GCSE Additional and Further

There are Further (GCSE and iGCSE) and Additional Maths (GCSE and iGCSE) courses for more able mathematicians who plan to study maths at A Level.  These courses are a great stepping stone between GCSE/iGCSE and A Level. 

 

Available Courses

• AQA GCSE Further Maths.  This is only available in the UK.  Click here to find papers for this course. 
• Edexcel iGCSE Further Maths. This is offered in the UK and internationally and is harder than AQA Further Maths.  Click here to find papers for this course. 
• OCR GCSE Additional Maths. This is only available in the UK.  This is harder than both AQA Additional Maths and Edexcel Further Maths.  Click here to find papers for this course. 
• Cambridge iGCSE Additional Maths (spec 0606). This is offered in the UK and internationally. This is the hardest course of all.   Click here to find papers for this course. 

 

Additional Maths verus Further Maths

Additional maths is considered harder than further maths. Further maths is a GCSE equivalent, rather than a GCSE. Additional maths is better than a GCSE, more like half an AS level. Additional maths is a level 3 qualification which gives UCAS points, while Further Maths is a level 2 course (GCSE equivalent).   Additional Maths will prepare a student a lot better than Further Maths will and has a lot of the content that is learnt during half of the first year of A Level maths. Further Maths is just an extension of GCSE knowledge.

Let's take a look at each course in further detail:

 

OCR GCSE Additional Maths

The OCR additional GCSE maths course (FSMQ) is a level 3 course, which really helps to bridge the gap between GCSE and A level and really builds on the key skills one needs for A level and will give one a great head start. This gives UCAS points. 

For past papers click

OCR GCSE Additional Past Papers

For a syllabus list click

OCR GCSE Additional Maths Topic List

 

AQA GCSE Further Maths

AQA Further GCSE Maths is a level 2 course and will help students stretch their knowledge beyond GCSE.  Both are similar in content and both are good preparation for Maths A-level, however, AQA Further doesn't go as far into the A level content as OCR Additional does.  AQA is 2 exams compared to OCR's one exam. 

AQA Further and OCR Additional maths courses are only recognised in the UK. 

For past papers click

AQA GCSE Further Maths Past Papers

For a topic list click

AQA GCSE Further Maths Topic List

 

Edexcel iGCSE Further Maths

AQA is not the only Further maths course. There is also iGCSE Edexcel Further Maths which is harder than AQA Further Maths and covers more content than AQA, but easier than OCR.  This course is offered in the UK and internationally.

For past papers click

Edexcel GCSE Further Maths Past Papers

For a topic list click

Edexcel GCSE Further Maths Topic List

 

Cambridge iGCSE Additional Maths

OCR is not the only additional maths course. There is also a Cambridge iGCSE additional maths course which is the hardest of all and is recognised internationally as well as the UK just like Edexcel iGCSE Further maths.  

For past papers click

Cambridge iGCSE Additional Maths Past Papers

For a topic list click

Cambridge iGCSE Additional Maths Topic List

 

Comparison Between All Four Courses

To see a comparison between topics in both AQA and Edexcel further maths courses click

Further Maths Comparison

To see a comparison between topics in both OCR and Cambridge additional maths courses click

Additional Maths Comparison

To see a comparison between topics in all further and additional maths courses click

Further versus Additional Maths

In order of difficulty from least to greatest (1 being the easiest and 4 being the hardest):

1) AQA GCSE Further Maths

2) Edexcel iGCSE Further Maths 

3)OCR GCSE Additional Maths 

4)Cambridge iGCSE Additional Maths (spec 0606)

The further/additional course you study will depend on which course your particular school has chosen and obviously depends on which country you live in as only the UK offer AQA and OCR. 

 

Link To A Level Maths

The additional and further maths GCSE options cater for pupils who would like to study beyond the Higher Tier GCSE syllabus and are capable of working above this level. These syllabi are purely designed to broaden the mathematical experience of high attaining pupils and prepares them well for the first half of AS Mathematics.

To see how much of the A Level maths syllabus these courses cover click:

A Level Comparison