Edexcel A-Level Religious Studies guide FAQ (9RS0)
Guide overview All 9 topics Sample questions Papers and weighting Look inside Questions and answers
Edexcel A-Level Religious Studies: questions and answers
Specification 9RS0. Two sets, because students and parents ask different things.
For students
Which three papers do I sit?
Three of the four, chosen by your school. Philosophy of Religion and Religion and Ethics are the usual pair, with either New Testament Studies or the Study of Religion as the third.
All four are in the guide, and all six religions for Paper 4, so you work your three and skip the rest.
Can I do New Testament Studies and Christianity?
No. Pearson does not allow New Testament Studies to be combined with the Christianity option on Paper 4, because the content overlaps. Any other combination of three papers is permitted.
What are the extracts?
Each paper includes a two-part essay on a set extract, printed in the paper and drawn from the published anthology or, on Paper 4, from that religion’s texts. The marks are for engaging with the position it states, which means knowing that position before you read it under time.
Do I need to know scholars by name?
Yes. The questions ask for specific positions and the people who held them, and the guide asks for them by name with the argument attached.
How long does one session take?
About twenty minutes for one subtopic, all three steps. Topics run from 164 to 210 questions.
Can I do it in my head instead of writing?
Write. An essay wants an accurate, complete account of a position before it wants an evaluation of it, and step 2 is where the gaps get fixed. The method page sets out the evidence.
When should I start?
9RS0 is linear, so all three papers are sat at the end of Year 13. Philosophy and ethics are normally taught first.
Do I still need past papers?
Yes. Past papers train the extract essays and the two-hour clock. Pearson publishes them free.
For parents
What is this, in plain terms?
A PDF of 1,694 exam-style questions covering all four papers and all six religions of Edexcel A-Level Religious Studies, with the answers printed after each topic.
My child only sits three papers.
That is correct. The qualification is three papers chosen from four, and Paper 4 is one religion chosen from six. All of it is in the guide so that any combination is covered, and the rest is skipped.
Is this a devotional book?
No. It is an exam preparation tool. The questions set out positions, arguments and scholarship as the specification examines them, including positions that disagree with each other.
How do I check it is the right course?
The specification code is on the exam timetable. Edexcel A-Level Religious Studies is 9RS0.
How do I know if it is being used properly?
There should be handwritten answers on paper and three passes over the same questions, and two scores per session to compare.
How much is it compared with a textbook?
£8.00 for all four papers and all six religions. An endorsed A-Level Religious Studies textbook covers one paper and is usually £25 to £35.
How much time does the whole course take?
132 subtopics at roughly twenty minutes each is about 44 hours for everything, and closer to 24 once the papers and religions not sat are skipped.
Edexcel A-Level Religious Studies Active Recall Guide
1,694 questions with their answers, 132 subtopics, one file.