Approval criteria for a new Made-for-Wales GCSE Integrated Science (Single Award)
Qualifications Wales publishes approval criteria for a new Made-for-Wales Integrated Science GCSE.
This single award GCSE will sit alongside a new Made-for-Wales GCSE The Sciences (Double Award), which has been designed to be the main science qualification taken by the majority of 14 to 16-year-olds in Wales.
The single award GCSE will be taught from September 2026 and has not been designed to support direct progression on to AS and A levels in biology, chemistry or physics.
Since announcing the decision to create this new single award GCSE, Qualifications Wales has worked extensively with a range of stakeholders, including practitioners, subject advisors, WJEC, Welsh Government and the Learned Societies, to co-create the design requirements.
GCSE Integrated Science (Single Award) will be structured thematically so that learners have the opportunity to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding within a range of themes and contexts.
Qualifications Wales has worked closely with stakeholders to ensure that the content of the new single award GCSE will:
- allow learners to develop their knowledge, understanding and skills in the sciences
- give learners the opportunity to become more curious about the sciences and search for answers by developing their scientific enquiry skills
- enable learners to understand how the sciences are inter-related
- reflect Curriculum for Wales’ guidance
- be engaging, relevant and manageable for learners and teachers
- appropriately cover level 1 and level 2 of the Credit and Qualifications Framework for Wales
To find out more, read the Made-for-Wales GCSE Integrated Science (Single Award) report