General administration
You can find information about all aspects of administration, as well as all the forms you need, at aqa.org.uk/examsadmin
Entries and codes
You only need to make one entry for each qualification – this will cover all the question papers and certification.
Every specification is given a national discount (classification) code by the Department for Education (DfE), which indicates its subject area.
If a student takes two specifications with the same discount code, Further and Higher Education providers are likely to take the view that they have only achieved one of the two qualifications. Please check this before your students start their course.
| Qualification title | AQA entry code | DfE discount code |
|---|---|---|
| AQA Advanced Subsidiary GCE in Sociology | 7191 | 4890 (post-16), EE2 (KS4) |
| AQA Advanced Level GCE in Sociology | 7192 | 4890 |
These specifications comply with Ofqual’s:
- General conditions of recognition that apply to all regulated qualifications
- GCE qualification level conditions that apply to all GCEs
- GCE subject level conditions that apply to all GCEs in this subject
- all relevant regulatory documents.
Ofqual has accredited these specifications. The qualification accreditation number (QAN) for the AS is 601/3995/X. The QAN for the A-level is 601/3994/8.
Overlaps with other qualifications
There is overlapping content in the AS and A-level Sociology specifications. This helps you teach the AS and A-level together.
Awarding grades and reporting results
The AS qualification will be graded on a five-point scale: A, B, C, D and E.
The A-level qualification will be graded on a six-point scale: A*, A, B, C, D and E.
Students who fail to reach the minimum standard for grade E will be recorded as U (unclassified) and will not receive a qualification certificate.
Re-sits and shelf life
Students can re-sit the qualifications as many times as they wish, within the shelf life of the qualifications.
Previous learning and prerequisites
There are no previous learning requirements. Any requirements for entry to a course based on these specifications are at the discretion of schools and colleges.
However, we recommend that students should have the skills associated with a GCSE course or equivalent.
Access to assessment: diversity and inclusion
General qualifications are designed to prepare students for a wide range of occupations and further study. Therefore our qualifications must assess a wide range of competences.
The subject criteria have been assessed to see if any of the skills or knowledge required present any possible difficulty to any students, whatever their ethnic background, religion, sex, age, disability or sexuality. If any difficulties were encountered, the criteria were reviewed again to make sure that tests of specific competences were only included if they were important to the subject.
As members of the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) we participate in the production of the JCQ document Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments: General and Vocational qualifications. We follow these guidelines when assessing the needs of individual students who may require an access arrangement or reasonable adjustment. This document is published on the JCQ website at jcq.org.uk
Students with special needs
We can make arrangements for students with special needs to help them access the assessments, as long as the competences being tested are not changed. These arrangements must be made before the assessment. For example, we can agree to a reader for an individual student with learning difficulties. This would be classed as an access arrangement.
Students with disabilities
We can make reasonable adjustments for disabled students. For example, a Braille paper would be a reasonable adjustment for a Braille reader but not for a student who does not read Braille. We are required by the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments to remove or lessen any disadvantage that affects a disabled student.
If you have students who need access arrangements or reasonable adjustments, you can apply using the Access arrangements online service at aqa.org.uk/eaqa
Special consideration
We can give special consideration to students who have been disadvantaged at the time of the assessment through no fault of their own – for example a temporary illness, injury or serious problem such as the death of a relative. We can only do this after the assessment.
Your exams officer should apply online for special consideration at aqa.org.uk/eaqa
For more information and advice about access arrangements, reasonable adjustments and special consideration please see aqa.org.uk/access or email accessarrangementsqueries@aqa.org.uk
Safeguarding
Some of the content within this curriculum may generate discussions or disclosures from students which raise safeguarding concerns. If this happens, please follow your centre’s safeguarding policy to arrange support.
Working with AQA for the first time
If your school or college has not previously offered any AQA specification, you need to register as an AQA centre to offer our specifications to your students. Find out how at aqa.org.uk/becomeacentre
If your school or college is new to these specifications, please let us know by completing an Intention to enter form. The easiest way to do this is via e-AQA at aqa.org.uk/eaqa
Private candidates
A private candidate is someone who enters for exams through an AQA-approved school or college but is not enrolled as a student there.
If you are a private candidate you may be self-taught, home-schooled or have private tuition, either with a tutor or through a distance learning organisation. You must be based in the UK.
If you have any queries as a private candidate, you can:
- speak to the exams officer at the school or college where you intend to take your exams
- visit our website at aqa.org.uk/examsadmin
- email: privatecandidates@aqa.org.uk
