OCR A-Level History A exam papers and weighting (H505)

Guide overview All 58 units Sample questions Papers and weighting Look inside Questions and answers

What each OCR A-Level History A paper assesses

OCR A-Level History A (specification H505) is built entirely from options. A student takes one British period study and enquiry from thirteen, one non-British period study from twenty-four and one thematic study with historical interpretations from twenty-one, alongside a topic-based essay researched independently. All fifty-eight taught units are banked here, so pick the three you are sitting on the topic selection page and everything else drops away.

Paper Covers Length Marks Weighting
Y101 to Y113
British period study and enquiry
One unit of thirteen, made up of a period study and an enquiry topic that precedes or continues it
Section A is the enquiry: one compulsory question analysing and evaluating four primary sources to test a hypothesis (30 marks)
Section B is the period study: one essay chosen from two, reaching a substantiated judgement (20 marks)
1 hour 30 minutes 50 marks 25%
Y201 to Y224
Non-British period study
One unit of twenty-four, each built on four key topics
One two-part question chosen from two
A comparison of two factors and their relative importance (10 marks), then an essay on a different part of the period (20 marks)
1 hour 30 marks 15%
Y301 to Y321
Thematic study and historical interpretations
One unit of twenty-one, covering themes across at least a hundred years with three named depth studies
Section A: an essay judging which of two historians' extracts about one of the three depth studies is more convincing (30 marks)
Section B: two thematic essays from a choice of three, each covering the whole period (50 marks)
2 hours 30 minutes 80 marks 40%
Y100
Topic based essay
An independently researched essay of 3,000 to 4,000 words
Explains and analyses different perspectives on a historical issue, using a range of sources and interpretations
Titles must be checked by OCR; marked by the centre and moderated
Non-exam assessment 40 marks 20%

Every unit, and where it is examined

Unit Component Examined on Questions
Y101: Alfred and the Making of England 871-1016 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 114
Y102: Anglo-Saxon England and the Norman Conquest 1035-1107 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 113
Y103: England 1199-1272 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 114
Y104: England 1377-1455 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 105
Y105: England 1445-1509: Lancastrians, Yorkists and Henry VII British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 104
Y106: England 1485-1558: the Early Tudors British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 99
Y107: England 1547-1603: the Later Tudors British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 100
Y108: the Early Stuarts and the Origins of the Civil War 1603-1660 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 115
Y109: the Making of Georgian Britain 1678-C.1760 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 100
Y110: from Pitt to Peel 1783-1853 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 107
Y111: Liberals, Conservatives and the Rise of Labour 1846-1918 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 115
Y112: Britain 1900-1951 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 112
Y113: Britain 1930-1997 British period study and enquiry, one of thirteen Y101 to Y113 100
Y201: the Rise of Islam C.550-750 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 78
Y202: Charlemagne 768-814 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 79
Y203: the Crusades and the Crusader States 1095-1192 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y204: Genghis Khan and the Explosion from the Steppes C.1167-1405 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y205: Exploration, Encounters and Empire 1445-1570 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y206: Spain 1469-1556 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y207: the German Reformation and the Rule of Charles V 1500-1559 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 79
Y208: Philip II 1556-1598 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y209: African Kingdoms C.1400-c.1800: Four Case Studies Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y210: Russia 1645-1741 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y211: the Rise and Decline of the Mughal Empire in India 1526-1739 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 79
Y212: the American Revolution 1740-1796 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 79
Y213: the French Revolution and the Rule of Napoleon 1774-1815 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 79
Y214: France 1814-1870 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y215: Italy and Unification 1789-1896 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y216: the USA in the 19Th Century: Westward Expansion and Civil War 1803-C.1890 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y217: Japan 1853-1937 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y218: International Relations 1890-1941 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 84
Y219: Russia 1894-1941 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y220: Italy 1896-1943 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y221: Democracy and Dictatorships in Germany 1919-1963 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 88
Y222: the Cold War in Asia 1945-1993 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y223: the Cold War in Europe 1941-1995 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 79
Y224: Apartheid and Reconciliation: South African Politics 1948-1999 Non-British period study, one of twenty-four Y201 to Y224 80
Y301: the Early Anglo-Saxons C.400-800 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 138
Y302: the Viking Age C.790-1066 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y303: English Government and the Church 1066-1216 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y304: the Church and Medieval Heresy C.1100-1437 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y305: the Renaissance C.1400-c.1600 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 135
Y306: Rebellion and Disorder Under the Tudors 1485-1603 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 139
Y307: Tudor Foreign Policy 1485-1603 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 132
Y308: the Catholic Reformation 1492-1610 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 138
Y309: the Ascendancy of the Ottoman Empire 1453-1606 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y310: the Development of the Nation State: France 1498-1610 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 139
Y311: the Origins and Growth of the British Empire 1558-1783 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 139
Y312: Popular Culture and the Witchcraze of the 16Th and 17Th Centuries Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y313: the Ascendancy of France 1610-1715 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y314: the Challenge of German Nationalism 1789-1919 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 136
Y315: the Changing Nature of Warfare 1792-1945 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 138
Y316: Britain and Ireland 1791-1921 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 149
Y317: China and Its Rulers 1839-1989 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 139
Y318: Russia and Its Rulers 1855-1964 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 136
Y319: Civil Rights in the USA 1865-1992 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y320: from Colonialism to Independence: the British Empire 1857-1965 Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140
Y321: the Middle East 1908-2011: Ottomans to Arab Spring Thematic study and historical interpretations, one of twenty-one Y301 to Y321 140

Assessment details from the OCR Level 3 Advanced GCE in History A, specification H505, version 3.2. OCR specification.

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