The British curriculum

Who uses it?

Schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as British international schools.

What qualifications are there?

GCSEs at age 16, and A levels at 18.

What do you study?

At secondary school level, students study a mix of individual subjects, usually including the compulsory “core subjects” of English, maths and science, plus other options.

The foundation subjects are computing, physical education and citizenship, and the schools must offer at least one of the following areas: arts, design and technology, humanities, and modern foreign languages.

Find more information about the number of students in England sitting GCSEs.

Students study all subjects during their first three years (Year 7 to Year 9), before going on to study between 9 and 12 subjects in preparation to sit their GCSE exams at the end of Year 11 (usually aged 16). These subjects depend on the school and the personal choices students make after their first three years of secondary school.

Science can be worth up to three GCSEs depending on which course you choose. English is split into language and literature and is worth two GCSEs.

Post-16 students have the option to go on and study subjects at A level. A levels are two-year courses that are studied between the ages of 16 and 18. Usually, students choose to study either three or four A levels. Sometimes, students will study one or two A levels, and also some GCSEs, but these students will usually not go on to study at university.

A full list of A-level subjects can be found here.

How are you assessed?

GCSEs are usually assessed using a mixture of coursework and exams. Some subjects, such as English language, English literature, maths and science, are entirely exam based.

More practical subjects contain coursework components, such as art (which is 60 per cent coursework) and graphics (which is 50 per cent coursework).

Generally, students sit the exams in May and June, with results being released in August.

All GCSEs and A levels are overseen and regulated by Ofqual. You can find more information about Ofqual here.

The International Baccalaureate curriculum

Who uses it?

International schools worldwide, including some in the UK.

What qualifications are there? 

Between the ages of 11 and 16, you can study the five-year IB middle years programme (MYP). This phase consists of eight subject groups that are designed to complement each other, with two of these making up an interdisciplinary unit.

After the middle years programme, students can go on to take the two-year IB diploma programme (DP). This phase is made up of six subject groups.

What do you study? 

Even when progressing to study the diploma programme, students are required to study all areas of the curriculum: language and literature, language acquisition, individuals and societies, sciences, mathematics and the arts. 

They can, however, put emphasis on certain subjects by choosing to study at least three at higher level (HL) and the remaining at standard level (SL).

Perhaps the most rigorous aspect of the IBDP is “the core”. This comprises three elements: the theory of knowledge (TOK); the extended essay (EE); and creativity, activity, service (CAS).

How are you assessed?

To complete their diploma, students must produce an oral presentation and a 1,600-word essay for their TOK assessment. Students must also produce a 4,000-word extended essay.

In addition to this, students must complete creativity, activity, service (CAS) projects. The “creativity” component can refer to arts and other experiences that involve creative thinking. “Activity” means undertaking physical exertion contributing to a healthy lifestyle, complementing academic work elsewhere in the DP. An example of a “service” might be undertaking an unpaid and voluntary exchange that has a learning benefit for the student.

Projects can range from musicals to sports coaching to recycling drives. 

Together, the TOK and EE make up to three points towards a student’s overall diploma score. CAS does not make up part of the overall diploma score but authenticated participation is required before the diploma is awarded.

The American curriculum

Who uses it?

American schools and American international schools.

What qualifications are there?

From 9th grade to 12th grade (ages 14-18), students prepare for their high school diploma.

There are also the SAT and ACT exams. Colleges and universities often require SAT or ACT scores from students. The SAT exam is a standardised multiple-choice exam that lasts three hours. There is an optional 50-minute essay you can also do. The ACT test is similar, however, the subject content differs and the points system varies. 

An SAT score is between 400 and 1,600, and an average score is 1,060. An ACT score is between 1 and 36 and an average score is 21. 

You can take the SAT or the ACT at multiple points in the year.

Find out more about the SAT.

What do you study?

The curriculum students study at American international schools can vary. Typically, it will be an Honours or Advanced Placement (AP) programme. 

An AP programme is for the most able students only, and an extremely challenging course. 

In schools where an American curriculum is followed, it is common to put students on to one of three tracks: high school diploma, community college or university track (this would be the AP classes). However, some schools use their own terminology to describe these tracks.

Unlike the GCSE or A-Level programmes, American schools tend to use a broad-based curriculum that requires students to take a total of 26 credits to graduate with the basic high school diploma.

The 26 credits will come from a range of subjects, but some courses are specified, such as English, social studies, science, maths, arts and PE.

Many schools also offer the chance to gain supplementary credits. These credits are awarded for participation in out of school activities or extracurricular participation. For example, some schools will award PE credits to students who are members of the water polo team.  

How are you assessed?

Unlike the UK, there are no national curriculum exams in the US, and all schools set their own exams. Instead, schools will report grades every half term using letter grades A-F.

These lettered grades are transposed into numbers, with an A becoming a four, B becoming a three and so on. A final average for the year is given called a grade point average (GPA).  

All of the grades together are called a transcript, and the GPA is then averaged for the entire four years of high school. Students are then ranked, and the student with the highest score is awarded the title of “class valedictorian”, and will make a speech at the graduation ceremony in the summer.