IGCSE Study Guide

Cambridge IGCSE is, in Cambridge's words, the world's most popular international qualification for 14 to 16 year olds, although students of other ages can take it. It is taught by over 4,500 schools in over 140 countries. In the June 2026 series alone there were almost 757,000 Cambridge IGCSE entries, and the most popular subjects were Mathematics, Physics, First Language English, Chemistry and Biology.

IGCSE is a set of separate subject certificates

Unlike a national leaving exam, there is no fixed IGCSE "package". Students can choose from about 70 subjects in any combination, and each subject is graded on its own. That has three practical consequences:

• Each subject has a syllabus code. Mathematics is 0580, Biology is 0610, Chemistry is 0620. When you search for past papers or check a rule, search by code.
• Similar-looking subjects can be different exams. Mathematics 0580, International Mathematics 0607 and the 9 to 1 graded Mathematics 0980 are separate syllabuses, and Cambridge does not let you take 0580 alongside 0607, 0980 or O Level Mathematics 4024 in the same series.
• Cambridge designs each subject to need about 130 guided learning hours. If you are taking eight subjects, that is roughly 1,000 hours of teaching across the course, which is why most schools spread IGCSE over two years.

Choosing a sensible set

Schools usually decide which subjects they offer, but within that you should think about what comes next. Cambridge says that its IGCSE, IGCSE (9 to 1) and O Level syllabuses are all at the same level. If you want to study a subject at AS and A Level, take the IGCSE in it if you can. Cambridge also offers a group award, the Cambridge ICE (International Certificate of Education), which recognises students who pass exams across a broad range of subjects.

How IGCSE relates to O Level

Cambridge O Level is a separate Cambridge qualification for the same age group, and Cambridge describes the two as equivalent grade for grade. The main differences students notice are that many IGCSE subjects have Core and Extended tiers and a G grade at the bottom, while O Level papers are single-tier and graded A* to E. Cambridge has also announced a phased move of O Level schools in administrative zones 3 and 5 to IGCSE from 2028. See our O Level guide if your school offers O Level.

A note on Pearson Edexcel International GCSE

Some schools offer Pearson Edexcel International GCSEs instead of, or alongside, Cambridge. They are a different board's qualification with different papers. Pearson grades its International GCSEs on a 9 to 1 scale and offers them in the May to June and November series. If your school uses Edexcel, use Pearson's specifications and past papers, not Cambridge's.

In tiered subjects you are entered for either Core or Extended papers. Core covers the Core content only. Extended covers Core plus extra Supplement content and is aimed at students expected to achieve a grade C or above. The tier changes which papers you sit and which grades you can receive.

Example 1: Mathematics 0580 (exams in 2025 to 2027)

	Core	Extended
Who should enter	Studied Core content, or expected grade D or below	Studied Extended content, expected grade C or above
Non-calculator paper	Paper 1: 1 hour 30 minutes, 80 marks, 50%	Paper 2: 2 hours, 100 marks, 50%
Calculator paper	Paper 3: 1 hour 30 minutes, 80 marks, 50%	Paper 4: 2 hours, 100 marks, 50%
Grades available	C to G	A* to E

Example 2: Biology 0610 (exams in 2026 to 2028)

	Core	Extended
Multiple choice	Paper 1: 45 minutes, 40 questions, 30%	Paper 2: 45 minutes, 40 questions, 30%
Theory	Paper 3: 1 hour 15 minutes, 80 marks, 50%	Paper 4: 1 hour 15 minutes, 80 marks, 50%
Practical (both tiers choose one)	Paper 5 Practical Test (1 hour 15 minutes) or Paper 6 Alternative to Practical (1 hour), both 40 marks, 20%
Grades available	C to G	A* to G

Notice the difference. An Extended Mathematics candidate can only be awarded A* to E, so a weak performance on Paper 2 and Paper 4 can end up ungraded. An Extended Biology candidate can be awarded any grade from A* to G. Core candidates in both subjects are capped at grade C.

How to decide

• If you are realistically aiming for an A or B, you must be on Extended: Core cannot give you more than a C.
• If your mock results are around the C/D boundary, look at the grade range for your subject. Where Extended allows only A* to E (as in 0580), entering Extended and underperforming risks an ungraded result. Talk to your teacher.
• If you need a C for the next step, Core in a subject like 0580 still allows a C, with shorter papers on narrower content.

Because every IGCSE subject has its own papers, no general guide can tell you how long your Geography Paper 2 is. Your syllabus can. Cambridge says that syllabuses and specimen materials represent the final authority on the content and structure of its assessments. Download the syllabus PDF from your subject's page on cambridgeinternational.org and read these parts:

1. The cover. It says which exam years the syllabus covers, for example "Use this syllabus for exams in 2026, 2027 and 2028", and which series it is offered in. Cambridge reminds schools to check they are using the syllabus for the year the candidate sits the exam.
2. Assessment overview. The single most useful page. It lists every component (paper), its duration, its marks, its weighting as a percentage, and for tiered subjects the grades each tier can get.
3. Assessment objectives (AOs) and their weightings. These tell you what kind of thinking earns the marks. In Biology, for example, AO1 is knowledge with understanding, AO2 is handling information and problem-solving, and AO3 is experimental skills.
4. Subject content. The list of what can be examined, split into Core and Supplement in tiered subjects. Use it as your revision checklist.
5. Details of the assessment. Rules such as accuracy requirements. The 0580 syllabus, for example, says non-exact answers should be given to 3 significant figures, or 1 decimal place for angles in degrees, unless the question says otherwise, and that you should not round until the final answer.
6. Command words. A table of words such as Calculate, Describe, Explain and what each one means in an exam.
7. Changes to this syllabus. What is new compared with the previous version. If something has been removed, older past papers may contain questions you will never be asked.

Turning weightings into a revision plan

Component weightings tell you where the marks are. In Biology 0610, the theory paper is worth 50% of the qualification, the multiple choice paper 30%, and the practical paper 20%. A rough way to estimate your overall standing from mock papers is to weight each paper's percentage score by its share:

For example, 30/40 on multiple choice, 52/80 on theory and 28/40 on practical gives 0.30(0.75) + 0.50(0.65) + 0.20(0.70) = 0.69, about 69%. This is only an estimate for planning; Cambridge sets grade thresholds after each series, so the same percentage can map to different grades in different years.

The A* to G scale

Cambridge IGCSE grades are A*, A, B, C, D, E, F and G, with A* the highest and G the lowest. "Ungraded" means the candidate did not reach the standard for grade G; it appears on the statement of results but not on the certificate. You may also see Q (pending) or X (no result) on a statement of results; these never appear on the certificate. The certificate itself shows the qualification as INTERNATIONAL GENERAL CERTIFICATE OF SECONDARY EDUCATION (IGCSE).

The 9 to 1 option

Cambridge also offers some IGCSEs graded 9 to 1, matching the scale introduced for GCSEs in England from June 2017. Key facts:

• Availability: 9 to 1 graded Cambridge IGCSEs are offered in administrative zone 3, where schools can choose either scale. All schools can keep A* to G.
• Separate syllabus codes: each scale has its own code, for example Accounting 0452 (A* to G) and Accounting (9 to 1) 0985, or Biology 0610 and Biology (9 to 1) 0970.
• Same content: Cambridge says the syllabus content and the method of assessment are the same in each version.
• No switching late: once an entry is made on either scale, it cannot be moved to the other after the entries deadline.

How 9 to 1 maps to letters

Cambridge sets the 9 to 1 scale so that the standards at the thresholds of grades 7, 4 and 1 are the same as at the thresholds of A, C and G. Grades 8, 6, 5, 3 and 2 are set arithmetically between those anchors, and grade 9 is set using a mix of statistical and judgemental evidence. Cambridge reports that universities have said they will treat 9 to 1 and A* to G students equally.

9 to 1	Letter-grade anchor
9	Set using statistical and judgemental evidence
8	Set arithmetically above 7
7	Threshold matches A
6, 5	Between A and C
4	Threshold matches C
3, 2	Between C and G
1	Threshold matches G

Grade thresholds

Cambridge publishes grade threshold tables after each exam series. A threshold is the minimum number of marks a candidate needs for a particular grade in a paper or a subject. Thresholds can move from series to series, which is why no one can tell you in advance the exact mark for an A*. Old threshold tables are still useful: they tell you roughly what proportion of marks has been needed for each grade on your syllabus.

The three series

• June series: available for IGCSE syllabuses worldwide.
• November series: the second main series each year. Most syllabuses, including 0580 and 0610, are offered in both June and November.
• March series: for schools in India only, and only for some syllabuses. Mathematics 0580 and Biology 0610, for example, state on their covers that exams are also available in the March series in India. Cambridge does not produce separate syllabuses for March.

Timetables are set by zone

All Cambridge schools are allocated to one of six administrative zones, and each zone has its own timetable. Cambridge says the zones help it maintain exam security and manage timetabling. When you look up exam dates, use your zone's timetable on cambridgeinternational.org, or ask your exams officer. Do not rely on a date from a friend in another country.

Entries, private candidates and retakes

• Your school's exams officer submits entries to Cambridge, including the right tier and component options (for example, Paper 5 or Paper 6 in Biology).
• Private candidates can enter many syllabuses; the 0580 and 0610 syllabuses both say so. The Cambridge Guide to Making Entries has the details.
• You can retake the whole qualification as many times as you want.

Where to find official papers

Every syllabus page on cambridgeinternational.org has a Past papers, examiner reports and specimen papers section. On the Mathematics 0580 page, for example, you can download June 2024 Question Papers 11, 21, 31 and 41 with their mark schemes, the June 2024 examiner report, and the 2025 specimen papers 1 to 4 with mark schemes. Registered Cambridge schools can access a wider range through the School Support Hub, so ask your teacher for more.

What each resource is for

• Specimen papers show the format and style for a new or revised syllabus before real papers exist. Cambridge says they help students become familiar with exam requirements and command words, and the specimen mark schemes show how to meet the assessment objectives. Start here if your syllabus changed recently.
• Past papers are real papers from earlier series. Cambridge warns that they may not reflect the content of the current syllabus, so check the changes section of your syllabus before using old ones.
• Mark schemes show where marks are given. Read them after attempting a paper, not before.
• Examiner reports describe how candidates actually answered, including common errors. They are the closest thing to advice from the people marking your script.
• Grade threshold tables let you convert a practice score into an approximate grade for a given series.

A four-stage method

1. Learn the content against the syllabus checklist.
2. Practise by topic using questions from several past papers.
3. Sit full papers under timed conditions, with the right calculator rules (for example, no calculator on 0580 Papers 1 and 2).
4. Mark strictly with the official mark scheme, then read the examiner report for that series.