the topics you will study include: Physical Chemistry: Atomic structure, bonding, amount of substance, energetics, rates of reaction, equilibrium, acids and bases and electrochemistry. Inorganic Chemistry: The periodic table, Group 2, Group 7, transition metals and reactions of ions. Organic Chemistry: Alkanes, alkenes, alcohols, haloalkanes, carboxylic acids, aromatic compounds, amines, amino acids and polymers. Practical Chemistry: You will also do practical work throughout the course. This includes things like titrations, making compounds and carrying out experiments to investigate different reactions.

What skills will I gain and where will this take me?

A-Level Chemistry will help you improve your problem-solving, maths, practical and analytical skills. You will learn how to work with data, explain why reactions happen and use what you know to solve different types of problems. The practical side of the course also helps you become more confident when working in a lab and carrying out experiments carefully. Chemistry can lead to lots of different university courses and careers. Some examples include medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, chemistry, biochemistry, chemical engineering, forensic science, environmental science and other healthcare or science-related careers.