GCSE Combined Science vs Triple Science

There is usually a choice of paths for science students in many UK schools. They either take three separate sciences, GCSE Biology, GCSE Chemistry and GCSE Physics, often known as ‘triple science’ offering three separate GCSEs as you can guess, or they take a GCSE that combines the three subjects into two GCSEs, known as GCSE combined science (or double award science). To get the extra GCSE, you have to put in extra work as in the Triple Science course there is a lot more content (and sometimes extra topics) for you to learn. Triple Science also tends to be a bit more difficult than Combined Science but you will often be given more lessons per week than if you were taking Combined Science.

The Background of Triple Science

GCSEs were first introduced in 1988 and students could choose from three separate science subjects. This resulted in most girls dropping physics and most boys dropping biology as subjects. The rules then changed. Since each science GCSE was written assuming 10% of curriculum time, and it was agreed that the 30% required to study all three subjects was too much, the double award science was created. The double award combines all three sciences into two GCSEs taking 20% of the total curriculum time.
Triple science students tend to come from more socially-advantaged backgrounds. Schools in deprived neighbourhoods are less likely to offer triple science and more disadvantaged students are less likely to opt for triple science even if it is offered.
Combined Science is the most common science GCSE as it tends to be compulsory in secondary school.

Who Can Take Triple Science?

Different schools have different criteria for if you are allowed to take Triple Science. Some schools may require you to be in top sets in Year 8 or 9 for science, while others may allow you to make the decision freely. Also, some schools may decide if you can take Triple Science depending on how well you have previously scored on science assessments and tests or depending on what set you are in for science. According to the latest research, most students are not provided with a choice between triple and combined sciences. Instead, the route is laid out for them and the school is typically the key deciding factor. The majority of GCSE students in England follow the Double Award course, which covers approximately two-thirds of the content covered by Triple Award Science students. They are awarded two GCSE grades based on their overall performance across all three science subjects.
The main benefit of combined science courses is that it makes science more manageable for those who are interested in science but are not planning on pursuing it with their A-levels and who are not interested in pursuing a career where science is the main focus.
The benefit of triple science courses is that it puts students in a stronger position for those students who want to move onto A Level science and pursue STEM careers and some research suggests that it gives them more confidence in terms of scientific knowledge and understanding. That said it is still possible to progress to A-level science if you have not completed a triple science course at GCSE.