What are GCSEs?


GCSEs are qualifications that school children in the UK study towards when they’re 14 years old or in Year 10. GCSE stands for General Certificate of Secondary Education and chosen subjects are studied over two years with final exams taking place in Year 11. After choosing their GCSE options and completing their qualifications, school students are then able to decide whether they want to leave school education or continue studying towards A-level qualifications. Students have to stay in education or training till they're 18, although training could be an apprenticeship course taken as part of a paid job.

 




What GCSEs do I need to find a job?

 

When it comes to finding a job, most employers will look at your GCSE uk qualifications to see if the subjects that you studied are relevant to the type of work that they do. Although every job is different, most companies will expect you to have at least 5 GCSEs including English, Maths and Science from levels A to C. In some cases, students leave secondary school with 10 GCSEs or more.

 

The more further education (eg A-levels) or higher education (eg a degree) qualifications you have, the less important your GCSEs will be. However, it's impossible to know what the future holds so it's important to work towards the best GCSE results you can achieve.

 

What GCSE subjects are compulsory?

Woman at recruitment fair

Most employers look for 5 GCSEs, grades A to C

Although you do get to choose most your GCSE options, there are some subjects that are compulsory. These are known as core GCSE subjects and include:

 

Maths

English Language

English Literature

Welsh (if you live in Wales)

Sciences (either single, double or triple science)

The core science GCSE subjects are biology, physics and chemistry. You need to choose at least one core science subject as part of your options but you also have the opportunity to choose all 3.

 

You also have to do foundation subjects:

 

Computing

Physical education (PE)

Citizenship

Although these are the main compulsory subjects, some schools do make other GCSE subjects compulsory, so you should double check with your school if there are any other subjects that you need to take in addition to the ones above.

 

What optional GCSE subjects can I take?

Optional GCSE subjects vary from school to school. Some subjects may be restricted, whereas others may not be offered at all. In some cases, if you really want to study a subject that your school doesn’t offer, you may be able to take the subject elsewhere like at college or in another school. In most cases, you’ll need to take at least one subject from the following four groups:

 

Arts

Design and technology

Humanities

Modern foreign languages

If you have a particular career in mind, you should do some research into what subjects employers in that industry look for. If you’re considering staying on at school to study A-levels, then you should also think about what subjects you’ll want to study then, as some schools require you to have taken a subject at GCSE level if you want to study it later at A-level.

 

If however, like most students in Year 9, you still don’t know what career you’d like to have, then you may want to consider keeping your options open. Sometimes, studying a range of different subjects can be a good way for you to decide what sort of career you’d like when you leave school.

 

 

 

For example, if you find that you really enjoy languages, then you might consider a career in tourism, or if you find that you love geography, you might want a career that allows you to travel.

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